How to Transfer or Move a LLC from South Carolina to Florida

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Steps to transfer a company (LLC or corporation) to Florida

50 State Series: How to move your LLC or corporation out of South Carolina and keep your EIN

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How to transfer your company to Florida and keep the EIN with zero downtime [step-by-step]

How to move a corporation from Illinois to Florida [step-by-step process]

How to transfer an Illinois LLC to Florida and keep the EIN [step-by-step]

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How to transfer an LLC out of New York to Florida [step-by-step]

Steps to transfer a company (LLC or corporation) to Florida

50 State Series: How to move your LLC or corporation out of South Carolina and keep your EIN

Report: Billionaire Stephen Ross says South Florida’s business relocation push in the '1st inning'

Report: How Much Americans Save on Taxes by Moving to Florida

Report: Years to Save for a Home by State and Why Business Owners Are Moving to Texas and Florida

Redomestication, also known as redomesticating, refers to the lesser-known legal process of transferring or moving the "home state" of an existing corporation, partnership, or LLC to a new state. It means keeping your existing company name, credit, and federal employer identification number (FEIN) without wasting time and money creating a new business entity, applying for foreign registration, or moving assets between companies.
— Prof. Chad D. Cummings, CPA, Esq., M.S.T., LL.M., CMA, CFE, CIA, CRMA, CISA, CITP, FCPA, PFS, CFP

Florida destination-state requirements

A redomestication of an LLC into Florida is governed by Fla. Stat. §§ 605.1041-605.1046 together with the law of South Carolina. The transaction requires an approved Plan of Conversion, Articles of Conversion, and the applicable Florida organizational filing. The Florida filing must be coordinated with the South Carolina outbound instrument so the same LLC continues without interruption.

Tax considerations when moving a LLC from South Carolina to Florida

South Carolina changed its individual income tax for tax year 2026. H. 4216, signed March 30, 2026, replaces the former graduated schedule with a 1.99 percent rate below $30,000 of taxable income and a 5.21 percent marginal rate above that amount. For income of $30,000 or more, the calculation is 5.21 percent of taxable income minus $966. The law also changes the starting point from federal taxable income to federal adjusted gross income and replaces federal standard and itemized deductions with a South Carolina Income Adjusted Deduction. That deduction depends on filing status and phases down as income rises. The Department of Revenue's 2026 reform notice explains why a lower headline rate does not establish an identical percentage reduction in every taxpayer's bill.

South Carolina taxes C corporation income at 5.00 percent. Its annual corporate license fee is 0.1 percent of allocated capital and paid-in surplus plus $15, subject to a $25 minimum. S corporations also face the license fee. For example, $500,000 of capital and paid-in surplus allocated to South Carolina produces a $515 annual license fee before any other tax. A corporation with no taxable profit can still owe that fee, so an income-tax comparison alone understates its continuing state costs. A qualifying pass-through entity can elect entity-level taxation of active trade or business income; owner withholding and the treatment of passive income require separate review. See the corporate filing guidance.

The general state sales tax is 6.00 percent, with applicable local additions. South Carolina has no separate inheritance tax or current estate tax. Redomesticating a LLC to Florida does not eliminate South Carolina tax on continuing operations or move its owners' personal domicile. Compare the new 2026 income base with the former deductions before estimating savings. Future income-rate reductions depend on the enacted revenue-growth test; they should not be treated as unconditional scheduled cuts.

Florida imposes no individual income tax. A qualifying Florida resident therefore does not pay Florida income tax on wages, investment income, or ordinary pass-through business income. The state generally taxes C corporation income at 5.50 percent after Florida adjustments, apportionment, and the $50,000 exemption. An LLC classified as a corporation follows the corporate rules; an LLC's legal label alone does not determine its tax treatment. S corporations can have Florida corporate-tax obligations on certain federally taxable built-in gains or excess net passive income. A partnership or LLC taxed as a partnership can also have a Florida Form F-1065 filing obligation when it has a corporate owner; pass-through treatment does not make every information return unnecessary. The Florida Income Tax Code explains classification and filing requirements.

