South Carolina Boat Registration

South Carolina titles watercraft, and — unusually — it also titles outboard motors. Any motorized boat (other than an exempt or documented vessel) must be titled, and any outboard motor rated 5 horsepower or greater carries its own separate title. Motors under 5 hp are not titled. Sailboats are titled too: $10 for a wind-only sailboat, $20 to register and title one with auxiliary propulsion.

Federally documented vessels are the major exception. Because the U.S. Coast Guard Certificate of Documentation is the ownership record, SCDNR does not title or register a documented vessel at all — unlike many states, South Carolina does not require a state registration decal on a documented boat. Two caveats still apply: if a documented vessel carries outboard motors and is primarily kept in South Carolina, those 5-hp-plus motors must still be titled with SCDNR, and the county can still assess personal property tax if it deems the boat taxable. The trade-offs between the two systems are covered in state registration vs USCG documentation.

South Carolina records the 12-character Hull Identification Number (HIN) on the title and registration of every titled watercraft. When you apply, SCDNR asks for a pencil tracing or a clear photograph of the hull number so the boat's identity can be verified against the paperwork before a title is issued.

Homemade boats and older or imported hulls that never carried a factory HIN follow a separate path: the owner files an Application for Hull Identification Number, and SCDNR law enforcement may inspect the vessel before assigning a state HIN. State-assigned South Carolina hull numbers begin with the prefix "SCZ," and once issued the number must be permanently affixed to the hull so any alteration would be obvious.

Before you file, decode any existing hull number with the HIN decoder to confirm the manufacturer and model year match the bill of sale — a mismatch is the most common reason an application stalls at the SCDNR counter.

South Carolina switched from a 3-year decal to annual registration effective January 1, 2020, keeping the cost at $10 per year (it was $30 for three years). Since January 2021, that $10 renewal is billed by your county together with the boat's personal property tax, and the decal's expiration month is set to the month your property taxes on the boat are due. A boat purchased in January, for example, gets a decal good through the following January regardless of when you file. Because property tax must be paid before the registration is issued, keep your paid-tax receipt with the boat's papers.

Vessels propelled only by human power — canoes, kayaks, paddleboards, and similar craft using paddles or oars — do not have to be titled or registered, and neither do sailboards/windsurfers. Federally documented vessels are exempt from South Carolina titling and registration (though their 5-hp-plus outboard motors may still need a title, and the county may still tax the boat). Outboard motors under 5 horsepower are not titled. An out-of-state boat that is currently registered in its home state may be used on South Carolina waters for up to 60 consecutive days before it must be registered here. Vessels owned by the government are also exempt.