Last verified: August 2026. Every requirement below is sourced to South Carolina Regulation 61-25, to the SC Department of Agriculture’s own published guidance, or to state statute. Links are at the foot of the page.
State requirement: No statewide requirement
Law: No state law · Authority: SC DHEC · Verified: August 2026
No South Carolina county or city requires a food handler card. The person in charge must be certified; details below.
South Carolina sits between the manager-only states and the everyone-needs-a-card states, and it is one of the few states where that middle position is written into the rule rather than inferred. There is no blanket worker card. But whoever is the person in charge on any given shift must hold at least a food handler certificate — a real, continuous, shift-level requirement that most pages on this subject either miss or overstate.
Here is the accurate picture, with the rule quoted, the state’s own list of accepted courses, and the two myths worth killing.
Quick answer
- Every worker? No. South Carolina mandates no card for line cooks, servers, bussers or dishwashers as such.
- The person in charge? Yes — at all times during operation, the PIC must be a certified food handler or a certified food protection manager.
- Per establishment? At least one employee with supervisory responsibility must be a certified food protection manager (CFPM).
- Which courses count? An accredited programme — and SCDA publishes a list of 26 accepted food handler providers, including Clemson Extension and the SC Restaurant & Lodging Association.
- Is there a grace period? No. Regulation 61-25 contains no deadline, window or grace period at any level.
- What it costs you: whatever your chosen accredited course costs. South Carolina charges workers nothing and issues no card of its own.
- Who regulates it: the SC Department of Agriculture — not DHEC, and not the new Department of Public Health. This changed on 1 July 2024 and most sources have not caught up.
What the rule actually says
South Carolina’s requirement lives in Regulation 61-25 § 2-102.12, headed “Certified Food Protection Manager Certification and Food Handler Certificate.” Both halves matter:
(A) At least one employee that has supervisory and management responsibility, the authority to direct and control food preparation and service, the ability to enforce employee health policies, and a frequent presence at the facility shall be a certified food protection manager who has shown proficiency of required information through passing a test that is part of an accredited program.
(B) At all times during operation, the person in charge shall be a certified food handler or a certified food protection manager who has shown proficiency of required information through passing a test that is part of an accredited program.
Subsection (B) is South Carolina’s own addition. The model FDA Food Code that most states work from requires only subsection (A) — one certified manager somewhere on staff. South Carolina bolted on a second, continuous requirement and renamed the section to match. That addition is the whole South Carolina story.
The manager and the person in charge are not the same job
This trips up a lot of operators. Read the two requirements side by side:
- The CFPM needs only a “frequent presence at the facility” — not continuous presence.
- The person in charge must be present continuously. § 2-101.11(A): the permit holder “shall be the person in charge or shall designate a person in charge and shall ensure that a person in charge is present at the retail food establishment during all hours of operation.”
Put them together and the practical rule is: someone certified has to be on the floor whenever the doors are open — but it does not have to be the CFPM. A shift lead with a food handler certificate satisfies § 2-102.12(B) perfectly well.
Which is why most South Carolina establishments end up certifying several people: not because the state demands it of everyone, but because you need enough certified staff that a qualifying PIC is always rostered on. If you run one shift a day, one certified person may be enough. If you run open-to-close seven days, it will not be.
One useful allowance: § 2-101.11(B) lets a single person in charge cover two or more separately permitted departments belonging to the same permit holder on the same premises — relevant to grocery stores and anywhere with a deli, bakery and hot bar under one roof.
Establishments that are exempt
§ 2-102.12(C): the section “does not apply to certain types of retail food establishments deemed by the Department to pose minimal risk of causing, or contributing to, foodborne illness based on the nature of the operation and the extent of food preparation.”
The regulation does not list which types those are — it leaves that to the Department. SCDA has not published a list, so if you think your operation is minimal-risk, that is a question to put to SCDA directly rather than something you can settle from the rule text.
Two myths worth killing
Myth 1: “every South Carolina food worker needs a card within 30 days”
This appears on a great many course-selling pages and it is wrong twice over.
Wrong about who. The certificate requirement in § 2-102.12(B) attaches to the person in charge on each shift, not to every employee. A line cook who is never the PIC is not required by South Carolina to hold anything.
