What Is Expungement in South Carolina?
A DUI conviction is the one South Carolina will not expunge – see do DUIs go away for how long it stays on your record and what is left open to you.
Expungement in SC is the legal way to destroy or seal an old criminal record. Once a record is cleared, it no longer shows up on a background check. If you have an old arrest or conviction on your record, the court may take it out of public view. You then get a fresh start.
South Carolina expungement is set out mainly in the state law on expungement of criminal records and related sections. The Solicitor's Office in the circuit where the charge began runs the process. Once a judge signs the order, copies go to SLED, the arresting agency, and the clerk of court. Those offices then destroy the records.
Expungement is not a pardon. A pardon forgives the offense, but it leaves the record in place. Expungement wipes out or seals the record itself. It is also more than sealing. Some states seal a record but still let certain agencies see it. South Carolina law calls for the record to be destroyed. SLED does keep a private copy, so that no one uses the right to clear a record twice.
After a successful expungement, the charge drops off SLED's public record and the court files. Some police and prosecution offices may still keep a sealed copy for a set time, as spelled out in restricted access to criminal history records.
Who Qualifies for Expungement Under SC Expungement Law?
Who qualifies depends on the type of charge and on how the case ended. SC expungement law sets out a short list of paths. Here are the most common ones.
Dismissed charges and not-guilty verdicts. If a charge in summary court was dismissed or nolle prossed, the summary court must issue an expungement order at no cost to you. The same is true of a not-guilty verdict. That duty does not apply when the dismissal comes at a preliminary hearing. It also does not apply when you have related charges pending in both summary court and general sessions court. General sessions dismissals and acquittals go through the Solicitor's Office instead, and the statute waives the usual fees for them.
First-offense drug possession (conditional discharge). Under conditional discharge for drug possession, a person with no prior drug conviction may be given a conditional discharge. It applies when the person pleads guilty to, or is found guilty of, possession of a controlled substance. After the person meets the terms of probation, the court dismisses the case. The record can then be cleared.
First-offense fraudulent check. Under first-offense fraudulent check expungement, a person found guilty of a first fraudulent check may ask the court to clear it. They must wait one year after the conviction. They must also have no other conviction in that year. This route is closed to check offenses charged as felonies.
Youthful Offender Act convictions. Under Youthful Offender Act expungement, a person with a first-offense conviction sentenced under the Youthful Offender Act may apply. They must wait five years after the sentence ends, and that includes probation and parole. They must have no other conviction during the sentence or during those five years.
Minor misdemeanors carrying thirty days or less. Under expungement of minor criminal convictions, a person found guilty of a crime may apply to clear it. The crime must carry no more than thirty days in jail, or a fine of one thousand dollars, or both. They must wait three years after the conviction, with no other conviction in those three years. A person may use this route only once. It does not reach an offense that involves driving a motor vehicle.
Pretrial Intervention, Conditional Discharge, and Alcohol Education Program completions. Finishing one of these diversion programs may open the door to expungement under its own statute, as the expungement provisions note.
What Felonies Can Be Expunged in SC?
Many people ask what felonies can be expunged in SC. South Carolina law is tighter here than the law in some states. Most felonies cannot be cleared. But a few narrow paths do exist.
Youthful Offender Act felonies. A person who drew a felony sentence under the Youthful Offender Act for a first offense may qualify. They must finish the sentence and then wait five years with no new conviction. But this route does not reach an offense that involves driving a motor vehicle. It also does not reach violent crimes, certain domestic violence offenses, or any offense that calls for sex offender registration.
First-offense drug convictions. Conditional discharge is not a felony route. It covers simple possession of a controlled substance, and it is limited to persons with no prior drug conviction. If the court grants it and the person meets every term, the charge is dismissed and may then be cleared. A separate statute reaches the felony side. A first-offense conviction for possession with intent to distribute may be expunged twenty years after the sentence is complete. The person must have had no other drug or felony conviction in that time. A first-offense simple possession conviction may be expunged after three years.
First-offense failure to stop for a blue light. The expungement provisions also reach a first offense of failing to stop when a law enforcement vehicle signals you, under narrow terms.
What cannot be expunged. Violent felonies are not eligible. The list takes in murder, armed robbery, criminal sexual conduct, kidnapping, drug trafficking, and carjacking. DUI convictions and most trafficking offenses also cannot be cleared. The list of violent crimes is long. Only the offenses named in that section count as violent.
