Updated August 12, 2026. Quick answer. To dissolve an LLC in South Carolina you file the Articles of Termination, and it can be filed online or on paper. Fee: $10.00. South Carolina requires no tax-clearance certificate to accept the filing. Until that filing is accepted the LLC still legally exists — and whatever South Carolina charges an LLC each year keeps accruing against it.
What you file in South Carolina, and what it costs
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Filing | Articles of Termination, Limited Liability Company – Domestic (SOS Form F0045) |
| Fee | $10.00 |
| How you can file | both — Paper F0045 by mail per the form’s checklist; the SOS Business Entities Online system (businessfilings.sc.gov) supports online filing of documents for existing entities, and F0045 is distributed through that portal. |
| Tax clearance | not required |
| Statute | S.C. Code Ann. §§ 33-44-801 to 33-44-805 (dissolution/winding up; § 33-44-805 articles of termination); §§ 33-44-809 to -810 (administrative dissolution) |
Single-step filing with the SC Secretary of State, Corporate Filings, 1205 Pendleton St., Suite 525, Columbia, SC 29201. Form recites that the LLC, ‘having dissolved and completed its winding up, terminates its existence’ per S.C. Code § 33-44-805; must state name, date articles of organization were filed, date of dissolution, and that winding up is complete. Signed by manager (manager-managed) or member (member-managed) per § 33-44-205(a). Verified from the official form PDF served by businessfilings.sc.gov (F0045, rev. Oct 2018).
On the fee. Stated on the official F0045 filing checklist: ‘$10.00 made payable to the Secretary of State’s Office.’ Same statutory fee applies via the online Business Entities Online portal (businessfilings.sc.gov).
Tax clearance in South Carolina
No tax-clearance certificate is required to file in South Carolina. That is not the same as owing nothing — it means the state will accept the filing without a revenue-agency sign-off first.
Negative verified from the SOS’s own form: the F0045 filing checklist requires only the $10 fee, proper signature, and (optionally) a return envelope — no SCDOR clearance certificate is listed, and § 33-44-805 requires only the three statements (name, dissolution date, winding-up complete). SCDOR accounts are closed separately (see final_tax_steps).
Do not just walk away
Closing the business is not closing the entity. Administrative dissolution by the SOS; only a 2-year reinstatement window; SCDOR assessments for unfiled returns
S.C. Code § 33-44-809: the SOS may administratively dissolve an LLC that ‘does not pay a fee, tax, or penalty imposed by this chapter or other law within sixty days after it is due’ (also no registered agent/office). Note: SC domestic LLCs not taxed as corporations file no SOS annual report, so a fully wound-down LLC that simply stops may sit on the register indefinitely rather than be dissolved quickly. SOS FAQ (sos.sc.gov/faqs-about-business-entities): ‘Limited Liability Companies must file for reinstatement within two years of the date of the administrative dissolution.’ SCDOR C-278 warns unfiled returns through the closing date can generate notices/assessments.
Closing the tax accounts
Close all SCDOR tax accounts (sales, withholding, use, admissions, property) online via MyDORWAY or with Form C-278 Account Closing Form; file all returns through the closing date
SCDOR Form C-278 (dor.sc.gov/forms-site/Forms/C278.pdf): close accounts online at MyDORWAY.dor.sc.gov or by paper C-278 signed by owner/partner/officer; attach the retail license when closing a sales tax account. C-278 warns that ‘failure to file all appropriate returns through the closing date may result in the issuance of notices/assessments.’ Default pass-through LLCs report on the members’ returns; an LLC taxed as a corporation files a final corporate return.
Before you file
- The order the steps go in — internal decision, creditors and distributions, the state filing, the final returns, then the registrations you are still paying for.
- What an LLC costs to keep alive in South Carolina — the bill that keeps running until this filing lands.
- What dissolution costs in all 51 jurisdictions — the fee, the filing route and the tax-clearance flag, side by side.
- What happens if you simply stop filing — administrative dissolution is the walk-away trap happening to you rather than by you.
We do not form or dissolve LLCs, sell filing services, or take a commission from anyone who does. No advertising appears on this page and we earn nothing from it.
Sources and limits
S.C. Code Ann. §§ 33-44-801 to 33-44-805 (dissolution/winding up; § 33-44-805 articles of termination); §§ 33-44-809 to -810 (administrative dissolution). Fee, form and procedure read 2026-08-10 from the official source.
Research note. Primary facts (form name/number, fee, no-clearance negative, signature rules, mailing address) read directly from the official F0045 PDF (rev. Oct 2018) downloaded from the SOS Business Entities Online system. Statute mirror used for § 33-44-805/809 text: https://law.justia.com/codes/south-carolina/title-33/chapter-44/section-33-44-805/ (SC legislature’s scstatehouse.gov not fetched).
Honest gap. This page covers the state filing that ends the entity, its fee and its tax-clearance condition. It does not cover creditor claims against a dissolved LLC, disputes between members, the tax treatment of a final distribution, reinstatement after an administrative dissolution, or withdrawal from any other state you registered in — each of those has its own rules. General information, not legal or tax advice. See methodology and corrections.