South Carolina Pesticide Registration: $175 Fee, EPA Step, and Penalties

To sell or distribute a pesticide in South Carolina, you register each product with the Clemson University Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR), submit complete labeling and a federal EPA registration number, and pay $175 per product.¹ Every South Carolina pesticide registration expires on August 31, and renewals must be filed before September 1 to avoid late fees.²

What Has to Be Registered

The Pesticide Control Act reaches broadly. Every pesticide or device distributed within South Carolina, delivered for intrastate transportation, or shipped through the state must be registered.² That covers insecticides, herbicides, fungicides, rodenticides, plant regulators, defoliants, desiccants, and disinfectants that make specific pest or pathogen claims.³

A “device” is any instrument or contrivance containing or integrally associated with a pesticide. Equipment sold separately for applying pesticides does not count, but devices that do qualify go through the same registration process as chemical products.³

Products that share the same formula, same manufacturer, same label claims, and same product designation can be registered as a single pesticide, with other names or labels added through supplemental statements. When one company manufactures a product and another distributes it under its own label, those are separate products needing separate registrations.²

Only two narrow exemptions apply. Registration is not required for pesticides shipped between two plants in South Carolina operated by the same person, or for products distributed under a valid experimental use permit from the state or EPA.²

One boundary worth flagging: minimum risk pesticides exempted from federal registration under FIFRA Section 25(b) are not exempt from South Carolina registration. The Clemson DPR requires 25(b) products to go through the full online registration process and pay the same fees as any other pesticide.¹

Get Your Federal EPA Registration First

In most cases, you need a federal registration before the state one. The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act requires any pesticide distributed or sold in the United States to be licensed by the EPA, and the applicant must show that using the product according to its label will not cause unreasonable harm to people or the environment.⁴ The EPA registration number from that process is a required element of the South Carolina application, so clear the federal hurdle first.

What the Application Must Include

The registration application filed with the Director must include four core elements set out in the statute:²

The name and address of the applicant, plus the name and address of any person whose name appears on the label if different from the applicant.
The name of the pesticide exactly as it appears on the packaging.
A complete copy or facsimile of all labeling that accompanies the product, along with a statement of every claim made for it, including directions for use.
The federal use classification under FIFRA, when required by federal regulations.

The Director also has authority to require the complete formula of a pesticide, including active and inert ingredients, when deemed necessary. For products not registered federally or under consideration for restrictions, the Director can require a full description of the testing performed and the results supporting any label claims.²

The $175 Fee

Each pesticide product requires a $175 fee, submitted with the registration request.¹ If you distribute multiple formulations under different brand names, each formulation needs its own registration and its own $175 payment. Products that qualify as the same pesticide under the same-formula rule can be covered by a single fee.

Annual Expiration and Late Penalties

Every South Carolina pesticide registration expires on August 31, regardless of when it was first approved during the year. Renewals must be filed before September 1 to maintain uninterrupted market access.² The DPR mails renewal forms to registrants at least 30 days before the due date.

If a renewal is not filed before September 1, the statute imposes an additional fee of $25 for each label on top of the standard registration fee.² Renewal applications only need to address information that has changed since the previous filing.

Restricted Use Products Need More Than Registration

Registering a restricted use pesticide is only part of the picture, because the state also controls who can sell and apply it. No one may sell restricted use pesticides from an establishment in South Carolina unless that establishment holds an annual pesticide dealer license, with a separate license required for each location. No person may use or supervise the use of a restricted use pesticide without a private, commercial, or noncommercial applicator license issued by the Director, and private applicators must pass a written or oral exam demonstrating competency with the specific pesticide or category before they can purchase or use the product.³ The federal classification itself comes from the EPA, which limits these products to certified applicators or people under their direct supervision.⁵

What Happens If You Sell Without Registering

When the Director has reasonable cause to believe a pesticide or device is being distributed, stored, transported, or used in violation of the Act, a written stop sale, use, or removal order can be issued to the owner or custodian. The product cannot be sold, used, or moved until the violation is resolved and the Director releases it in writing.³

Criminal penalties for willful violations follow a tiered structure:³

First offense: fine of up to $100 or up to 30 days in jail.
Second offense: fine of up to $500 or up to 60 days in jail.
Third or subsequent offense: fine of up to $1,000 or up to 90 days in jail.

The Director can also assess a civil penalty of up to $1,000 per offense against anyone who violates the Act, on top of any license denial, suspension, or revocation.³

State penalties stack on federal ones. The inflation-adjusted maximum civil penalty under FIFRA is $24,885 per violation as of 2025, and each individual sale or shipment can count as a separate violation.⁶ A company distributing unregistered products in South Carolina can face state and federal enforcement at the same time.

1
Clemson University. Pesticide Product Registration
2
South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code 46-13-40 – Registration of Pesticides and Devices
3
South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code 46-13 – Pesticide Control Act
4
US EPA. Summary of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act
5
US EPA. Restricted Use Products (RUP) Report
6
eCFR. 40 CFR Part 19 – Adjustment of Civil Monetary Penalties for Inflation