South Carolina handles apostilles at the Secretary of State's Office in Columbia, through a desk called Authentications. The fee is $5.00 a document. The request runs on paper: a cover letter, a stamped return envelope, payment and your documents.
The same Secretary of State also keeps business filings, which the South Carolina office guide explains. Our apostille guide covers what an apostille is in every state.
When do you need a South Carolina apostille?
You need one when a document will be used in another country and the foreign office wants proof that the signer was real. The state certifies the signature of the official or notary who signed. It does not vouch for what the document says.
Common business cases are a certified copy of company papers, a certificate of existence or a notarized power of attorney. The state's name for the good standing document is a Certificate of Existence, and you get that first. Then you ask for the apostille on top.
How much does it cost?
| Who issues it | South Carolina Secretary of State, Authentications office, Columbia (sos.sc.gov, checked ) |
|---|---|
| Fee per document | $5.00 per document (sos.sc.gov, checked ) |
| How to submit | Mail, UPS or FedEx, or hand delivery (sos.sc.gov, checked ) |
| Documents it covers | Public documents signed by an elected or appointed official, and documents notarized by a South Carolina notary (sos.sc.gov, checked ) |
| Hague and non-Hague countries | Only documents going to a foreign country qualify, and the destination country decides between apostille and authentication (sos.sc.gov, checked ) |
| Where to send it | 1205 Pendleton Street, Suite 525, Columbia, SC (sos.sc.gov, checked ) |
| Worth knowing | Send a cover letter, a self-addressed stamped return envelope and payment with the documents (sos.sc.gov, checked ) |
Plan the fee as $5.00 times the number of documents. Page count does not change it.
Who can sign the document?
The office certifies a signature it already knows. So the document has to be signed by an elected or appointed official, or by a staff member whose signature is on file with the Secretary of State. A document notarized by a commissioned South Carolina notary public also qualifies.
If your paper comes from another state, this is not the office. The state certifies South Carolina signatures only.
How do you submit the request?
- Download the Authentication Cover Letter and fill it in.
- Put in a self-addressed stamped return envelope.
- Add a check, money order or cash for $5.00 per document.
- Mail the package, send it by UPS or FedEx, or hand deliver it between 8:30 am and 4:30 pm.
The address is the SC Secretary of State's Office, Attn: Authentications, 1205 Pendleton Street, Suite 525, Columbia. Before you leave the office or seal the envelope, check each document again for mistakes.
Apostille or authentication?
The office asks you to name the country where the paper will be used. That answer decides what you get. A country in the Hague Convention takes an apostille. A country outside it needs an authentication, and may want more steps after that. The state also has a separate page on certifications for non-Hague countries.
The office does not certify documents that seem contrary to state or federal law, interest or policy. That is rare for ordinary business papers, but it is a reason to read the paper before you send it.
What about timing?
The state page does not give a turnaround time. Ask when you send the request, and give yourself room if a deadline sits on the other end.
If you would like help, you can ask our private filing service. State fees are separate, and you can send the request to the state yourself.
Sources
- sos.sc.gov/: office name. Checked .
- www.scstatehouse.gov/sess126_2025-2026/sj26/20260515.htm: officeholder. Checked .
- businessfilings.sc.gov/BusinessFiling/Entity/Search: business search. Checked .
- businessfilings.sc.gov/BusinessFiling/Entity/AgentSearch: search fields. Checked .
- www.scstatehouse.gov/code/t33c044.php: LLC name endings, name rule, name reservation term, registered agent rule. Checked .
- www.scstatehouse.gov/code/t33c004.php: corporation name endings. Checked .
- www.scstatehouse.gov/code/t33c001.php: corporation filing fee. Checked .
- businessfilings.sc.gov/businessfiling: online filing. Checked .
- www.scstatehouse.gov/CommitteeInfo/HouseLegislativeOversightCommittee/AgencyWebpages/SecretaryofState/Business%20filings%20and%20fees%20-%20common%20types%20in%20Southeastern%20states.pdf: good standing certificate. Checked .
- sos.sc.gov/node/177: who issues it, fee per document, how to submit, documents it covers, hague and non-hague countries, where to send it, worth knowing. Checked .