South Carolina ammo laws are among the most permissive in the country: no permit, no background check, and no state registry for buying ammunition. The only state-level ban targets Teflon-coated rounds, and federal law supplies the rest, setting minimum ages at licensed dealers, barring certain categories of people from possessing any ammunition at all, and prohibiting armor-piercing handgun rounds. Breaking those rules is not a minor matter. A single Teflon-coated cartridge can mean five years in prison.
Who Can Buy and Possess Ammunition
South Carolina does not require a license, permit, or background check to purchase ammunition. Age limits come entirely from federal law, and they apply only to licensed dealers: no rifle or shotgun ammunition to anyone under 18, and no handgun ammunition to anyone under 21.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts Private sales between individuals carry no federal age-verification requirement, and the state adds none. At a gun show or in a driveway transaction, an unlicensed seller has no legal duty to ask for ID or run any kind of check.
Federal law bars several categories of people from possessing ammunition under any circumstances. The prohibited list in 18 U.S.C. § 922(g) covers:
- Felons, meaning anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year in prison
- People convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence
- People under a qualifying protective order issued after a noticed hearing
- Fugitives from justice
- Unlawful users of controlled substances
- People adjudicated as mentally defective or committed to a mental institution
- Dishonorably discharged veterans
- Non-immigrant visa holders, with narrow exceptions
- Former U.S. citizens who have renounced their citizenship
Each prohibition covers firearms and ammunition alike.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts South Carolina reinforces the felon piece at the state level. Section 16-23-500 makes it a state crime for anyone convicted of a crime carrying a maximum sentence greater than one year to possess a firearm or ammunition within the state.3South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code Section 16-23-500 State courts are also required to notify domestic violence offenders and people subject to protective orders that federal law bars them from possessing ammunition.4South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code Section 16-25-30
What Ammunition Is Banned
South Carolina has exactly one ammunition-specific ban. Section 16-23-520 makes it illegal to use, transport, manufacture, possess, sell, or buy any ammunition coated with polytetrafluoroethylene, commonly known as Teflon.5South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code of Laws Title 16 Chapter 23 The statute is narrower than many people assume. It is not a general armor-piercing ban. It targets the Teflon coating specifically, which gained notoriety for reducing friction and potentially defeating soft body armor. A violation is a felony punishable by up to five years in prison, a fine of up to $5,000, or both.
Federal law adds a separate ban on armor-piercing handgun ammunition. Under 18 U.S.C. § 922(a)(7) and (a)(8), manufacturing or importing armor-piercing ammunition is prohibited, and dealers may not sell or deliver it. The federal definition covers projectiles made entirely of tungsten alloys, steel, iron, brass, bronze, beryllium copper, or depleted uranium, as well as handgun projectiles with a full jacket weighing more than 25 percent of the total projectile weight. A round can run afoul of the federal ban without triggering the state Teflon statute, and vice versa.
Explosive and incendiary ammunition is not addressed by a separate state law, but federal law treats a projectile with an explosive or incendiary charge greater than one-quarter ounce as a destructive device under the National Firearms Act, requiring registration and a tax stamp.6Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 5845 – Definitions Possessing one without proper federal registration is a serious federal offense.
Hollow-point ammunition is legal in South Carolina and widely used for self-defense.
Buying Ammunition Online
Ammunition can be shipped directly to your home. Unlike firearms, it does not have to route through a licensed dealer, and South Carolina adds no delivery restrictions. You can order from an out-of-state retailer and have the box land on your porch, with no transfer paperwork and no background check.
The practical limits come from the carriers. Small arms ammunition is classified as a hazardous material under Department of Transportation rules, so shippers impose their own packaging, labeling, and surcharge requirements, and expect a hazmat shipping fee on top of the price. Some carriers also restrict ammunition to ground transportation, which lengthens delivery times.
Transporting Ammunition
Inside South Carolina, ammunition can go anywhere in your vehicle. The state does not require it to be separated from firearms, locked in a container, or stored in any particular compartment. Since permitless carry took effect in 2024, an adult who is legally allowed to possess a firearm can also carry a loaded handgun in the vehicle without a permit.
