A South Carolina birth certificate is issued and maintained by the state’s Department of Public Health (DPH), which took over vital records duties from the former Department of Health and Environmental Control. You can order a certified copy if you’re the person named on the record, a parent or guardian listed on it, or someone with specific legal authority; you can change what’s on the record through either a DPH amendment form or a family court order, depending on the change.
Who Can Order a Certified Copy
Access is narrower than many people expect. Section 44-63-80 limits certified copies to the registrant if they are 18 or older, a parent or guardian named on the record, and a defined category of “other legal representative.” That category includes people or agencies with current court-ordered custody, caregivers acting under a court order, attorneys representing the registrant or a parent listed on the certificate, the Department of Social Services, and designated homeless-services providers.1South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code 44-63-80
Siblings, grandparents, and spouses are not automatically entitled to a copy. If you don’t fit one of the statutory categories, you’ll generally need a court order. Every applicant must present a valid government-issued ID, and anyone not named on the record should be ready to prove their authority with additional documents.
One exception opens the record up completely: once 100 years have passed since the date of birth, the record becomes public and anyone can request a copy.1South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code 44-63-80 Older records are also available for genealogical research through the South Carolina Department of Archives and History.2SC Department of Archives and History. SC Birth Certificates at Archives
How to Order and What It Costs
The fee depends on how you request the copy. A mail-in request costs $12, which is a nonrefundable search fee. In-person, online, phone, and drop-off requests cost $17. Each additional copy on the same order is $3, no matter the method.3SC Department of Public Health. Birth Certificates – SC Department of Public Health Online orders go through GoCertificates or VitalChek, which tack on their own processing and shipping charges.
In-person requests at a DPH vital records office are the fastest. Mail requests can take several weeks. For any legal use, such as a passport application, school enrollment, or a government benefits claim, you need a certified copy with a raised seal. Commemorative keepsakes have no legal weight.
When a Birth Was Never Registered
If a South Carolina birth was never officially recorded, you can establish one through DPH’s delayed registration process. The evidence rules are strict. You submit three separate original or certified documents, and photocopies aren’t accepted.3SC Department of Public Health. Birth Certificates – SC Department of Public Health
The age of the person on the record determines how old the documents must be. If the registrant is over 10, every document must have been created at least 10 years before the application. For a child 10 or younger, documents must date from within the first year of life or at least one year before the application. Each document must show when and where it was filed.
Across the three documents, you have to establish the registrant’s full name (spelled the same on all three), the full date of birth (on at least one), a South Carolina place of birth (on at least one), and the mother’s full maiden name (on at least one). Documents with inconsistencies, alterations, or a place of birth outside South Carolina will be rejected. DPH charges a $15 special filing fee for delayed registrations.4SC Department of Public Health. Fees for Vital Records If you can’t assemble enough qualifying documents, the alternative is a family court petition for a court-ordered delayed certificate.
Correcting or Changing a Name
Simple errors, like a misspelled name or a typo, can be fixed through DPH directly. Submit supporting documentation showing the correct information, such as hospital records or a signed affidavit, along with the $15 amendment fee.4SC Department of Public Health. Fees for Vital Records
A full legal name change is a different process. You need a court order from a South Carolina family court under Section 15-49-10, and you must have lived in the state for at least six months before filing.5South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code 15-49-10 – Application for Change of Name The petition requires a fingerprint-based background check from the State Law Enforcement Division (SLED), a screening statement from the Department of Social Services showing whether you appear on the Central Registry of Child Abuse and Neglect, a screening from SLED’s sex offender registry, an affidavit about any court-ordered child support or alimony obligations, and an affidavit confirming residency.6South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code Title 15 Chapter 49 – Change of Name Once the court grants your petition, send the certified order to DPH with an amendment application and the $15 fee.
For a child, a parent files the petition in family court. The other parent must be named as a party unless the court waives that requirement. The court appoints a guardian ad litem to represent the child and grants the change only if the new name serves the child’s best interests.6South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code Title 15 Chapter 49 – Change of Name Expect a contested hearing if the other parent objects.