Wrong about when. There is no 30-day window — and more to the point, Regulation 61-25 contains no grace period of any kind, for anyone, at any level. There is no window for a new establishment to get certified and none for replacing a certified manager who leaves. The requirement simply applies during operation.
So don’t buy certificates for your entire staff believing the state mandates it. Buy them for the people who will actually be running shifts.
Myth 2: “South Carolina follows the 2022 FDA Food Code”
South Carolina does not adopt any edition of the FDA Food Code by reference. The phrase “Food Code” does not appear anywhere in Regulation 61-25. South Carolina wrote its own standalone regulation, modelled on the Food Code’s structure but transcribed into state text — which is why its section numbers look familiar but its wording sometimes is not.
For what it is worth, the FDA’s own adoption tracking classifies South Carolina’s rules as equivalent to the 2017 edition, effective 2019. That is the FDA’s characterisation, not South Carolina’s claim — the state makes no edition statement at all.
Regulation 61-25 was last substantively amended on 24 May 2019 (State Register Document No. 4842), with an errata that September. As of late August 2026 there is no amendment pending before the General Assembly. So this is a 2019 rule, and anything describing it as tracking a 2022 code is describing something that does not exist.
Which courses South Carolina accepts
The regulation’s own standard is accreditation. § 1-201.10(B): “‘Accredited program’ means a food protection manager certification program evaluated and listed by an accrediting agency as conforming to national standards for organizations that certify individuals.” § 2-102.20 ties that to programmes “evaluated and listed by a Conference for Food Protection recognized accrediting agency.”
Note what the rule does not say: neither “ANSI” nor “ANAB” appears anywhere in Regulation 61-25. Those names come from SCDA’s guidance, and the two credentials run on slightly different standards:
- Food handler certificate — SCDA: “ASTM International’s ANSI Certificate Accredited Program Food Handlers courses meet the requirements of 2-102.12.”
- Food protection manager — SCDA: “Conference of Food Protection ANSI certified Food Protection Manager Courses.”
SCDA’s list of 26 accepted food handler providers
This is the document worth having, and almost nobody links it. SCDA’s own fact sheet names the providers whose food handler courses it accepts:
123 Premier Food Safety · 360training.com · A Plus Food Training LLC · AAA Food Handler · Above Training / State Food Safety · Ace Handler · Clemson Extension Service (ServSafe) · Cogneti LLC · Diversys Learning Inc. · eFoodhandlers Inc. · eFoodTrainer Inc. · Food Handler Solutions LLC · Food Marketing Institute · Food Safety Educators · Health Technologies Inc. · Institute of Food Safety, Health & Hygiene Inc. · MenuTrinfo LLC · MyCertify · National Environmental Health Association (ServSafe) · National Registry of Food Safety Professionals · National Restaurant Association (ServSafe) · Prometric Inc. · Responsible Training / Safeway Certifications LLC · Rserving · South Carolina Restaurant & Lodging Association (ServSafe) · Tap Series
Two of those are South Carolina institutions rather than national course sellers — Clemson Extension and the SC Restaurant & Lodging Association. If you would rather buy from someone in-state, those are your options, and no course-selling site is going to point you at them.
If you are the one who needs a certificate
If you run shifts — you are the PIC, the shift lead, the assistant manager, the owner working the floor — this is a credential you genuinely need in South Carolina, and it is the one page on this site where that is true of an ordinary worker rather than only a manager.
Start with SCDA’s own list above — those 26 providers are the ones the state has named, and picking from it removes any argument. This online food handler course is another ANAB-accredited option, and worth being straight about: its provider is currently accredited under the ASTM E2659 programme that SCDA’s standard points to, but it is not one of the 26 named on SCDA’s fact sheet. The rule turns on accreditation rather than list membership, so it should qualify — but if you want certainty, or your inspector works from the published list, use a provider from the list or ask SCDA first.
What it costs
South Carolina charges a worker nothing. The state does not issue, number, register or renew food handler certificates — you buy the course from a private accredited provider and the certificate is theirs, not the state’s. There is no state fee, no state application, and no expiry set by South Carolina; whatever renewal period applies comes from your provider.
