Is Kratom Legal in South Carolina? Age 21 Rule and Penalties

Yes, kratom is legal in South Carolina. Since July 11, 2025, the state has regulated it under the South Carolina Kratom Consumer Protection Act, which sets a minimum purchase age of 21, requires specific labeling, and bans certain adulterated or fully synthetic products.¹ Possession and personal use by adults are not criminal offenses, and the law’s penalties fall on sellers, not buyers.

Who Can Buy Kratom and What Buyers Can Be Charged With

You must be at least 21 to buy kratom in South Carolina. Retailers are required to store products so that anyone under 21 can’t reach them, which usually means behind the counter.¹

The Kratom Consumer Protection Act does not create any offense for the consumer. There is no penalty in the statute for buying, possessing, or using kratom, and that includes buyers under 21. Everything the law punishes is on the business side of the counter.

What Products Are Legal to Sell

Governor Henry McMaster signed Senate Bill 221 in May 2025, and it took effect on July 11, 2025.¹ The act draws a line between traditional kratom leaf products, which remain lawful, and a handful of product types that can’t be sold in the state at all.

Under the act, a kratom product sold in South Carolina cannot:

Be adulterated with a dangerous non-kratom substance.
Contain a poisonous or harmful ingredient, including anything already listed on South Carolina’s controlled substance schedules.
Contain fully synthetic alkaloids, such as synthetic mitragynine or synthetic 7-hydroxymitragynine.
Exceed the residual solvent standards set by the U.S. Pharmacopeia.

Every product also has to carry a label listing all ingredients, a recommended serving size, and the name and street address of the manufacturer or distributor.¹ A product without a compliant label is a violation regardless of what’s actually in it. The law does not require independent lab testing of finished products before sale.

Penalties for Retailers

Sellers who break the age, product, or labeling rules face civil fines of up to $1,000 for a first offense and up to $2,000 for repeat violations.¹ These are civil penalties, not criminal charges. There is no jail exposure under the act itself.

A Pending Bill Could Change This

The legal status described above could shift. House Bill 4636, filed in the 2025–2026 legislative session, would add kratom to Schedule I of South Carolina’s controlled substance list, which would make possession and sale a criminal offense.² A similar scheduling attempt in 2023, House Bill 3742, died in committee without a vote.³

The South Carolina Department of Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Services has publicly warned about the dangers of kratom and 7-OH products, so at least some state agencies would support tighter controls.⁴ For now, though, H.B. 4636 has not passed, and kratom remains lawful.

Federal Rules That Still Apply

Kratom is not a federally controlled substance. The DEA lists it as a “Drug and Chemical of Concern” but has not scheduled it.⁵ The FDA takes a stricter view, treating kratom as an unapproved new dietary ingredient and concluding that kratom products cannot be lawfully marketed as dietary supplements, food additives, or drugs.⁶

The active federal enforcement story right now is 7-hydroxymitragynine. On July 29, 2025, the FDA formally recommended that the DEA schedule certain 7-OH products under the Controlled Substances Act, and it specified that the recommendation targets concentrated 7-OH products rather than natural kratom leaf.⁷ In December 2025, U.S. Marshals seized about 73,000 units of 7-OH products worth roughly $1 million from three firms in Missouri, and the FDA sent warning letters to distributors of 7-OH tablets, gummies, drink mixes, and shots.⁸

If the DEA follows the FDA’s recommendation, concentrated 7-OH tablets, gummies, and shots would become federally controlled while traditional kratom powder and capsules would not. South Carolina’s ban on fully synthetic 7-OH already lines up with that direction, but a federal schedule change would raise the stakes on 7-OH from state civil fines to potential federal criminal charges.

Traveling With Kratom to Georgia or North Carolina

Kratom’s legal status changes at the state line. Georgia allows kratom but amended its consumer protection law effective January 1, 2025, to raise the minimum purchase age to 21 and to set concentration limits of 150 mg of mitragynine per serving and between 0.5 and 1 mg of 7-hydroxymitragynine per serving. North Carolina does not currently regulate or control kratom at the state level, but H.B. 468, introduced in 2025, would add kratom to the state’s Schedule VI controlled substances list alongside a regulatory framework. Check the current law in either state before crossing with kratom on you.

1
South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code 44-53 – South Carolina Kratom Consumer Protection Act
2
South Carolina Legislature. 2025-2026 Bill 4636 – Kratom
3
South Carolina Legislature. 2023-2024 Bill 3742 – Drug Scheduling, Kratom
4
South Carolina DAODAS. South Carolina Officials Warn of Dangers of Kratom and 7-OH
5
DEA.gov. Drug Fact Sheet – Kratom
6
U.S. Food and Drug Administration. FDA and Kratom
7
U.S. Food and Drug Administration. FDA Takes Steps to Restrict 7-OH Opioid Products Threatening American Consumers
8
U.S. Food and Drug Administration. FDA Seizes 7-OH Opioids to Protect American Consumers