Florida's general sales tax is 6.00 percent, with county surtaxes where applicable. Effective October 1, 2025, Florida repealed sales tax and the related discretionary surtax on commercial real-property rentals. The enacted 2025 repeal provision in section 37 of H.B. 7031 establishes the effective date. Transient accommodations, parking, and other separately taxable rental transactions require their own analysis. Florida has no current separate estate or inheritance tax, but moving a business does not itself establish an owner's Florida domicile or entitlement to homestead benefits.

Redomesticating a LLC from South Carolina to Florida can reduce the costs of maintaining a company under a state law that no longer matches its operations. Tax savings depend on the owners' residence, tax classification, and where the business actually earns income. Employees, property, inventory, or other business activity remaining in South Carolina can preserve its income-tax, sales-tax, payroll, or registration obligations. Complete any required final returns before closing accounts.

Economic nexus also matters for an out-of-state seller without a physical office. South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc., 585 U.S. 162 (2018), rejected the physical-presence prerequisite for sales-tax collection. A different, limited protection applies to certain solicitation of orders for tangible personal property under 15 U.S.C. § 381. Wisconsin Department of Revenue v. William Wrigley, Jr., Co., 505 U.S. 214 (1992), addresses that net-income-tax protection. It is not a general exemption from sales taxes or taxes on services. A state-by-state nexus review should identify each tax, applicable threshold, protected activity, and continuing filing duty.

Specific legal requirements to transfer a LLC to Florida from South Carolina

South Carolina has state-specific statutory, approval, filing, fee, and sequencing requirements that must be coordinated with Florida law. The requirements below are the origin-state requirements applicable to this transaction.

