Compare licensing rules
Pick up to three states or countries to see their rules side by side.
| South Carolina | |
|---|---|
| Status | Licence required |
| Regulator | South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED), Regulatory Services |
| Who holds the licence | Individuals and agencies |
| Minimum age | 21 |
| Experience | Business licence: 3 years' investigative experience (SLED counts this as 6,000 hours) as a registered PI with a licensed agency, an investigator for a law firm, government, corporate or nonprofit employer, or a sworn officer; registered employees need none |
| Exam | No |
| Bond or insurance | Business licence: $10,000 surety bond in favour of the State, on SLED's approved form |
| Fees | Business licence $350 a year (non-refundable; covers the licensee's own registration); employee registration fees set by SLED regulation |
| Renewal | Annually (licence and registration each last one year); 12 hours of SLED-approved CE every 24 months |
| Continuing education | 12 hours of SLED-approved CE every 24 months, 4 of them presented or specifically approved by SLED |
| Reciprocity | Limited agreement with North Carolina only (since 2001): a PI licensed or registered in either state may continue a specific investigation into the other for up to 30 days. SLED states there is no reciprocity with any other state. |
| Recording calls | One-party consent |
| Firearms | No armed PI permit: SLED's Security Weapons Permits are only for licensed or registered security officers, so a PI carries under general state gun law |
Reference information, not legal advice. Each profile lists its sources and the date it was checked.