Guide
Nine South Carolina filing deadlines, each stated as the rule the SCDOR or DEW uses, so you can find your own due date in any year.
Calendar dates shift from year to year, and they differ for businesses with a fiscal year. The rules behind them do not. Each item below gives the rule, who it applies to, and where to file. For this year's dates laid out on a calendar, see our South Carolina tax deadlines calendar.
One rule applies to all of them: when a due date falls on a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday, the SCDOR treats a return or payment as on time if it is filed or paid by the next business day.
Due by the 15th day of the fourth month after the end of your tax year. For almost everyone, who files on a calendar year, that is April 15. SC residents who must file a federal return usually must file an SC return as well.
Due in four installments: the 15th day of the fourth, sixth and ninth months of your tax year and the 15th day of the first month of the next year. The SCDOR also lets you skip the last installment if you file your SC1040 and pay the full balance by February 1. Self-employed people and landlords are the most likely to owe these. The quarterly tax calculator helps estimate the amount.
Employers file the WH-1605 quarterly withholding return by the last day of the month after each of the first three quarters, even if nothing was withheld. The fourth-quarter and annual reconciliation, the WH-1606, is due by January 31, and W-2s and 1099s showing SC withholding are due to the SCDOR by the same date. Deposits of withheld tax follow the same frequency as your federal deposits.
Our SC payroll tax guide covers setup and deposits in more detail.
Due by the 20th day of the month after the filing period ends. Most retailers file monthly; the SCDOR assigns quarterly or annual filing to some smaller accounts, with the same 20th-of-the-next-month rule. A return is required for every period, even one with no sales. See our SC sales tax guide or our sales tax filing service.
Due by the 15th day of the fourth month after the end of the corporation's tax year. South Carolina corporations also file their annual report with the SCDOR as part of this return, not with the Secretary of State.
Both are due by the 15th day of the third month after the end of the tax year, a month earlier than individual and C corporation returns. For a calendar-year business that is mid-March. S corporations also file their annual report with the SC1120S. See our guide to the S corporation return.
South Carolina does not require an annual report from an LLC that is taxed as a sole proprietorship or partnership. An LLC that elects to be taxed as a corporation (including an S corporation) takes on the corporate filing and annual report requirements. Our SC annual report guide explains who files what.
Every business that owns or leases equipment, furniture or other business property in South Carolina files a business personal property return. It is due four months after the close of the business's accounting period, which is the end of April for a calendar-year business. Depending on the business type and county, the return goes to the SCDOR or to the county. The county then mails the tax bill.
Employers file the quarterly contribution and wage report with the SC Department of Employment and Workforce, and pay any unemployment insurance tax due, by the last day of the month after each calendar quarter. Employers with ten or more employees must file the wage detail electronically.
An extension gives you more time to file, never more time to pay. The details differ by return:
Sales tax, withholding and unemployment insurance returns have no extension. If you are behind on any of these, our back tax filing page explains how catching up works, and our year-end checklist helps you plan ahead.
Yes, for calendar-year filers the SC1040 and the federal Form 1040 are due on the same day. When the IRS moves its deadline for a disaster, the SCDOR often, though not always, announces matching relief, so check the SCDOR's news page rather than assuming.
The SCDOR treats a return or payment as on time if it is filed, postmarked or paid by the next business day. The same next-business-day rule applies to returns filed electronically.
The S corporation deadline: the SC1120S is due by the 15th day of the third month after year end, and the annual report is filed with it. If you have not set up payroll for your own reasonable salary, read our guide to S corp payroll requirements.
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