The fees that do exist in South Carolina’s food rules are the establishment’s, and they scale with sales rather than risk:
| Prior-year gross food sales | Annual inspection fee |
|---|---|
| $0 – $250,000 | $100 |
| $250,001 – $500,000 | $150 |
| $500,001 – $750,000 | $200 |
| $750,001 – $1,000,000 | $250 |
| $1,000,001 – $1,250,000 | $300 |
| $1,250,001 – $1,500,000 | $350 |
| $1,500,001 – $1,750,000 | $400 |
| $1,750,001 and above | $450 |
Those are your employer’s, for the premises. A permit must be obtained before operating (§ 8-301.11), and SCDA takes payment online or by post — not cash.
Charleston, and whether any South Carolina county requires more
No South Carolina county or city requires a food handler card. The codified ordinances of Charleston city and county, Columbia and Richland County, Greenville city and county, Myrtle Beach, Horry County, North Charleston, Rock Hill, Spartanburg city and county, Hilton Head Island and Beaufort County were searched in full. None contains a food handler or food worker requirement. Local food rules in South Carolina are about business licences, zoning, sidewalk cafés, mobile vending and packaging — the premises, not the people.
The coastal tourist jurisdictions turn out to be the most deferential rather than the least: Myrtle Beach’s sidewalk café ordinance simply requires compliance with the state’s rules, and Horry County tells vendors to contact the state.
Charleston County
No Charleston food handler card exists — not at city level, not at county level. Charleston County’s code has almost no food-specific content at all, because restaurant inspection in South Carolina is a state function and no county runs its own.
What applies in Charleston is exactly what applies in Greenville or Florence: § 2-102.12’s CFPM and person-in-charge requirements, enforced by SCDA. If you are working in Charleston and someone tells you the county requires a card, they are either thinking of another state or selling you something.
One caveat on Charleston’s own published information: the city’s business FAQ still tells food businesses to get a “Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) permit.” That agency stopped handling restaurant permits in July 2024. The information is stale, not a different rule.
Could a South Carolina city require one?
Probably yes — and this is where South Carolina differs from its neighbour. In North Carolina, state law affirmatively forbids a local board of health from making rules about permitting food establishments, so a county food handler card there is not merely absent but legally impossible. South Carolina has no equivalent bar.
- Regulation 61-25 contains no preemption clause and, in fact, no local-government provision at all.
- S.C. Code § 5-7-30 grants municipalities power to enact ordinances “not inconsistent with the Constitution and general law of this State, including the exercise of powers in relation to roads, streets, markets, law enforcement, health, and order” — health by name.
- The South Carolina Supreme Court has held that “additional regulation to that of State law does not constitute a conflict therewith,” and that preemption requires a manifest legislative intent “that no other enactment may touch upon the subject in any way.”
So the honest phrasing is that no South Carolina city or county currently requires a food handler card — not that none could. No court or Attorney General opinion has tested the question, so if a local ordinance ever appears, it would be worth taking seriously rather than assuming it is unenforceable.
Who regulates food in South Carolina now
This changed recently, and almost nothing on the internet has caught up — including several official city and county pages.
Act 60 of 2023 split DHEC in two with effect from 1 July 2024, creating the SC Department of Public Health and the SC Department of Environmental Services. But retail food inspection went to neither of them. It went to a third agency — the South Carolina Department of Agriculture. The Act moved DHEC’s food safety programme, its manufactured food programmes and its milk inspection programme and laboratory to SCDA, and created a new Title 46, Chapter 57 to house the authority.
SCDA now inspects roughly 24,000 retail food establishments statewide and issues permits before a new establishment opens. Inspections are risk-based — annual or quarterly depending on the food processes involved and the establishment’s compliance history. There are no county health departments in South Carolina; public health is state-administered, and inspectors are regionally based rather than working out of county offices.
Why the official rule text still says DHEC
Because the regulation was re-attributed rather than rewritten. Act 60 provides that regulations of a transferred agency “are continued and are considered to be promulgated under the authority of present provisions of law pertaining to it” — so Regulation 61-25 kept its number, its text, and even its original statutory authority citing the health-department statutes.
