Last Updated on April 26, 2023
The business corporation registry of the South Carolina Secretary of State is engaged with keeping well-maintained records of any Corporations, Limited Liability Companies, Limited Partnerships, Limited Companies, and Limited Partnership those are registered with the same. The registry has filing details of every corporate entity that is or was incorporated in the US state of South Carolina.
How To Do A South Carolina SOS Business Search
Suppose you are into finding details of any business entity headquartered in South Carolina and registered with the Secretary of State of South Carolina. In that case, you have arrived at the right place. Often searching for a business entity in the database of the SOS is a gruesome task. Here we strive to make this process easier by illustrating the search procedure in a simplified step-by-step manner to assist you in your search.
Also see: How to start an LLC in South Carolina
To search for a registered entity in the South Carolina SOS database, you need to know either the corporate name or the registered identity.
Read on to continue with the search:
Quick Links
Search by Business Name
Step 1 – When starting a small business, a unique name has to be chosen for each registered business entity. To search, visit the Secretary of State website, and the search page for finding registered business entities in South Carolina would appear. The page looks similar to the screenshot below.
Step 2 – Type in the business name in the field. You can specify the search criteria to narrow down your results by choosing “Begins With, “Contains,” or “Exact Match.” In this example, we will look up “Clock Tower” and click “Search.”
Step 3 – Click on the entity name of your choice in the result page. In this example, we will look at Clock Tower Associated, LLC.
Available information about the business includes:
- Legal Entity Name Entity Type (Corporation, Limited Liability Company, etc.)
- Mailing Address
- Status (Good Standing, Dissolved, etc.)
- Domestic or Foreign Entity
- Incorporated State (All Domestic Entities will be South Carolina)
- Effective Date
- Registered Agent
Through this page, you can request documents such as Annual Reports, Articles of Organization (LLC), Articles of Incorporation (Corporation), and more for a small fee.
Since this entity is in good standing, you would not be able to register it since all entities must have a unique name.
Search by Registered Agent
If you want to search by Registered Agent, click on this link. Since a registered agent can file for many companies, this list can be very long.
Business Licenses
The business name registration is different from a business license. The South Carolina Department of Consumer Affairs Business Licensing has more information regarding South Carolina business licenses.
Also see: How to do a South Carolina UCC search
Information on SOS South Carolina (SC)
Office :
The office of the Secretary of State of South Carolina is an elected constitutional office that is responsible for serving many areas of the state.
The current Secretary of State of South Carolina is Mark Hammond who has been serving the office since 2003.
Functionalities :
The Secretary of State of South Carolina is responsible for a wide set of duties. He is in charge of maintaining a clear record of the corporations based in South Carolina and is also authorized to issue cable franchise applications and certifications, issue annexures for lands, and administer trademarks and trade names. Generally, the duties of the Secretary of State of South Carolina are divided among the following five divisions of the state.
- Business Filings Division
- Notaries Division
- Charities Division
- Trademarks Division
- Cable franchise
Secretary of State Contact Information
SC SOS Address:
Edgar Brown Building
1205 Pendleton Street, Suite 525
Columbia, SC 29201
Phone: 803-734-2170
Fax: 803-734-2158