Building Safety in South Carolina (2026)

Charleston makes property owners responsible for removing or permanently covering lead-based paint on exposed interior…

Florence County doesn't mandate new residential sprinkler retrofits outside the adopted building code, but once a…

Beaufort County requires child day care facilities in the unincorporated county to meet state licensing rules plus…

Columbia's Unified Development Ordinance treats a day care facility as a Community Service Use under Sec…

York County requires any child or adult day care center in the unincorporated county to build a vehicle queuing lane…

Rock Hill's Zoning Ordinance sets site-safety design standards for child day care centers and preschools: any outdoor…

Every commercial structure built in unincorporated Lancaster County without a certificate of occupancy, plus existing…

Sec. 17-5.11 requires most new development in Columbia to earn green building points for energy, water, and site…

Lexington County enforces its carbon monoxide alarm requirement through the building permit process rather than a…

Every mobile or manufactured home in unincorporated Richland County with a fossil-fuel-burning appliance or an attached…

Rock Hill, South Carolina requires a carbon monoxide alarm in every registered residential rental unit that has a…

Aiken County requires a building permit before you construct, enlarge, alter, or move a structure, or change its…

Anderson County requires a building permit before most new construction or improvements in the unincorporated area, but…

Beaufort County adopts the 2021 International Residential Code, International Building Code, and related technical…

Berkeley County Code Sec. 11-64 bars any work covered by the adopted technical codes from starting until the permitting…

Before any erection, construction, or alteration of a building in Charleston begins, the owner, architect, or builder…

Unincorporated Charleston County requires a permit from the Building Official before anyone constructs, enlarges…

Sec. 5-201 of the Code of Ordinances bars anyone from engaging in "any part or facet of the building business" in…

Dorchester County requires a paid permit and fee before most construction, alteration or inspection work, and the…

Florence County does not print its own permit-trigger rule; instead Code § 7-11 adopts the 2021 South Carolina…

No building permit can be issued in unincorporated Greenville County unless the lot has at least 20 feet of frontage…

Horry County charges building permit fees by square footage: 35 cents per square foot for new residential and…

In unincorporated Lancaster County, a permit is required before you build, alter, renovate, relocate, remove or…

Lexington County requires a building permit before anyone constructs, alters, repairs, moves, or demolishes a building…

Reroofing in North Charleston is billed under the same valuation-based fee table that covers building, fence, pool, and…

Pageland Town Code § 8-2 bars anyone from erecting or constructing a building or structure, or adding onto one, until a…

Richland County requires a separate building permit before you construct, alter, repair, move, or demolish any…

Rock Hill, South Carolina requires a permit from the building official before anyone builds, alters, repairs, moves…

Before starting construction, alteration, or repair on any building or structure in unincorporated Sumter County, Sec…

York County requires a building permit before anyone constructs, enlarges, alters, repairs, moves, demolishes or…

Aiken County enforces the National Electrical Code as adopted by South Carolina under Code of Ordinances Sec. 5-121…

No public utility or electric cooperative may connect power to a building or mobile home in unincorporated Anderson…

Berkeley County enforces the 2020 National Electrical Code by reference under Sec. 11-31 and charges a flat $45.00…

Charleston enforces the South Carolina Residential Code and Building Code, which folds in the National Electrical Code…

Unincorporated Charleston County adopts the National Electrical Code under Sec. 4-16 (§101.4.2) for every wiring…

Columbia enforces the National Electrical Code (NFPA 70), 2020 edition, as adopted by the South Carolina Building Code…

Dorchester County adopts the International Electrical Code and the ICC Electrical Code Administrative Provisions by…

Unincorporated Florence County requires an electrical permit before any wiring, service or fixture installation begins…

Unincorporated Greenville County requires an electrical permit under the 2020 National Electrical Code before…

Horry County charges a minimum $100 permit fee for any power service application, new service or change of service…

Unincorporated Lancaster County requires an electrical permit under Section 7-25(a)(4) whenever electrical work isn't…

Lexington County requires a permit before any electrical system is installed, altered, or replaced, under the adopted…

North Charleston requires electrical work to be permitted in the name of a licensed contractor under Sec. 5-33(a)(3)…

Pageland Town Code § 8-17 adopts the National Electrical Code as one of the technical codes the town enforces, so…

Unincorporated Pickens County adopts the National Electrical Code, along with the International Building, Fuel Gas…

Richland County requires electrical work not already covered by the residential code to follow the 2020 National…

Rock Hill, South Carolina enforces the National Electrical Code as amended by the state, adopted locally as 'the…

Sumter County adopted the 2005 National Electrical Code by Sec. 8-148, effective January 1, 2008, as one of the…

York County adopts the 2020 National Electrical Code, as modified by the South Carolina Codes Council, for all…

Anderson County has no standalone plumbing ordinance; § 8-79(a) simply directs the county to enforce whatever mandatory…

Berkeley County requires a plumbing permit under Berkeley County Code of Ordinances Sec. 11-88 for any fixture, water…

Charleston adopts the South Carolina Residential and Building Code by reference under City Code Section 7-26, so every…

Unincorporated Charleston County adopts the International Plumbing Code under Sec. 4-16 (§101.4.5) for every plumbing…

Columbia enforces the 2021 International Plumbing Code as its local plumbing standard under Sec. 5-91, with the Code…

Dorchester County enforces the International Plumbing Code on all unincorporated-area plumbing work under County Code §…

Unincorporated Florence County requires a plumbing permit before any plumbing installation begins, administered under…

Unincorporated Greenville County requires a plumbing permit under the 2021 South Carolina Plumbing Code before any…

Horry County enforces plumbing work in the unincorporated area under the latest International Plumbing Code, plus its…

Unincorporated Lancaster County requires a plumbing permit under Section 7-25(a)(5) for residential or commercial…

Lexington County requires a permit before installing, altering, or replacing any plumbing system regulated under its…

North Charleston requires all plumbing work to be permitted in the name of a contractor licensed by both the city and…

Pageland Town Code § 8-17 adopts the International Plumbing Code as one of the technical codes the town enforces, which…

Richland County requires plumbing work outside the residential code to follow the 2021 South Carolina Plumbing Code…

Rock Hill, South Carolina enforces the International Plumbing Code as amended by the state, adopted locally as 'the…

Unincorporated Spartanburg County runs plumbing work under the International Plumbing Code, adopted county-wide as one…

Sumter County adopted the 2006 International Plumbing Code by Sec. 8-148, effective January 1, 2008, as one of the…

York County requires a permit before any plumbing installation, alteration or repair in the unincorporated county and…

Beaufort County's building official rechecks failed work for free once, under Code of Ordinances § 74-97(f), but…

Charleston's chief building official must personally inspect, or have inspected, every building erected in the city…

Dorchester County ties every building permit to foundation, rough-in, and final inspections under Section 6-1 of the…

Horry County requires a post-foundation survey within ten working days of installing, backfilling and rough-grading a…

Richland County building permits require a set sequence of inspections: foundation, roughing-in, and final. Permit…

Rock Hill, South Carolina inspects permitted construction in stages set out in City Code § 10-133, from footing and…

Sumter County inspects construction through a building inspection team inside the Sumter City-County Building…

York County's building and codes department inspects every permitted project at seven set stages, from footing and…