1. An outbound South Carolina redomestication requires authority for the entity type and the direction of the transaction. A statutory merger supplies a route for a South Carolina LLC to combine with a Florida LLC under S.C. Code Ann. §§ 33-44-904 to -906. A business corporation has an interstate merger route under S.C. Code Ann. §§ 33-11-101 to -107. The legal analysis should address both jurisdictions before a destination entity is formed or a South Carolina filing is submitted.
2. South Carolina's corporate domestication statute addresses entry into South Carolina. S.C. Code Ann. § 33-9-100 permits a foreign corporation to become domestic to South Carolina; it does not supply the outbound authorization for a South Carolina corporation moving to Florida. Chapter 31 concerns nonprofit corporations and should not be cited as general authority for a business corporation. Likewise, statutory conversion from an LLC into a different entity type is a different transaction from continuing an LLC as an LLC under another state's law.
3. For an LLC merger, section 33-44-904(b) requires a plan identifying each constituent and the survivor, the survivor's organization type, the transaction terms, the treatment of ownership interests, and the survivor's principal business address. The destination entity should be formed for the approved transaction and its organizational documents should match the plan. Record how the South Carolina members receive interests in the survivor, including the treatment of any interests issued when the destination company was organized. Otherwise, an unintended ownership change can arise from the preparation of the merger itself.
4. South Carolina LLC approval is unanimous unless the operating agreement specifies another number or percentage. That rule appears in section 33-44-904(c)(1). The destination constituent must obtain the approval required by its own governing law. Identify the actual members and the voting interests shown in the operating agreement before collecting signatures. A manager's authority to conduct the business does not, by itself, replace the required member approval. The plan should also specify how a proposed amendment or abandonment will be authorized before the merger takes effect.
5. A business corporation must apply section 33-11-103. Its board submits the plan to shareholders with the required recommendation or explanation, and the notice rules apply to shareholders entitled to notice even if they cannot vote. The default approval standard is two-thirds of the votes entitled to be cast, including the required separate voting groups; the statute permits charter variations within its limits. The meeting materials must address the financial statements described in subsection (d). Counsel should identify any applicable voting exception and any dissenters' rights before selecting the procedure for approval.
6. Articles of Merger are distinct from the internal plan. For an LLC, section 33-44-905 requires the articles to be signed on behalf of each constituent entity and to identify their jurisdictions and formation information. The filing also identifies the survivor and effective date, together with required statements about approval and any foreign constituent's South Carolina authority. For a business corporation, use the corporate articles and section 33-11-105. The filer should not substitute a corporation's approval recital for an LLC's member-approval statement, even if the same individual owns both constituents.
7. The official South Carolina forms state a $110 filing fee for LLC Articles of Merger and business-corporation Articles of Merger. That base amount does not include the destination formation or merger charges. Separate any portal charge and certified-copy cost from the statutory filing fee. The corporate form also calls for the plan as an attachment; review the applicable form's instructions instead of assuming every merger plan remains private.
8. The survivor must preserve South Carolina service rights. Section 33-44-905(a)(8) requires a foreign survivor's agreement to accept service for the covered obligations and member-payment rights. Section 33-44-906(b) provides a Secretary of State service mechanism in the circumstances stated there. Use a forwarding address that management will monitor after departure. Moving the company does not eliminate a creditor's existing claim or an owner's prior personal obligation, and failure to receive forwarded papers does not provide a reliable defense to otherwise valid service.
9. Under section 33-44-906, the survivor receives the constituents' property and liabilities, and pending proceedings can continue. The separate existence of a nonsurviving entity terminates. The articles serve as dissolution articles for the nonsurviving LLC, without requiring a separate winding up or distribution unless otherwise agreed. Corporate merger effects appear in section 33-11-106. This is statutory succession through a merger, and the documents should describe it with that precision. Do not characterize the destination survivor as having the South Carolina entity's original formation date without identifying the legal basis for that statement.
10. Coordinate effectiveness in South Carolina and Florida, including any delayed date that both statutes permit. Section 33-44-904(e) allows an LLC merger to take effect on filing or on a later date provided in the articles. The transaction instructions should state who will confirm each acceptance and how any rejected filing will be corrected before the intended closing. Do not cancel the South Carolina agent or close the operating bank account because the merger has been approved; the approvals and the effective merger are separate events.
11. Review contracts and recorded property before closing. A loan may require consent to a merger even though state law carries the debt to the survivor. A lease or professional license may also impose conditions on a change in the holder's legal organization. Identify any filing needed to connect the recorded real-estate owner to the survivor and retain the accepted merger documents for title review. Federal tax treatment and EIN retention require their own analysis; the Secretary of State's acceptance does not determine either question.
12. A qualifying corporate merger can trigger dissenters' rights. Under S.C. Code Ann. §§ 33-13-102, -200 to -220, evaluate eligibility and the required notices before soliciting approval. Where the meeting procedure applies, the notice must address the rights and include the statutory material. The corporation's later dissenters' notice is subject to a ten-day deadline and must set a payment-demand period within the statutory range. Those rights can create a cash obligation for the survivor. A sufficient vote to approve the merger does not resolve a shareholder's separate entitlement to seek payment.
13. The plan must remain available to the people whose interests it affects. Section 33-44-905(c) requires the survivor to furnish it on request and without cost to a member or other covered interest holder of a merging entity. Keep the executed plan and the final membership or share records together, including the calculation connecting old interests to interests in the survivor. For a company with unequal economic and voting rights, those calculations should use the governing documents' actual rights instead of treating every ownership percentage as interchangeable. Confirm that the post-merger records show the agreed result before issuing revised ownership statements.
14. South Carolina corporate returns and license fees require a separate closing review. The Department of Revenue's corporate guidance explains that a domestic or qualified corporation can retain filing obligations without income or activity until its state status ends. If the survivor will continue South Carolina operations, section 33-44-905(b) requires it to address foreign authority before conducting business. Preserve sales-tax and employer accounts needed for those operations. Use the 2026 individual-tax rules when evaluating owners' departure-year income, and retain the approvals, accepted filings, tax closing records, and continuing-registration evidence.

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