The one in-state rule that trips people up involves schools. On elementary or secondary school grounds, a firearm must stay inside an attended or locked vehicle and be secured in a closed glove compartment, console, trunk, or a container with an integral fastener kept in the luggage compartment.7South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code Section 16-23-430 Ammunition stored with the firearm has to be secured the same way. A loaded firearm left in an unlocked center console in a school parking lot is a felony carrying up to five years in prison and a $1,000 fine.
Crossing State Lines
Federal law provides a safe harbor for interstate transport under 18 U.S.C. § 926A. If you are traveling from a state where you can legally possess your firearm to another state where you can also legally possess it, you are protected during the journey as long as the firearm is unloaded and neither the firearm nor the ammunition is readily accessible from the passenger compartment. In a vehicle without a separate trunk, both have to be in a locked container other than the glove compartment or console.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 926A – Interstate Transportation of Firearms This matters most when the route crosses states with stricter ammunition or magazine laws. The storage rules must be followed for the safe harbor to apply.
Air Travel
Ammunition can go in checked baggage but never in a carry-on. TSA requires small arms ammunition (up to .75 caliber, and shotgun shells of any gauge) to be packed in a container specifically designed for ammunition: cardboard, wood, plastic, or metal. It can share a hard-sided, locked firearm case if it is boxed properly inside. Loaded magazines have to be securely boxed or enclosed in a hard-sided case with an unloaded firearm.9Transportation Security Administration. Transporting Firearms and Ammunition Airlines set their own weight limits, with most capping ammunition at 11 pounds per passenger.
Where Ammunition Is Off-Limits
Schools are the most heavily enforced restricted location, with the vehicle-storage rules above and felony penalties for violations. Courthouses and government buildings generally prohibit firearms and ammunition. Private property owners can bar ammunition from their premises, and ignoring posted signs or a verbal request to leave can add trespassing charges on top of any weapons violation.
The federal Gun-Free School Zones Act creates a 1,000-foot buffer around school grounds where firearm possession is generally prohibited. Exceptions exist for people with a state-issued carry permit and for firearms kept unloaded and locked in a vehicle. South Carolina’s permitless carry law raises an unsettled question: the federal exception specifically references a state-issued license or permit, and whether permitless carry qualifies has not been definitively answered. Carrying under the state’s permitless framework within a federal school zone could expose you to federal prosecution if a court reads the exception narrowly.
Penalties for Violations
Penalties track the type of offense.
Teflon-coated ammunition. Possessing, selling, manufacturing, or transporting Teflon-coated rounds is a felony carrying up to five years in prison, a fine up to $5,000, or both.5South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code of Laws Title 16 Chapter 23
Felon in possession. Under Section 16-23-500, penalties escalate with each conviction:
- First offense: up to five years in prison
- Second offense: a mandatory minimum of five years, up to twenty years
- Third or subsequent offense: a mandatory minimum of ten years, up to thirty years
Judges cannot sentence below the mandatory minimums.3South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code Section 16-23-500
School property. Bringing ammunition onto school grounds outside the secured-vehicle exception is a felony carrying up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $1,000. Officers can confiscate the ammunition and any associated weapon.7South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code Section 16-23-430
Federal offenses. A licensed dealer who sells handgun ammunition to someone they know or have reason to believe is under 21 violates 18 U.S.C. § 922(b)(1).10Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts Knowingly providing ammunition to any federally prohibited person, by sale, gift, or any other transfer, is a separate federal crime under 18 U.S.C. § 922(d).2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts Federal firearms violations generally carry up to five years in prison, with substantially higher sentences when the ammunition is connected to a violent crime.
Reloading and Selling Homemade Ammunition
Reloading your own ammunition for personal use is legal in South Carolina with no special license. Selling what you reload is a different matter. Under federal excise tax rules, anyone who reloads spent casings and sells the finished product is treated as an ammunition manufacturer and owes the federal excise tax imposed by 26 U.S.C. § 4181. That means obtaining an Employer Identification Number within seven days of the first sale, filing quarterly returns, and keeping records for at least three years.11eCFR. 27 CFR Part 53 – Manufacturers Excise Taxes, Firearms and Ammunition The IRS does not carve out a hobbyist exception. If money changes hands, the tax applies.