Ease of Switching Your Domicile State to South Dakota

It is fair to say that South Dakota doesn’t always get the attention it deserves. The biggest thing for which most nonresidents know South Dakota for is Mount Rushmore, and while that’s certainly a massive landmark, there’s a lot more to the state than just that.

For one thing, South Dakota boasts some of the most stunning natural landscapes in the country. It is also a popular location for foreign citizens to work in the United States. Where big cities such as New York, Washington D.C., Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, and San Francisco still rank among the most popular cities for foreign nationals to study and work in, South Dakota as a state offers something totally different. Where the tax rates in those cities’ respective states tend to be on the higher side, South Dakota boasts some of the lowest tax rates in the country.

That fact isn’t lost on American citizens either. It is now possible to switch your “domicile state” to South Dakota to take advantage of their low tax rates.

Better still, this can be relatively easy to do.

Living Requirements

One of the things that makes it so easy to name South Dakota as your “domicile state” is the fact that the requirements for living there to qualify for this status are quite lax. You need to have a permanent address there. We’ll cover this shortly and is relatively easy to come by. In addition, you need to be there in person to apply for and receive certain vital forms of documentation and identification such as your South Dakota driving license. You don’t have to spend that much time in the state. Just one night with a receipt from the hotel. You really only have to drop by when you have legal matters which need to be attended to in person.

This pertains only to remote services such as mail forwarding and tax benefits. For something such as voting registration, the requirements may be different and can change. So, you’ll want to check into that separately.

Applying for Domicile State Status

The process for applying to have a South Dakota residence which can qualify you for domicile state status is easy and straightforward.

All you have to do is:

• Have a permanent address, which you can either arrange on your own or with the help of a mail forwarding company
• Have a driver’s license or similar form of identification
• Fill out and submit the necessary paperwork
• Be there in person to submit and receive documentation
• Renew your information when necessary
• Stay in South Dakota the day you apply for domicile state status
• After you have obtained domicile state status, visit and stay in South Dakota for a single contiguous 24-hour block at least once every few years, with five years being the outside maximum time allowed between visits

Once you have established your status, you’ll be eligible for all manner of tax benefits offered by the state. With the help of mail forwarding companies, setting up a residence in South Dakota has never been easier.