Window tint — South Dakota Permit Test

Window tint on the South Dakota permit test — 3 rules, each with the reason behind it and a question on it while it is fresh.

The rules

The windshield and windows beside or forward of the driver may not be covered with film or glass that reduces light transmittance below 35%.

Dark front windows hide a pedestrian at night and keep the driver from seeing cross traffic.

Windshields, side wings or side windows forward of, either side of, or adjacent to the operator’s seat, may not be covered with one-way glass, adhesive film, or other application that reduces the light transmittance to a level below 35%.
South Dakota Driver License Manual, p.24

No motor vehicle may have rear windows that reduce light transmission below 20%, with an enforcement tolerance of 9%.

Rear glass too dark to see through blinds the driver when backing up or checking behind.

No motor vehicle may be equipped with one-way glass, adhesive film, or other glaze in the rear windows that reduces light transmission below 20%, with an enforcement tolerance of 9%.
South Dakota Driver License Manual, p.24

No window film may extend downward beyond the AS-1 line or below the lowest point of the sun visor, and no sun screening device may obstruct the driver’s view through the windshield.

A tint strip hanging too low covers the part of the windshield you look through to see the road.

No film may be extended downward beyond the AS-1 line or more than the lowest point of the sun visor of the motor vehicle.
South Dakota Driver License Manual, p.24

On the test

What is the lowest light transmittance allowed for the windows beside the driver?

At least 35%. Dark front windows hide a pedestrian at night and keep the driver from seeing cross traffic. South Dakota Driver License Manual, p.24: “Windshields, side wings or side windows forward of, either side of, or adjacent to the operator’s seat, may not be covered with one-way glass, adhesive film, or other application that reduces the light transmittance to a level below 35%.”

How this works

Most practice tests hand you a bank of questions and leave the manual somewhere else. This one puts them together.

You read one law and the reason behind it, then answer a question on that law while it is still fresh. Get it right and you move on; get it wrong and you have found the gap while it is cheap to fix, not on the morning of the exam.

Learning one rule at a time, and proving it immediately, is what turns a manual you skimmed into something you actually know — and it makes studying feel like getting somewhere rather than like waiting to find out.

What it costs

One payment, once — not a subscription. Nothing renews and there is nothing to cancel, for an exam you sit one time.
Free to start: a 10-question test and the first section of cards. No sign-up and no account.
Paying opens the rest of the cards, unlimited full-length practice tests, and retests built from exactly the questions you got wrong.
Every level up to Prepared — 3 tests passed in a row.
Do the work, fail the real exam, and we refund you.

All South Dakota permit topics

Where these come from

Every rule here is checked against South Dakota Driver License Manual, published by the South Dakota Department of Public Safety, and against the state code itself. Last checked 2026-10-04.