The practical consequence is that two official versions of the same regulation are in circulation. The legal text on the General Assembly’s site still defines “Department” as DHEC. SCDA hosts its own copy in which that definition reads “the South Carolina Department of Agriculture,” with a disclaimer explaining that it is an unofficial convenience copy and that “after July 1, 2024, all references to DHEC must be construed as references to SCDA.”
Both are right. If you are checking a citation and the wording differs, that is why — and if a page tells you DHEC handles South Carolina restaurant permits, it is simply out of date.
What else South Carolina asks of food employees
Beyond the PIC certificate, South Carolina puts its obligations on the establishment rather than on individual workers. § 2-103.11 makes the person in charge responsible for ensuring that:
- (N) “Employees are properly trained in food safety as it relates to their assigned duties” — a real training duty, but one owed by the establishment, with no card, test or state registry attached;
- (O) “Food employees are informed of their responsibility to report to the person in charge information about their health and activities”;
- (P) “The retail food establishment has a written plan for the restriction, exclusion and re-instatement of food employees.”
Note what South Carolina does not require: no signed employee reporting agreement. Several states make every new food worker sign a form on day one. South Carolina’s § 2-201.11 imposes duties to report, exclude and restrict, but nothing requires a signature. The written document the rules ask for is the establishment’s plan, not the employee’s acknowledgement. SCDA publishes an employee health fact sheet — in English, Spanish and Chinese — but it is guidance, not a form to sign.
The illnesses and symptoms that must be reported to the person in charge are the standard set: diarrhoea, vomiting, jaundice, sore throat with fever, and lesions containing pus; and diagnoses of Norovirus, Hepatitis A, Shigellosis, E. coli O157:H7 and other STEC, typhoid fever, and nontyphoidal Salmonella.
Allergen training: not required
South Carolina has no allergen training mandate and no allergen posting mandate — no equivalent of the Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Illinois or Michigan statutes. The only allergen provision in Regulation 61-25 is a knowledge item the person in charge may be asked about at inspection: § 2-102.11(C)(9), “Describing foods identified as major food allergens and the symptoms that a major food allergen could cause in a sensitive individual who has an allergic reaction.”
Worth knowing, because “South Carolina allergen certification” is sold, and the state requires none.
Food handler requirements by South Carolina city and county
South Carolina has no statewide food handler card for individual workers. DHEC licenses food establishments and requires a certified food protection manager. Here is the picture across the state’s main markets:
Charleston, Mount Pleasant, North Charleston (Charleston County)
No individual food handler card is required. Charleston has one of the densest restaurant markets in the Southeast, and DHEC’s Region 7 office handles establishment permitting. The certified food protection manager requirement applies to the business. Many Charleston restaurants require staff food safety training independently of any legal mandate.
Columbia (Richland and Lexington counties)
No food handler card is required. Columbia’s market spans Richland and Lexington counties, both under DHEC oversight with no local worker card requirement. University of South Carolina-area establishments hire heavily seasonally.
Greenville and Spartanburg (Upstate)
Neither Greenville County nor Spartanburg County requires an individual food handler card. The Upstate follows the standard DHEC framework. Greenville’s downtown restaurant corridor has grown substantially, but the requirement remains establishment-level certification only.
Myrtle Beach and the Grand Strand (Horry County)
No food handler card is required. Horry County’s food service industry is overwhelmingly seasonal, and turnover is high. DHEC requires the certified food protection manager at the establishment level — seasonal operations should confirm their certified manager coverage before peak season, since the requirement applies during all hours of operation.
Rock Hill (York County) and Fort Mill
No county food handler card is required. York County borders North Carolina — a North Carolina credential does not transfer, though neither state mandates an individual worker card.
Hilton Head and Beaufort (Beaufort County)
No food handler card is required. Beaufort County’s resort-driven food service operates under standard DHEC rules.
Florence (Florence County), Sumter (Sumter County), Anderson (Anderson County)
None of these cities require an individual food handler card. All follow the state framework of DHEC establishment permits plus certified food protection manager.
