SD franchisor bonds.
$150 flat. Five minutes.
When South Dakota’s Securities Regulation administrator conditions a franchise filing on protecting prepaid franchise fees, a franchisor can post a $30,000 surety bond instead of escrowing those fees, under the Franchise Investment Act (SDCL 37-5B). Ours is $150 flat — set by our carrier’s rate book, and the application collects no credit information.
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Three steps. One sitting.
This bond is simple to issue. Here’s the entire process:
Apply online
Franchisor details and an effective date. That’s the application — no financials and no credit section.
Pay & e-sign
Fixed-amount bonds like this are among the thousands of bond types that issue right after purchase. At most, 1–2 business days.
File with Securities Regulation
Your executed bond arrives by email, ready to submit with your franchise notice filing. Wet-ink original mailed on request.
What it is and who needs it.
What the franchisor bond actually covers
South Dakota regulates the offer and sale of franchises under the Franchise Investment Act (SDCL 37-5B), administered by the Division of Insurance, Securities Regulation within the Department of Labor & Regulation. The Act lets the administrator protect prepaid franchise fees when a franchisor’s financial condition or other circumstances warrant it.
When that protection is required, a franchisor can escrow or impound the franchise fees, or post a surety bond in lieu of escrow — and the bond filed here is the $30,000 version of that surety. It protects franchisees who pay fees before the franchisor performs.
This bond is not a mandate on every franchisor — many franchise filings clear without one. It applies when the administrator conditions your filing on bonding or escrow. If you’re unsure whether your filing needs it, confirm with Securities Regulation; if it does, the $30,000 bond is the standard amount, and we issue it at a flat $150 with no credit section in the application.
You need this bond if you’re
Five minutes. The whole thing.
These are the actual issuing fields — no credit section, because this bond doesn’t have one.
Start the application →Common questions.
If yours isn't here, the bond team can usually answer within the hour.
How much is the South Dakota franchisor bond? ▾
Does every franchisor need this bond? ▾
Do I pay the $30,000? ▾
Bond or escrow — which is cheaper? ▾
Is there a credit check? ▾
Other South Dakota bonds.
Franchise fee protection, sorted today.
$150 flat, five-minute application, bond often issued in the same sitting. Free until issued.