South Carolina Foreign Registration › Fees
What it costs to authorize a foreign LLC in South Carolina
A foreign LLC pays the South Carolina Secretary of State $110 to apply for its certificate of authority, and there is no annual fee to that office afterward. Leaving costs $10. Preparing and filing Form F0008 through us is $199, billed on its own line at checkout.
The Secretary of State's price list for a foreign LLC
| Filing | State fee |
|---|---|
| Application for a certificate of authority, F0008 | $110 |
| Amended certificate of authority, F0039 | $110 |
| Change of designated office or agent, F0086 | $10 |
| Fictitious name adoption, F0022 | $2 |
| Name reservation | $25 |
| Certificate of cancellation, F0054 | $10 |
| Certificate of existence or authorization | $10 |
| Each service of process on the Secretary of State | $10 |
Copies of a filed document cost $1 for the first page and $0.50 for each page after it, and a certificate on the copy is $2.
Other entities
| Entity | Application fee | What else is owed |
|---|---|---|
| Business corporation | $110 | A minimum corporate license fee of $25, with the initial annual report |
| Nonprofit corporation | $10 | Nothing further to the Secretary of State |
| Limited partnership | $10 | Nothing further to the Secretary of State |
| Limited liability partnership | $100 | Registration is renewable yearly |
A corporation's $110 is a $10 filing fee plus a $100 tax that the Secretary of State collects before filing. Amending a corporation's certificate costs $110 on the same basis.
Worked totals
| Situation | State total | How it adds up |
|---|---|---|
| LLC applies and nothing more | $110 | $110 |
| LLC applies with a fictitious name | $112 | $110 + $2 |
| LLC applies and changes its agent | $120 | $110 + $10 |
| LLC applies and later cancels | $120 | $110 + $10 |
| LLC applies and amends its certificate | $220 | $110 + $110 |
| Corporation qualifies with the minimum license fee | $135 | $110 + $25 |
| Corporation qualifies and withdraws | $145 | $110 + $25 + $10 |
| Nonprofit applies and withdraws | $20 | $10 + $10 |
| Delaware LLC, authorization and Delaware tax | $510 | $110 + $400 |
| Delaware LLC with its Delaware certificate | $160 | $110 + $50 |
| Wyoming LLC, authorization and Wyoming minimum | $170 | $110 + $60 |
What a corporation also pays
A foreign corporation files an initial annual report with its application. The report and the minimum license fee go to the Department of Revenue by way of the Secretary of State. The license fee is $15 plus $1 for each thousand dollars of capital stock and paid-in or capital surplus, and never less than $25. It is paid by the original due date of the report, which falls on the fifteenth day of the fourth month after the close of the tax year.
What an unauthorized corporation owes
A corporation operating without a certificate incurs $10 per day of operation, to a maximum of $1,000 in a year, which the Attorney General collects. Qualifying costs $135, so a full year of penalty plus qualifying costs at least $1,135.
When the Secretary of State is served
A charge of $10 applies each time the Secretary of State is served with process, and the prevailing party may recover it as costs. A limited liability partnership pays $100 for registered status, which runs for one year after filing and is renewed.
Paying the state
Form F0008 asks for a check payable to the Secretary of State, enclosed with the two copies of the application. We handle the payment mechanics when you order, and the state's amount shows apart from ours.
What our fee covers
Our charge, $199, pays for drafting F0008 from your answers, testing the name, the certificate date, the fee, the fictitious name form and the signer's capacity against the state's top five reasons for rejection, assembling the two copies and sending the filing. Filing without us is described on the do-it-yourself page.
Registered agent: first year included, then $149 a year
$199 plus the state fee, including your first year of registered agent service; after that the agent service renews at $149 a year.
Fee questions
Does South Carolina charge an LLC every year?
Not through the Secretary of State. An LLC taxed as a corporation pays the corporate license fee to the Department of Revenue.
Is the corporate fee the same as the LLC fee?
Yes, $110 to apply, but a corporation also pays a license fee of at least $25.
What does a fictitious name cost?
$2, filed on Form F0022.
What does cancelling cost?
$10 for an LLC and $10 for a corporation.
How will I see what is ours and what is the state's?
Checkout prints them as separate lines.
What you pay
Apply in South Carolina
- Form F0008, drafted from your answers
- Your home certificate, timed to stay inside the thirty-day limit
- A South Carolina agent for service, ours or the one you name
- The filed application, copied back to you
- Renewal: after the first year, the agent service renews at $149 a year
$199
+ $110 South Carolina fee
Apply in South CarolinaFor an LLC, $110 goes to the Secretary of State and is billed apart from our charge; corporations and others are covered on their own pages. $199 plus the state fee, including your first year of registered agent service; after that the agent service renews at $149 a year.
Sources
- Form F0008, application for a certificate of authority (foreign LLC), with filing instructions
- S.C. Code Title 33, Chapter 44, Uniform Limited Liability Company Act
- South Carolina Secretary of State, FAQs about business entities
- S.C. Code Title 33, Chapter 1, general provisions, fees and taxes
- Form F0002, application by a foreign corporation for a certificate of authority
- S.C. Code Title 33, Chapter 31, nonprofit corporations
- South Carolina Business Entities Online
- Form F0054, foreign LLC certificate of cancellation of authority
- Form F0039, application for an amended certificate of authority (foreign LLC)
- S.C. Code Title 12, Chapter 20, corporate license fee and annual report
- S.C. Code Title 33, Chapter 42, limited partnerships
- S.C. Code Title 33, Chapter 41, partnerships and limited liability partnerships
- Delaware Division of Corporations fee schedule (PDF)
- Delaware Division of Corporations, LLC/LP/GP annual tax
- Wyoming Secretary of State, Business Division fee schedule
- S.C. Code Title 33, Chapter 15, foreign corporations
- Form F0022, adopting a fictitious name
Opening in South Carolina?
Order now and the certificate is timed to the filing day.