How to Get a Duplicate Boat Title in South Carolina

To get a duplicate boat title in South Carolina, file a Watercraft/Outboard Motor Application with the Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR) and pay $5 per title. The same form covers boats and separately titled outboard motors, and it’s used whether the original was lost, stolen, damaged, or never handed over to you by a previous owner.¹

Who Is Allowed to Apply

South Carolina law limits who can request the replacement. If a lien is recorded on the title, only the lienholder can apply. If there’s no lien, the owner or the owner’s legal representative files.²

You also have to be the owner of record in SCDNR’s system. If you bought the boat and never transferred the title into your name, applying for a duplicate won’t fix that. You’d need to complete the full title transfer first, or use the missing-title procedure described further down.

What to Gather Before You File

SCDNR needs enough information to pull your record and confirm your identity. Have the following ready:

Hull Identification Number (HIN), the 12-character code on the boat’s transom
South Carolina registration number displayed on the hull
Previous title number if you have it, to speed the lookup
Full legal name, current address, date of birth, and state ID number matching SCDNR’s file³
Names and addresses of any lienholders, in priority order
Valid driver’s license or state photo ID

If the title was damaged or became unreadable rather than lost, you have to surrender the damaged original with your application. The statute requires it.²

If You Never Received a Title From the Prior Owner

When the person who sold you the boat lost the title before signing it over, SCDNR treats this as a missing-title case and asks for more paperwork:

A completed and signed Watercraft/Outboard Motor Application
A signed and notarized bill of sale (Section H of the application is set up for this)
A paid property tax receipt in your name from your county for the coming year
The $5 duplicate title fee for each missing title¹

A handwritten receipt from a casual sale won’t work. Use the bill of sale section built into the application and get it notarized.

Filling Out the Application

The Watercraft/Outboard Motor Application is available as a PDF on SCDNR’s boating forms page, or in person at any SCDNR office.⁴ Print it on two separate pages rather than front and back.

Complete every field that applies: make, model, year, length, hull material, and HIN for the boat, plus the manufacturer’s serial number, horsepower, and model year for any outboard motor.³ There is a section where you authorize SCDNR to issue the duplicate and acknowledge the $5-per-title fee.⁵

Cross-outs or correction fluid can create problems. If SCDNR questions whether the form has been altered, you may end up needing a notarized bill of sale and an extra fee to clear things up. Start with a clean form if you make a mistake.

Submitting It and Paying the Fee

You can file by mail or in person at an SCDNR office. The fee is $5 per title.⁶ By mail, send the completed application, supporting documents, and a check or money order to the SCDNR boating division in Columbia. In person, credit and debit cards are typically accepted as well.

Processing time isn’t fixed by statute. Allow several weeks for the duplicate to arrive by mail; going in person is faster if you need the title urgently for a sale.

Outboard Motors Are Titled Separately

Outboard motors rated at five horsepower or greater have their own titles in South Carolina. If you lost the title for both the boat and the motor, request a duplicate for each. That’s $5 per title, so replacing both costs $10 total. The same application handles both in one submission. Inboard engines and motors under five horsepower don’t get separate titles.¹

What Can Hold Up Your Request

Two issues stall duplicate requests more than anything else.

First, unpaid property tax. SCDNR cannot issue a duplicate title, registration card, or number decal for a watercraft if the department has notice that ad valorem taxes are owed on the vessel.⁶ Clear any outstanding balance with your county auditor before applying.

Second, unresolved liens. When a lien is on record, the duplicate is mailed to the lienholder rather than to you. If you paid the loan off but the lien was never formally discharged, the lender is required to note the payoff on the title and return it to SCDNR within thirty days.⁷ Confirm with your lender that the release went through before you apply. If neither you nor SCDNR can verify the lien’s status, you can send a certified letter to the lienholder of record; if they don’t respond within thirty days, the lien becomes unenforceable and SCDNR can issue a clean title.

After the Duplicate Is Issued

SCDNR reviews the application, verifies the information against its records, and issues the replacement. The new certificate is stamped “duplicate” across its face so it can be distinguished from the original, and it is mailed to the first lienholder on the title, or to the owner if there is no lien.²

Once the duplicate is issued, the original certificate is no longer valid. If the original turns up later, state law requires you to return it to SCDNR for cancellation.² Two live titles for the same boat can complicate a future sale and raise fraud questions, so send it in promptly.

1
South Carolina Department of Natural Resources. SC Owner with Missing Titles
2
South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code Title 50 Chapter 23 – Section 50-23-150
3
South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code Title 50 Chapter 23 – Section 50-23-60
4
South Carolina Department of Natural Resources. South Carolina Department of Natural Resources – Boating Forms
5
South Carolina Department of Natural Resources. Watercraft/Outboard Motor Application
6
South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code Title 50 Chapter 23 – Section 50-23-70
7
South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code Title 50 Chapter 23 – Section 50-23-140