Expungement Petition - Preparation Worksheet - South Carolina

IMPORTANT: THIS IS A PREPARATION GUIDE, NOT A PETITION TO FILE

South Carolina uses different procedures for summary-court nonconvictions and for
solicitor-administered expungements. Do not create a free-standing petition unless counsel
is pursuing the judicial-eligibility procedure authorized by § 17-22-940(I).

SOUTH CAROLINA EXPUNGEMENT PREPARATION GUIDE

1. Select the Correct Process

A. Magistrate or municipal case ending in not guilty, dismissal, or nolle prosequi

Section 17-22-950 controls this narrow summary-court process.

The § 17-22-950 process does not apply when the dismissal occurred at a preliminary hearing
or when related charges remain pending in both summary court and general sessions. A
prosecution or law-enforcement agency may object because other charges are pending or the
charge is not eligible. Expungement occurs after the appeal period and no later than thirty
days after that period expires.

B. General sessions case or statutory conviction/diversion route

Apply through the solicitor's office for the circuit where the offense occurred. Section
17-22-910 assigns administration of these applications to the circuit solicitor, and
§ 17-22-940 sets the verification, signature, filing, and distribution process.

The current Judiciary materials use:

• SCCA 223A1, revised April 2026 — general order for qualifying nondiversion dispositions and convictions.
• SCCA 223B1 — diversion-disposition order for PTI, Traffic Education Program, or Alcohol Education Program completion.
• General Sessions application instructions.

The solicitor assists with the order, coordinates required verification, obtains signatures,
files the signed order, distributes it to affected agencies, and gives a copy to the applicant
or retained counsel.

2. Applicant and Case Worksheet

Eligibility under § 17-22-910(B) is based on the offense of conviction or guilty plea, not
merely the original arrest charge.

3. Adult Routes Covered by This Guide

Nonconviction — §§ 17-1-40 and 17-22-950

• ☐ The charge was discharged, dismissed, nolle prossed, or ended in not guilty.

• ☐ The applicant identified whether the summary-court automatic/application process or
  the solicitor-administered general-sessions process applies.

• ☐ Any related pending case, preliminary-hearing dismissal, or plea-arrangement issue has
  been disclosed.

Pretrial Intervention — § 17-22-150(a)

• ☐ The offender successfully completed PTI.
• ☐ The solicitor entered a noncriminal disposition.
• ☐ The solicitor's office is processing the diversion order.

Alcohol Education Program — § 17-22-530(A)

• ☐ The participant successfully completed the program.
• ☐ The solicitor entered a noncriminal disposition.
• ☐ The solicitor's office is processing the diversion order.

Qualifying lower-penalty conviction — § 22-5-910(A), (C), and (F)

• ☐ The conviction carried no more than thirty days' imprisonment, a $1,000 fine, or both;
  or it was a qualifying first unlawful-possession-of-a-firearm-or-weapon offense carrying
  no more than one year, a $1,000 fine, or both.

• ☐ The offense did not involve operation of a motor vehicle.

• ☐ Three years have passed from the conviction date.
• ☐ There was no other conviction, including an out-of-state conviction, during that period.

• ☐ There are no pending criminal charges, unless they have been pending more than five
  years after excluding time tolled by a failure-to-appear bench warrant.

• ☐ The applicant has not used § 22-5-910 before.

Closely connected offenses arising from one incident and sentenced in one proceeding may be
treated as one conviction under § 22-5-910(E).

Third-degree domestic violence — § 22-5-910(B), (C), and (F)

• ☐ The conviction was under current § 16-25-20(D), or former § 16-25-20(B)(1) before
  June 4, 2015.

• ☐ Five years have passed from the conviction date.

• ☐ There was no other conviction, including an out-of-state conviction, during that period.
• ☐ The pending-charge and one-use rules above are satisfied.

Youthful Offender Act conviction — § 22-5-920

• ☐ This was a first-offense conviction actually sentenced under title 24, chapter 19.
• ☐ The applicant completed the YOA sentence, including probation and parole.
• ☐ Five years have passed since completion.
• ☐ No disqualifying conviction occurred during the sentence or five-year period.

• ☐ The offense did not involve motor-vehicle operation, was not a violent crime under
  § 16-1-60, was not excluded by title 16, chapter 25, and did not require sex-offender
  registration.

• ☐ The applicant has not used § 22-5-920 before.

First-offense misdemeanor fraudulent check — § 34-11-90(e)

• ☐ The conviction was a first offense and was not classified as a felony.
• ☐ One year has passed from conviction.
• ☐ No other conviction occurred during that year.
• ☐ The applicant has not used this subsection before.

First-offense failure to stop — § 56-5-750(F)

• ☐ The conviction was the misdemeanor first offense described in § 56-5-750(B)(1).
• ☐ Three years have passed from completion of every sentence term and condition.
• ☐ No other conviction occurred during those three years.
• ☐ The applicant has not used subsection (F) before.

4. Fees for Solicitor-Administered Orders

Confirm fees with the solicitor before obtaining payment instruments.

Under § 17-22-940(A)(1), a person applying through the solicitor for a general-sessions
nonconviction expungement under § 17-1-40 is exempt from the $250 administrative fee unless
the dismissal, discharge, or nolle prosequi was part of a plea arrangement involving a guilty
plea and sentence on other charges. Section 17-22-940(H) also bars a clerk filing fee for a
qualifying § 17-1-40 nonconviction. Other fee exceptions and donation assistance are
route-specific.

5. Processing Checklist

• ☐ Contact the correct circuit solicitor or summary court.
• ☐ Obtain the current Judiciary form or solicitor application package.
• ☐ Provide the exact offense of disposition or conviction, not only the arrest charge.
• ☐ Provide the warrant, ticket, indictment, disposition, and sentence-completion records.
• ☐ Disclose every later or out-of-state conviction and every pending charge.

• ☐ Obtain separate certified checks or money orders in the amounts and payee names the
  solicitor specifies.

• ☐ Do not take possession of the in-process expungement application after it is sent for
  SLED or DJJ verification.

• ☐ Obtain the completed order from the solicitor, court, or counsel.

Each order generally contains one charge. Section 17-22-940(G) permits multiple charges in
one order only when they arose from one incident and qualify under § 17-1-40 or
§ 17-22-150(a).

6. Effect and Record Retention

An expungement order does not require universal destruction of every government record.
For a nonconviction expungement governed by § 17-1-40, specified arrest, booking, warrant,
photograph, fingerprint, incident-report, and investigative materials remain under seal for
three years and 120 days, and some may be retained longer under seal for the statute's stated
law-enforcement, prosecution, administrative-hearing, investigation, and litigation purposes.
Other routes require SLED or another agency to retain a nonpublic record to prevent repeat
use of one-time relief.

Official Sources

• S.C. Code title 17, chapter 1
• S.C. Code title 17, chapter 22
• S.C. Code title 22, chapter 5
• S.C. Code title 34, chapter 11
• S.C. Code title 56, chapter 5
• Magistrate and municipal expungement process
• General Sessions expungement process

Use the current Judiciary or solicitor form. Have South Carolina counsel review eligibility
before paying a nonrefundable fee or pursuing a judicial determination under § 17-22-940(I).