Transfer a Real Estate License to South Carolina

Verified July 2026 · 19 official sources

Start over unless GA or NC; only the national exam waived

South Carolina recognizes exactly two states' licenses, Georgia (education, experience, and exams all waived) and North Carolina (education and experience relief, SC exam kept); there is no license transfer from anywhere else. For everyone else an active license in any state buys exactly one thing, a waiver of the national exam portion, and you still complete the full 90-hour SC pre-licensing course, pass the SC state exam, and clear SC's own SLED and FBI fingerprint checks. Arriving brokers face a harder wall, since LLR reads the 5-year experience requirement as South Carolina associate time. The trap is the stack of 1-year clocks; the application file, exam eligibility, PSI fee, and licensing after the pass all expire at 12 months.

First year: $130 + course + checksRenewal: $45 / 2 yrsWait: course time + 4 to 8 wksWork while waiting: NoTravel required: Likely none (prints confirming)

What carries over to South Carolina, and what does not

Comes with you

National exam, waived by any active license (or expired 6 months or less)
A Georgia license, which waives education, experience, and all exams
A North Carolina license, which waives education and experience by track
A JD, LLB, or real estate degree (education, plus broker experience)

New for this state

SC 90-hour pre-licensing, Unit I (60) then Unit II (30, finishable post-exam)
SC state exam at PSI, 40 questions, 28 correct to pass
SC's own SLED + FBI fingerprint and SSN checks; nothing carries
Certification of licensure from every state ever licensed, sent direct
Affiliation under a SC broker-in-charge via the Supervision Attestation

If you hold a broker license

The broker tier is the wall. LLR requires the 60-hour Unit IIIA and IIIB broker courses plus 5 of the last 7 years as an actively licensed South Carolina associate, and whether the Commission will credit out-of-state active licensure toward those 5 years is confirming, so ask in writing first. Georgia brokers get the SC broker license outright, North Carolina brokers with 5 or more years map to SC broker with the 60 hours and the state exam, and a JD, LLB, or real estate degree exempts both the education and the experience.

Working in South Carolina without a South Carolina license

On a single deal Treat South Carolina as a turf state. The statute makes unlicensed brokerage unlawful and has no cooperative co-brokerage mechanism, despite third-party guides claiming otherwise; whether any sanctioned path beyond a referral exists is confirming, so ask the Commission in writing first.

Referrals Yes. A South Carolina licensee may pay a referral fee to an out-of-state brokerage as long as that brokerage performs no brokerage service inside South Carolina; refer the client to a SC brokerage and collect.

Your send-off checklist

YOUR SCHOOLComplete SC's 90 pre-licensing hours, Unit I Fundamentals (60) then Unit II Advanced Principles (30, finishable after the exam but before licensure). ARELLO or IDECC distance learning counts from anywhere; certificates last 5 years. market rate

YOUApply online with the $25 fee plus photo ID, signed Social Security card copy, proof of highest education, the notarized Lawful Presence affidavit, and (nonresidents) the Consent to Jurisdiction. Any state's notary works; the file lives 1 year. $25 LLR application portal

YOUHave every state where you hold or ever held a license send a certification of licensure directly to the Commission at Contact.REC@llr.sc.gov. varies

STATE BOARDSThe Commission emails fingerprint and SSN check instructions only after your application arrives; never start checks early, third-party reports are not accepted, and results take 3 or more weeks. confirming

YOUOnce approved, schedule the state-only exam with PSI (allow 48 hours to sync). 40 questions, 80 minutes, 28 correct to pass; centers include Charlotte NC, other states via the Out-Of-State Request Form. $55 PSI exam scheduling

YOUAffiliate under a SC broker-in-charge and upload the signed Supervision Attestation through the Licensee Portal, due within 1 year of passing. Licensee Portal

STATE BOARDSPay the $50 initial license fee when invoiced; the license arrives by email in 3 to 5 business days. $50

The money

Application	$25
Pre-licensing, 90 hrs (Unit I + Unit II)	market rate
PSI exam, state portion only	$55
SLED + FBI fingerprints and SSN check	confirming
Certification of licensure from old state	varies
Initial associate license	$50 ($25 via GA or NC)
E&O insurance	$0 (not required)
Recovery fund	$0 (none)
TOTAL First year, typical	$130 + course + checks
Then: renewal every 2 years	$45

Watch out in South Carolina

Miss any of the 1-year clocks (application file, exam eligibility, PSI fee, licensing after the pass, supervision documents) and you restart, fees included.
Georgia reciprocity licensees must keep the GA license active or become SC residents, or the SC license goes with it.
Convictions must be self-reported for life, pardons included; incomplete disclosure is itself a ground for denial.
Renewals are biennial with a June 30 expiry; an inactive renewal costs $120, more than double the active $45.

Official links for South Carolina

Keep going

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