Incorporating a corporation in South Carolina

If you want to incorporate a corporation, Company Express will research the availability of chosen company name, prepare for you and file with the Secretary of State office all required corporate paperwork and obtain certified copy of filed documents, if it will be requested by the client.  We also will appoint registered agent for your corporation, as required by the state law, and will help with many of your follow-up corporate needs such as amendment filings, written consents, and annual report preparation and filing. You can find below some of the State incorporation requirements:

Corporate Name Requirements

Name of South Carolina corporation must be distinguishable from name of any existing entity, reserved or registered name, fictitious name.  Company Express will research your company name to make sure it meets South Carolina’s standards.

Permitted designations: South Carolina corporate names must contain one of the following words at the end of the name:

• Co.
• Company
• Corp.
• Corporation
• Inc.
• Incorporated
• Limited
• Ltd.

Restricted designations: The use of the following words in corporation’s name will require approval by the state:

• Bank
• Engineer
• Engineering
• Insurance Company

Filing Requirements

Please note, that we, at Company Express, will handle all required incorporation filing for you. The following information is presented for your information only.

Required documents: Articles of Incorporation as well as an initial annual report.

Turnaround time: About 12-17 business days.

Follow-up filings: Not required.

Officers/Directors Information

Minimum number: Minimum one director is required.

Appearance in articles: Director names and addresses are not required to be listed in the Articles of Incorporation.

Reistered Agent:

Local registered agent is required.

Annual Reports

Time to file: Annual report should be filed on or before the 15th day of the third month following the end of the tax year. The filing fee is based on the corporation’s capital stock and paid-in capital or capital surplus. The minimum fee is $25.

Signatures: Only authorized signatures can be used on annual reports. Emailed or faxed signatures are not accepted.

Filing extensions: Permitted, but extensions do not extend time for paying license fee.