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Step By Step Guide

How to Start a corporation in South Carolina

Forming a corporation provides liability protection for any type of business, and should be among the first steps you take as a new business owner. Starting a corporation can help you protect your personal assets while adding legitimacy to your company. Follow our step by step guide or let us handle the paperwork on your behalf, ensuring your business is filed quickly and accurately.

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Why start and file a corporation in South Carolina?

From AGFirst to Denny's, major corporations are calling South Carolina home to their company headquarters. This is largely due to the cost of doing business, which ranks at #15 as one of the most small business friendly in the country. Dreaming of taking your corporation to The Palmetto State? Let's see how you can form a South Carolina corporation.

Two Ways to Register Your Business

MyCorporation® can help you file all of the necessary documents to form your corporation in South Carolina.

File and submit the formation paperwork yourself

Our free guide provides you with all of the information you'll need to form your corporation in South Carolina. Bookmark this page as a reference so you can return easily as you complete each step of the process.

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How to Start a corporation in South Carolina

The first step will be to decide on a name for your business. Choose a name that is memorable and unique, easy to understand and pronounce, and accurately represents your business. You'll want to search your name choices on the web to quickly find out if they are already taken. It's also best to jot down one or two alternatives, in case the name you settle on is not available for registration in South Carolina.

There are a few rules that South Carolina Corporations must follow in order to register a name.

  • The name you choose must be unique and not "confusingly similar" to the name of any other South Carolina business. This is to prevent fraud or misrepresentation and is a common rule in all 50 states. You can find out whether a name is available in South Carolina with the help of their Business Name Search tool Opens in a new window.

    In a pinch, you can use MyCorporation's business name search service, where we will conduct a more thorough search on your behalf and report back our findings. Plus, MyCorporation includes a business name search for free when we complete your LLC filings on your behalf!

Tip: A business name check is included with every one of our business formation packages. We check with the state to determine the availability of your business name automatically. You can also conduct a nationwide business name search here.

Most states require that you designate a registered agent for your business, and South Carolina is no exception. A registered agent acts as the state's means to communicate with a business and is responsible for receiving legal and official documents related to the business.

A registered agent can be anyone you wish, with one small caveat. The registered agent must have a physical address in South Carolina. In other words, a P.O. Box is not allowed as a registered agent address. This means a member of the Corporation can act as the registered agent if desired, or a third-party registered agent service like MyCorporation can be used.

Why designate a third party to act as my registered agent?

It should be noted that registered agent information is made publicly available. This can cause privacy concerns for business owners who do not wish to list their personal contact information on the internet for everyone to see. It is also common for the registered agent to become a target of spam or robocalls since this private information is relatively easy to obtain.

Another issue that may arise is that in the case of a lawsuit, these documents would be hand delivered directly to the registered agent. In the case that you used your business location for this purpose, this could occur in front of your customers. This is why many business owners opt for a third-party registered agent service such as MyCorporation to act as a registered agent on behalf of their business.

Tip: Our Deluxe and Premium formation packages include a full year of registered agent services for your business. We also offer standalone registered agent services which you can add to your business later.

You will be required to file Articles of Incorporation in South Carolina Opens in a new window to start a corporation. This document includes basic information about the South Carolina corporation such as:

  • The name of the proposed corporation
  • Initial registered office of the corporation and registered agent
  • The corporation is authorized to issue shares of stock (check "a" or "b" as applicable)
  • Date of the corporation's existence
  • Optional provisions
  • Name, address, and signature of each incorporator
  • Signature of the incorporators and name of the corporation
  • Two copies of this form, the original and a duplicate original copy, must be filed. A filing fee of $135 is also required when submitting the Articles of Incorporation. Remember: the $135 filing fee includes the corporation's annual report Opens in a new window which is a $25 CL-1 fee. Make the check or money order payable to the Secretary of State.

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Corporate bylaws are a detailed set of rules agreed upon and adopted by the board of directors after a corporation is formed, that specify the internal management structure of the corporation. They are typically drafted by the corporation's founder or directors. Corporate bylaws are not submitted to the state.

The state of South Carolina does not require a corporation to create bylaws upon approval of the Certificate of Incorporation, but it is strongly recommended. Bylaws allow a business to maintain consistency in the way it operates and communicate organizational rules to help avoid conflicts and disputes. They cover how directors are elected, meetings are organized, and officer roster and summary of duties. In addition to management, bylaws specify details about ownership rights, annual meetings, and the addition or removal of officers and directors.

If you are not sure how to create corporate bylaws, you can purchase MyCorporation's customized Minutes and Bylaws Package. This kit provides you with the internal documents required to fulfill your corporate formalities and properly operate your business after incorporating.

The board of directors of a corporation are normally elected by the shareholders. However, for a new business, the incorporator (the person who signed the Certificate of incorporation) will often designate the initial directors if there are no initial directors named in the certificate of incorporation. This is done by creating the "Statement of Incorporator" which will list the names and addresses of the initial directors of the business.