South Carolina at a glance
| Blanket worker card? | No — the certificate requirement attaches to the person in charge, not to every employee |
| Per shift | The PIC must be a certified food handler or CFPM, at all times during operation (§ 2-102.12(B)) |
| Per establishment | At least one supervisory employee must be a CFPM (§ 2-102.12(A)) |
| Must the CFPM be on site? | No — “frequent presence.” It is the person in charge who must be there continuously |
| Grace period | None. Regulation 61-25 sets no window at any level |
| Which courses count | An accredited programme. SCDA names 26 accepted food handler providers, including Clemson Extension and the SC Restaurant & Lodging Association |
| Cost to a worker | Your provider’s course fee. South Carolina charges nothing and issues no card |
| Cost to the establishment | $100–$450 a year by prior-year gross food sales |
| County or city cards | None in South Carolina — though unlike North Carolina, a city could legally adopt one |
| Allergen training | Not required |
| Regulator | SC Department of Agriculture, Retail Food Safety — since 1 July 2024. Not DHEC, not DPH |
| Governing rule | Regulation 61-25, last amended 24 May 2019. No FDA Food Code edition adopted by reference |
Work across a state line?
Food handler rules follow the establishment’s location, not where you live. If you work in a neighbouring state, its requirements may be different:
- North Carolina — no card required
- Georgia — no card required
Frequently asked questions
Do waiters need a food handlers card in South Carolina?
Not as waiters. South Carolina requires a certificate of whoever is the person in charge during a shift — so a server who is never left running the floor needs nothing from the state. A server who closes up, or covers as shift lead, is the person in charge while doing it and does need one. Employers may also ask for training as their own policy, which is a separate matter.
Do I have to pay for a South Carolina food handler card?
Not to the state. South Carolina issues no card and charges no fee — you buy an accredited course from a private provider, and that provider sets the price and any renewal period. Some employers pay for it; some don’t. Start with SCDA’s list of accepted providers before paying anyone.
Do I need a food handlers card in Charleston County?
There is no Charleston city or county card. Restaurant regulation in South Carolina is entirely a state function, so the rule in Charleston is the same as everywhere else in the state: a certified person in charge on every shift. Charleston’s own business FAQ still refers people to DHEC, which has not handled restaurant permits since July 2024.
How long is a South Carolina food handler certificate valid?
South Carolina sets no expiry. Whatever renewal period applies comes from the accredited provider you bought the course from — commonly two or three years for a handler certificate and five for a manager certification. Check the certificate itself, not the state.
Is a food handler certificate the same as a CFPM?
No, and South Carolina uses both. The food handler certificate is the shorter credential that satisfies the person-in-charge requirement. The Certified Food Protection Manager qualification is longer, involves a proctored exam, and is what § 2-102.12(A) requires of at least one supervisory employee. A CFPM also satisfies the PIC requirement; a handler certificate does not satisfy the manager requirement.
Will my food handler card from another state work in South Carolina?
If it came from an accredited programme, very probably — South Carolina’s rule turns on accreditation rather than on where you bought it, and it recognises no state-specific card of its own. A card issued by a local health department elsewhere that runs its own in-house test, such as Clark County, Nevada’s, is a different matter and would not obviously qualify.
Who inspects restaurants in South Carolina?
The South Carolina Department of Agriculture’s Retail Food Safety division, since 1 July 2024. Before that it was DHEC. It is not the new Department of Public Health, which is where most people assume the function went when DHEC was split.
Does South Carolina require allergen training?
No. There is no allergen training or posting requirement in South Carolina. The only allergen provision is a topic the person in charge may be questioned on during an inspection.
Official sources
- SCDA — Retail Food Safety
- SCDA — Food Handler Certificate fact sheet and accepted provider list (PDF)
- SCDA — Certified Food Protection Manager fact sheet (PDF)
- SCDA — Employee Health fact sheet (PDF)
- SCDA — Annual inspection fee schedule (PDF)
- Regulation 61-25 — SCDA’s convenience copy (PDF)
- Regulation 61-25 — official text, SC General Assembly (PDF)
- S.399 / Act 60 of 2023 — the DHEC restructuring act
- SC DPH — DHEC restructuring explained
- S.C. Code § 5-7-30 — municipal ordinance powers
- ANAB — accredited certificate issuer directory (check a provider’s accreditation)
This guide is general information, not legal advice. The South Carolina Department of Agriculture is the final word.
Running an establishment? See South Carolina Food Manager Certification.