Felony rules are the hard part of this law. Anyone with a felony conviction should talk to a South Carolina lawyer. A lawyer can weigh the exact charge and the facts of the case.
How to File an SC Expungement Application
Filing an SC expungement application takes several steps. Getting each one right helps you avoid delay or denial.
Step 1: Obtain your criminal history from SLED. Ask the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division for your official criminal record. The report lists every charge on file, and that may include charges you have forgotten. Read it closely to see which ones may qualify.
Step 2: Contact the Solicitor's Office. Call the Solicitor's Office in the judicial circuit where the case was closed. Ask for the expungement packet. Each circuit may use slightly different forms and steps.
Step 3: Complete the application. Fill in the form with the right case numbers, arrest dates, and outcomes. You must sign it in front of a notary. A missing or wrong detail is one of the top reasons a packet comes back.
Step 4: Pay applicable fees. Pay any fee the law requires. The next section breaks those fees down. Keep your receipts.
Step 5: Solicitor review and court submission. The Solicitor's Office checks that the charge qualifies. If it does, the office sends the order to a circuit judge to sign. Packets come back for a charge that does not qualify, a waiting period that is not up yet, or a missing record of the outcome.
Step 6: Record destruction. Once the judge signs, copies go to SLED, the arresting agency, and the clerk of court. Those offices then destroy or seal the record.
Most cases run four to nine months, from the day you file to the day the work is done. A lot rides on the circuit and on how busy the Solicitor's Office is.
Expungement Fees and Free Expungement in SC
Cost is one of the first things people ask about. A conviction-based expungement costs a two hundred fifty dollar administrative fee, paid to the Solicitor's Office. The statute sets that amount, so it is the same in every circuit. You do not get it back if the charge turns out not to qualify. Most conviction-based cases also carry a twenty-five dollar SLED verification fee and a thirty-five dollar clerk of court filing fee.
So when is there no fee at all? A charge that was dismissed, nolle prossed, or ended in a not-guilty verdict is cleared at no cost. In summary court the judge must issue the order and the accused pays nothing. For a general sessions charge the statute waives the Solicitor's administrative fee, the SLED verification fee, and the clerk's filing fee. There is one catch. The administrative fee is still owed when the charge was dismissed as part of a plea deal in which you pled guilty to other charges.
Conditional discharge for drug possession adds a fee of its own. The statute sets it at three hundred fifty dollars in general sessions court, or one hundred fifty dollars in summary court. It must be paid before the case is discharged and dismissed. No part of it may be waived, cut, or put off, except for a person who is indigent. No SLED verification fee is charged on a conditional discharge expungement.
Pretrial Intervention, the Alcohol Education Program, and like diversion programs charge their own program fees. The expungement that follows still costs the Solicitor's two hundred fifty dollar administrative fee. No SLED verification fee is charged for these programs.
Fee relief is narrow. A court may cut or waive the conditional discharge fee for a person who is indigent. Each Solicitor's Office also keeps a donation fund that can pay up to half of the administrative fee. The free expungement SC residents ask about means one thing: a dismissal, a nolle prossed charge, or a not-guilty verdict. Most conviction-based expungements require payment.
How Long Does the SC Expungement Process Take?
The SC expungement process usually runs four to nine months. That spans from the day you file to the day the records are destroyed. Times vary by circuit, so treat these as rough numbers. Dismissals and not-guilty verdicts in summary court run on a clock set by statute. The order must issue no sooner than the appeal expiration date, and no later than thirty days after it. The charge must also come off internet-based public records within thirty days of the outcome.
Solicitor review: thirty to ninety days. The Solicitor's Office checks that the charge qualifies and looks for any conviction that would rule you out. It also confirms that the waiting period has run. A busy office may take longer.
Judicial signature: one to four weeks. Once the Solicitor signs off, the order goes to a circuit judge. Most judges sign a routine order within a few weeks.
SLED and agency record destruction: sixty to one hundred twenty days. After the judge signs, SLED and the arresting agency get copies. Wiping the records can take a few more months.
Until then, a background check may still turn up the charge. You can ask SLED to confirm once the work is done. Private screening firms that already bought the data may need a call of their own.
What an Expungement Does – And Doesn't – Do
It helps to know what this process can and cannot do for you.
