South Carolina Certificate of Authority / Delaware LLC
Delaware LLC: how to get a South Carolina certificate of authority
How does a Delaware LLC get a South Carolina certificate of authority? It orders a Delaware certificate of good standing for $50, applies on Form F0008, and pays South Carolina $110. In its first year the application and Delaware's $400 tax come to $510, plus the Delaware certificate; nothing yearly follows to the Secretary of State.
Delaware beside South Carolina
| Question | Delaware | South Carolina |
|---|---|---|
| What is paid every year? | $400 tax | Nothing to the Secretary of State |
| When? | June 1 | Not applicable |
| What if late? | $200 penalty | Not applicable |
| What certificate? | Good standing, $50 | Existence, under 30 days old |
| Who is the agent? | A Delaware registered agent | A South Carolina agent for service |
Delaware and South Carolina run separate calendars and impose separate penalties.
What does F0008 say for a Delaware LLC?
On the form, Delaware goes in as the home state. The principal office can be wherever operations are; South Carolina houses the designated office and the agent, and the Delaware agreement answers term, management and member liability.
Which certificate do I order?
Delaware sells a certificate of good standing for $50. For South Carolina it works as the certificate of existence or similar record, so long as the Delaware official authenticated it no more than 30 days before filing.
Does a Delaware LLC owe South Carolina tax?
The Delaware LLC accepts the Department of Revenue's reach over its South Carolina tax by applying, without conceding any is owed. If corporate tax treatment applies, it also reports to that department annually.
What if the Delaware name is taken in South Carolina?
Adopt a fictitious name by resolution, then file Form F0022 at $2.
How does a Delaware corporation compare?
It applies on Form F0002 for $110 plus the license fee, with a Delaware certificate of good standing.
What does year one cost?
South Carolina $110 plus Delaware $50 for the certificate is $160. Add Delaware's $400 tax and the first-year state total, without the certificate, is $510. After that only Delaware's tax recurs.
A worked example
Say a three-member Delaware LLC opens a Spartanburg distribution office. A Spartanburg resident is the agent and the office doubles as the designated office. The form shows management by the members and no end date. The Delaware certificate is ordered shortly before signature, after which the package leaves as a pair of copies with a $110 check.
What if the Delaware LLC is taxed as a corporation?
In that case the South Carolina Department of Revenue expects an annual report by the fifteenth day of the fourth month after the close of the tax year and a license fee starting at $25, in addition to Delaware's tax.
Does the formation date need to match?
The date on the application should agree with the date on the Delaware certificate.
How does a Delaware LLC leave?
File Form F0054 for $10 after closing the South Carolina tax accounts.
Does a Delaware LLC need a South Carolina office?
The Act requires a South Carolina designated office, though not a place of business, and an agent for service at a street address here. The principal office may stay in Delaware.
What about a Delaware series LLC?
A Delaware LLC formed with series applies once, as the single entity it is. Answer the management and member liability points from the Delaware agreement.
How do I find a South Carolina agent for a Delaware LLC?
A person who lives here, a South Carolina corporation or LLC, or an outside company that has authority here will all do. A registered agent licensed only in Delaware is not enough unless it is also authorized in South Carolina.
What does a Delaware nonprofit pay?
A Delaware nonprofit corporation applies under the nonprofit chapter for $10, and a Delaware limited partnership pays $10.
What does Delaware charge to certify?
Delaware charges $50 for a certificate of good standing and levies an annual tax of $400, due June 1; paying late draws a $200 penalty.
Why order Delaware last?
Each passing day uses up part of the 30-day limit that South Carolina sets. Order the Delaware certificate when the rest is signed.
Delaware certificate or South Carolina record?
The certificate that goes with the application comes from Delaware. Once approved, South Carolina holds its own record, and a certificate of its own on that record, called one of existence or authorization, is sold for $10.
Getting a South Carolina certificate of authority for a Delaware LLC
Keep Delaware current
Pay the annual tax.
Test the name in South Carolina
Plan a fictitious name if needed.
Pick the agent
A local resident or an entity that is authorized here.
Order the Delaware certificate
Dated at most 30 days before filing.
Sign and send
Duplicate set, plus the $110 check.
Questions from Delaware filers
Is a Delaware good standing certificate accepted?
Yes, if authenticated and within the age limit.
Does my Delaware LLC pay South Carolina yearly?
Not through the Secretary of State.
Price summary
Get your South Carolina certificate
Georgia or any stateSouth Carolina
$199
+ $110 to the state
- Your certificate of authority application, drafted from a questionnaire
- The home-state certificate requested on the right date
- A South Carolina agent for service if you need one
- The filed copy and the state's receipt
- Renewal: after the first year, the agent service renews at $149 a year
The $110 state fee is the LLC and corporation fee, paid to the Secretary of State and itemized separately; a corporation also pays a license fee, and other entity types are priced on the cost page. $199 plus the state fee, including your first year of registered agent service; after that the agent service renews at $149 a year.
Official 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
- Delaware Division of Corporations fee schedule (PDF)
- Delaware Division of Corporations, LLC/LP/GP annual tax
- S.C. Code Title 33, Chapter 15, foreign corporations
- S.C. Code Title 12, Chapter 20, corporate license fee and annual report
- Form F0022, adopting a fictitious name
- Form F0054, foreign LLC certificate of cancellation of authority
- S.C. Code Title 33, Chapter 42, limited partnerships
Need a South Carolina certificate of authority?
Send the entity type and we take over the filing.