The statement of incorporator is then signed by all of the incorporators, which passes all elements of control over to the initial directors. This is filed not with the state, but in a corporate minute book of the incorporation. It is kept as part of the corporate record.

The first meeting of the board of directors is an important time in the life cycle of a corporation. During this meeting, the initial directors of the business will adopt the corporate bylaws, set the fiscal year, and appoint corporate officers. It is also common to authorize the issuance of shares of stock to the founders of your company, usually in exchange for assets.

This meeting, and all future meetings of the board of directors, must be recorded in corporate minutes. Minutes are documents that detail what was discussed and any decisions the business makes during meetings. They are stored with the corporate records.

Corporate minutes are required for all South Carolina corporations by law. Falling behind on keeping and maintain minutes can jeopardize the corporation's liability protection and overall tax advantages. It is important to maintain updated corporate minutes and keep copies of all the signed and approved minutes or actions by unanimous consent from any special or annual meetings of the corporation's shareholders and directors.

Stock is a representation of ownership in your corporation. When your shareholders purchase stock, they are buying a small piece of your business. Although it's not legally required, it is common that most corporations will issue paper stock certificates to their shareholders.

In a private company (not publicly traded on the stock market), you can set the value to each stock however you see fit in your corporate bylaws. For example, one share could be worth $10 or $10,000, either would be completely acceptable. If you have additional questions, you may contact the South Carolina Secretary of State to learn more.

Tip: MyCorporation can help you issue stock certificates for your business, allowing you to raise money by way of outside investment.

A South Carolina corporation may need to check in with the South Carolina Secretary of State for more information about the licenses and/or permits required by your business. Several factors, including the company's industry and county location, may determine which documents need to be filed.

An EIN (also referred to as a Federal Tax ID) is a nine-digit number that is issued by the IRS and used to uniquely identify your business for tax purposes. Think of it as a Social Security Number (SSN) for your business, except an EIN is less sensitive. It is important to wait until the LLC has been approved by the state before applying for an EIN. For that reason, filing for an EIN is one of the last things to do when you are setting up a business.

  • Open business checking, savings, or investment accounts
  • File taxes for the business
  • Complete payroll for employees if applicable
  • Obtain lines of credit and credit cards, as well as "build credit" for your business
  • Apply for applicable business licenses when required.

You will only need a few pieces of information to file including your mailing address and legal business name. You can apply online Opens in a new window with the IRS by downloading IRS Form SS-4 (PDF)(116 KB), or work alongside a third party organization like MyCorporation to complete an EIN application.

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South Carolina corporation Frequently Asked Questions

In South Carolina, a Professional Corporation (PC) is formed in order to provide professional services within a single profession. Generally, this may include the following professions:

  • Accounting
  • Acupuncture
  • Architecture
  • Chiropractic
  • Clinical social work
  • Dentistry
  • Law
  • Marriage, family, and child counseling
  • Medicine
  • Speech-language pathology and audiology
  • Nursing
  • Optometry
  • Osteopathy
  • Pharmacy
  • Physical therapy
  • Physician assistants
  • Podiatry
  • Psychology
  • Shorthand court reporters

A professional corporation provides the same benefits of a standard Corporation, with the additional formation requirement of proving the business has an effective certificate of registration issued by the governmental agency regulating their profession. Professional corporations are also governed by the agency responsible for overseeing the profession they engage in, and may have rules or limitations on the choice of name or ownership requirements.

If you choose to register a corporation by mail, it takes 7-10 business days to start a South Carolina corporation. If you register online, it may take up to 1-2 business days.

In order to keep your corporation in good standing, there are certain reoccurring requirements that must be met.

  • All corporations must file an Annual Statement with the Department of State each year.
  • Profitable South Carolina corporations must submit and pay required annual tax returns, and pay out estimated corporation taxes.
  • Corporations must hold an annual meeting of the directors logged with corporate minutes.
  • Corporations must hold an annual meeting of the shareholders.

In order to form a corporation in South Carolina, you will be required to pay various fees for services. The breakdown of the required fees are as follows:

  • Articles of Incorporation - $135

Remember: the $135 filing fee includes the corporation's annual report which is a $25 CL-1 fee.

According to the South Carolina Secretary of State, foreign entities that wish to transact business in South Carolina must first obtain a certificate of authority Opens in a new window. Remember that when filing a certificate of authority, you must include an original certificate of existence/good standing that is dated no more than 30 days prior to filing in South Carolina. A filing fee of $110 must also be included and made payable to the Secretary of State.

Helpful South Carolina Resources

See Our How To Startup Guides for South Carolina

Are you looking for another entity type? We offer several other guides to help you start your business in the state of South Carolina.

If you experience any difficulty in accessing our content, please contact us at 877.692.6772 or email us at accessibility@mycorporation.com.

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