What expungement does. It takes the charge off the public criminal history that most employers, landlords, and licensing boards use. After a conditional discharge or pretrial intervention expungement, the statute says a person cannot be treated as lying for failing to acknowledge the arrest. The other expungement statutes carry no such express protection, so ask your lawyer before you answer a question on a form. Under conditional discharge for drug possession, the person is put back in the place they held before the arrest.
What expungement does not do. It does not automatically restore firearm rights lost through a separate federal prohibition. Private background check databases that already purchased and stored the data will not be cleared automatically. Applicants may need to contact those companies directly to request removal. Under restricted access to criminal history records, law enforcement and prosecution agencies may retain certain records under seal. They use these records for investigative, litigation, and administrative purposes. Certain licensing agencies – such as those governing attorney and law enforcement licensing – may still access expunged records under limited circumstances.
Expungement is a powerful tool. But it does not erase every trace of a charge from every database. Knowing these limits helps you plan.
Why Work With an SC Expungement Attorney
Some expungements are simple. A lawyer still adds value in several ways.
An attorney can review your full SLED record and identify every eligible charge. Many applicants miss charges they qualify to expunge. They do not realize a particular offense falls within an eligible category. Applications with incorrect case numbers, missing dispositions, or ineligible charge types are commonly rejected. An attorney helps avoid these mistakes.
When charges span multiple judicial circuits, an attorney can coordinate with each Solicitor's Office. This is easier than leaving the applicant to navigate multiple jurisdictions alone. An attorney can also evaluate whether a charge might qualify under a less common statute. Examples include the Youthful Offender Act or conditional discharge provisions.
Sumner & Todd, Attorneys at Law focuses on DUI and criminal defense in South Carolina. The firm handles cases throughout the Upstate region, including Greenville, Spartanburg, Anderson, and Pickens counties. This familiarity with local Upstate circuit courts helps the firm anticipate how each Solicitor's Office processes applications.
Speak With a South Carolina Expungement Attorney
If you have a criminal record that may be eligible for expungement, do not wait to find out. A clear record can make the difference in a job application, a housing search, or a professional licensing decision.
Sumner & Todd, Attorneys at Law handles expungement matters throughout the Upstate region of South Carolina. The firm offers a free consultation to review your criminal record. We determine which charges may qualify for expungement under current South Carolina law.
Call the firm or complete the online contact form to schedule your eligibility review. The sooner you start the process, the sooner your record may be cleared.
Frequently Asked Questions About Expungement in SC
How Much Does an Expungement Cost in South Carolina?
The cost depends on the type of charge. Dismissed charges, nolle prossed charges, and not-guilty verdicts are expunged at no cost. Conviction-based expungements require a two hundred fifty dollar administrative fee to the Solicitor's Office, plus a twenty-five dollar SLED verification fee and a thirty-five dollar clerk of court filing fee. Conditional discharge for drug possession requires a further fee of three hundred fifty dollars in general sessions court or one hundred fifty dollars in summary court. The court may reduce or waive that conditional discharge fee for an indigent applicant.
How Long Does It Take to Get an Expungement in SC?
The process generally takes four to nine months from application submission to record destruction. This includes Solicitor review, judicial signature, and SLED record destruction. Timelines vary by circuit and depend on factors like the Solicitor's Office workload and whether SLED needs to verify multiple charges. Background checks may continue to show the record until destruction is complete.
Can a DUI Be Expunged in South Carolina?
No. A South Carolina DUI conviction cannot be expunged. The Youthful Offender Act expungement statute specifically excludes offenses involving the operation of a motor vehicle. The minor misdemeanor expungement statute also does not apply to motor vehicle offenses. Diversion programs are closed to DUI charges as well. A person charged with DUI or with an unlawful alcohol concentration cannot be considered for pretrial intervention, and the alcohol education program excludes those same charges. If a DUI charge was dismissed or resulted in a not-guilty verdict, the arrest record can be expunged. But a DUI conviction cannot be removed.
Will an Expunged Charge Show Up on a Background Check in SC?
Once the expungement process is complete and SLED destroys the record, the charge should not appear on standard criminal background checks. However, private background check companies that already downloaded the data may continue to display it until they update their databases. Applicants may need to contact those companies directly. Additionally, under restricted access to criminal history records, law enforcement and prosecution agencies may retain certain sealed records for limited purposes.