Adding or Removing a Father
When a child is born to a married couple, the husband is presumed to be the legal father and his name appears on the certificate automatically. Rebutting that presumption takes a court action, usually involving genetic testing.
When the parents are not married, the father’s name won’t appear unless paternity is established. The most direct route is a Voluntary Paternity Acknowledgment, which both parents can sign at the hospital in front of a notary. If it isn’t signed before leaving the hospital, it can be completed later at any DPH vital records office.7SC Department of Health and Environmental Control. Paternity Acknowledgment Rights and Responsibilities Once filed, DPH adds the father’s name to the certificate.
For acknowledgments executed after January 1, 1998, the signature creates a conclusive presumption of paternity, carrying the same weight as a court determination. The signer must be given the chance to consult an attorney, and the acknowledgment must be witnessed by a parent, guardian, attorney, or an unrelated adult who is not a DSS employee.8South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code 63-17-60
Either signer can rescind the acknowledgment, but the window is short. You have 60 days from the date of signing, or until the date of any court or administrative proceeding involving the child where you’re a party, whichever comes first.9South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code Title 63 Chapter 17 – Paternity and Child Support After that, removing a father’s name takes a court order, and the court will typically order genetic testing and weigh existing responsibilities like child support and custody.
Adoption and the Sealed Original
Once an adoption is finalized, South Carolina issues a new supplementary birth certificate listing the adoptive parents. Nothing on it references the adoption, with one exception: an adult adoption must display “By Adoption” on the face of the amended certificate.10South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code 44-63-140 The original certificate and adoption evidence are sealed.
The attorney handling the adoption sends a certified Certificate of Adoption to the state registrar within 30 days of the final decree. For agency-handled adoptions, the agency completes part of the form; otherwise the attorney and clerk of court do.11South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code 63-9-790 – Amended Birth Certificates DPH charges the same $15 filing fee for the amendment.4SC Department of Public Health. Fees for Vital Records
Adult adoptees have a conditional path to their original certificate. An adoptee 18 or older can request a copy of the sealed original if a biological parent has signed a consent form authorizing release, or if the adoptee provides certification that a biological parent is deceased. This applies regardless of when the adoption was finalized. Without consent and without proof of death, DPH must redact that parent’s information from any copy released, and the copy released is marked non-certified and cannot be used for legal identification. Biological parents may also file a contact preference form. When neither consent nor proof of death is available, an adoptee’s remaining option is to petition a court of competent jurisdiction.10South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code 44-63-140
Changing the Gender Marker
A gender marker change requires both a family court order and medical documentation. The petition must include an affidavit from a licensed physician attesting that the applicant has undergone a gender change procedure resulting in a permanent physical change. The physician’s statement must certify that the treatment is complete, the change is permanent, and it was made with the intent to change permanently and for all purposes. Surgery is not required, but the transition must have reached a point the court considers irreversible.
If the court grants the petition, submit the order to DPH with an amendment application and the $15 filing fee. DPH issues an amended certificate and seals the original. South Carolina does not currently offer a non-binary or third-gender option. Because the statutes here are thin, the specifics come largely from court practice and agency policy, and the process could shift as new challenges arise.
Using a South Carolina Birth Certificate Abroad
To present the certificate to a foreign government, you’ll usually need an apostille, which is a standardized authentication under the Hague Apostille Convention. In South Carolina, apostilles are issued by the Secretary of State’s office, not by DPH.12SC Department of Public Health. Raised Seal and Apostilles First order a raised-seal certified copy from DPH, then submit it to the Secretary of State.
An apostille doesn’t replace the birth certificate itself. It verifies that the document and its seal are genuine so the receiving country will accept it. If the destination country isn’t a Hague member, a different authentication may be required, so check with that country’s embassy or consulate before ordering.
Penalties for Fraud
Section 44-63-161 treats forging, counterfeiting, altering, or unlawfully obtaining a birth certificate as a felony. A conviction carries a fine of up to $10,000, imprisonment for up to five years, or both. Providing false information on an application is a separate misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of up to $1,000 and up to one year in jail.13South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code 44-63-161 – Unlawful Acts and Penalties Only authorized DPH personnel can access birth records, and unauthorized attempts to view or modify them can trigger criminal prosecution.