South Dakota Divorce Parenting Class: Requirements, Costs, and Deadlines

The Rule That Holds Up Your Decree

Supreme Court Rule 22-09 requires every parent in a South Dakota divorce involving custody or parenting time to complete a court-approved parenting education course. The rule is absolute — a Circuit Judge will not sign any final divorce decree until both parents' certificates of completion are on file with the Clerk of Courts.

This requirement catches people off guard because it applies to both parents, not just the filer. Even if you and your spouse agree on everything and your case is on the fast uncontested track, the judge still needs two certificates before signing.

The 60-Day Deadline

Both parents must complete the course within 60 days of the date the defendant was served with the Summons and Complaint. This runs on the same clock as the mandatory waiting period under SDCL § 25-4-34, so in practice you should start looking for a course immediately after service is complete.

If the 60-day deadline passes before the courses are completed, the judge won't sign your decree until the requirement is addressed and the certificates or an approved waiver are filed. Missing the deadline delays finalization even if everything else is ready.

Approved Programs

The UJS maintains a directory of approved parenting education programs organized by judicial circuit. The available options include:

SMILE (Start Making It Livable for Everyone) is the most widely known program. It's available in Minnehaha County and select other areas, with both in-person and online options. SMILE focuses on helping parents understand how divorce affects children and how to minimize the impact through cooperative co-parenting.

Online courses are available, but approval and accepted formats vary by judicial circuit. If you live in a rural county without a local in-person option, check the UJS directory for an approved online course in your circuit. Most online courses take 4 to 6 hours to complete and can be done at your own pace over several sessions.

In-person workshops are offered through various approved providers in the larger population centers — Sioux Falls, Rapid City, Aberdeen, Pierre. Class schedules vary; check the UJS directory for current offerings.

Cost

Parenting course fees range from $20 to $75 depending on the provider and format. This cost is the responsibility of each individual parent.

Important: even if the court waived your filing fee and service fees through Form UJS-022, that waiver does not extend to private parenting course fees. The court can waive its own charges but not the fees of third-party course providers.

Filing Your Certificate

After completing the course, you'll receive a certificate of completion. Filing that certificate with the Clerk of Courts is entirely your responsibility. Course providers typically don't file on your behalf, and the court doesn't track your enrollment status. If you complete the course but forget to file the certificate, the judge's file shows no proof of completion — and the decree waits.

File the certificate as soon as you receive it. Don't wait until you're submitting your finalization packet. Having it on file early eliminates one potential delay.

Waiver or Extension

A judge can waive or delay the parenting course only on a showing of good cause, which is interpreted narrowly. Accepted grounds typically include:

• You completed an approved parenting course within the past 5 years (for a prior family law case)
• One parent is in default (didn't respond to the filing at all)

To request a waiver, file the Affidavit of Court-Approved Parenting Course (UJS-364) explaining the basis for the request. Simply being too busy or unable to afford the fee generally doesn't qualify as good cause.

Making It Part of Your Plan

The parenting course is one of several parallel tracks that should be running during your 60-day waiting period: financial affidavits, settlement negotiations, and the course itself. Starting the course within the first week after service gives you maximum buffer for scheduling conflicts or provider delays.

The South Dakota Divorce Filing Process Guide maps all of these parallel deadlines so nothing falls through the cracks during the waiting period.

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