State file
South Carolina alcohol server card
Officially the Alcohol server certificate. Your manager probably called it server certification.
August 1, 2026
South Carolina requires alcohol server training for anyone serving on-premise ten or more hours a week, and for their supervisors, since January 1, 2026. New hires get 30 days. The certificate is issued free by the SCDOR and lasts three years; the course itself is capped at $50 by law.
Mandatory since January 1, 2026, with enforcement since March 2, 2026. The fine is $100 per violation and it lands on the employer.
The rule, field by field
The deadline, generated from the model
Jan 1, 2026
mandatory
Mar 2, 2026
enforcement
New hires: 30 days
your deadline
Does it cover you?
- Server / waiterYesYes, if you serve on-premise 10 or more hours a week
- BartenderYesYes, if you serve on-premise 10 or more hours a week
- Door / ID checkNot statedThe state does not name this job either way, so we will not guess.
- Manager or supervisorYesYes. Supervisors are named in the law
- Cashier (store, off-premise)Not statedThe state does not name this job either way, so we will not guess.
- Busser / hostNot statedThe state does not name this job either way, so we will not guess.
- DeliveryNot statedThe state does not name this job either way, so we will not guess.
What the other sites get wrong
- The law is H.3430 (2025 S.C. Acts 61, signed May 8, 2025), which created Title 61 Chapter 3. Pages citing H.3497 are citing the original bill, which never became the law.
- "SCRAST" is not an official name. It comes from aggregator sites, not from the state.
The courses South Carolina approved
This is the state’s own list, not ours. We do not rank it and we do not have a favourite: the ordering rule is published in how we check.
7 providers are approved for this state. We have not transcribed the list yet.
We publish the state’s own list, in full, with the price each provider charges. Until we have read it off the state page ourselves, we would rather show you nothing than show you a list we copied. Up to $50 for the course, which is the legal cap
The state publishes the list here: SC Information Letter #26-7, SCDOR (January 27, 2026)
Common questions
Is the certificate really free?
Yes. The SCDOR issues the certificate at no cost. What you pay for is the course, and the law caps that at $50. Anyone charging you for the certificate itself is charging for something the state gives away.
I already have a card from another state. Does it count?
No. There is no national reciprocity between state server credentials, and no state accepts another state's card automatically. South Carolina wants its own certificate, earned through a course the state approved.
What happens if I miss the 30 days?
The penalty is written against the employer: $100 per violation, enforced since March 2, 2026 by the SCDOR together with SLED. In practice that is why your manager is asking you for it.
What we still do not know
- The state does not spell out whether door staff who only check IDs are covered.
Written by Luciano Canziani. Updated August 1, 2026. Every requirement above was read in SC Information Letter #26-7, SCDOR (January 27, 2026) on August 1, 2026. Check it yourself before you pay for anything: that is the point of publishing it.