Where to File

In South Dakota, as in most states, the proper jurisdiction for filing a financing record under UCC is locally with the county office of the register of deeds and centrally with the office of the Secretary of State. The type of collateral determines the proper jurisdiction for filing (SDCL 57A-9-301).

Determination of debtor's location (SDCL 57A-9-307). In this section, "place of business" means a place where a debtor conducts its affairs. Except as otherwise provided in this section, the following rules determine a debtor's location:

1. A debtor who is an individual is located at the individual's principal residence;
2. A debtor that is an organization and has only one place of business is located at its place of business;
3. A debtor that is an organization and has more than one place of business is located at its chief executive office.

County Register of Deeds

When the collateral is timber to be cut or is minerals or the like (including oil and gas) or accounts subject to subsection (6) of § 57A-9-102, or when the financing record is filed as a fixture filing (§ 57A-9-334) and the collateral is goods which are or are to become fixtures, then the UCC would be filed in the office where a mortgage on the real estate concerned would be filed or recorded.

Office of the Secretary of State

In all other cases, financing records are to be filed with the Office of the Secretary of State. Common examples of types of collateral filed with the Secretary of State include accounts, equipment, inventories, farm products, crops, consumer goods, equipment used in farming operations, etc.

Requests can be sent to:

Secretary of State
UCC Division
500 E. Capitol Ave.
Pierre, SD 57501

Your questions can be answered by contacting our UCC Division at 605-773-4422.

Tribal Filings

If the debtor is a resident of the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation or the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, a lender should contact their legal counsel to determine if the UCC should be filed as a State UCC or Tribal UCC.

Questions regarding Oglala Sioux Tribe UCC filing requirements may be directed to the OST Office of Financial Services (ost_credit@yahoo.com).