How Do I File for Probate in South Carolina?
South Carolina's single statewide petition (Form 300ES, used for both tracks) is a print-only PDF with no fillable fields, so this tool cannot complete it; the application is filed on the official 300ES.
Opening an estate in South Carolina
South Carolina uses a single statewide mandatory form (300ES) for both tracks and both testate/intestate appointments, but the official 300ES PDF is print-only flat with no interactive AcroForm fields — the only "type-into" version the Judicial Branch publishes is a Word .dot — so our field-fill tool cannot complete it and an automated fill is not viable without a text-overlay layer; the page off-ramps to the official 300ES and counsel. Re-verified 2026-07-13 by downloading the live 300ES.pdf and qpdf-normalizing it (object streams disabled, so fields cannot hide in a compressed stream): zero AcroForm/Widget fields, producer "Microsoft: Print To PDF". This is a genuine flat form, not the North Dakota false negative — the SC small-estate form 420ES, from the same Judicial Branch forms list, exposes 126 widgets and IS filled by this codebase, so SC plainly publishes fillable PDFs and simply has not made 300ES one. The process is otherwise pro se friendly (one uniform form across all 46 county probate courts, bond usually waived under § 62-3-603), though appointment is filed on paper and the PR must separately qualify (§ 62-3-601).
A simpler path may apply
South Carolina offers a small-estate or summary procedure that can transfer property without a full grant of Letters when the estate qualifies. This is often the honest self-service path where full administration is not.
Frequently asked questions
Yes. South Carolina permits a self-represented person to open an estate and apply for Letters. What we do not do is produce the document for you here: south Carolina's single statewide petition (Form 300ES, used for both tracks) is a print-only PDF with no fillable fields, so this tool cannot complete it; the application is filed on the official 300ES.
South Carolina offers a small-estate or summary procedure that can transfer property without a full grant of Letters when the estate qualifies. Form 300ES is a single mandatory form whose "Application (Informal)" and "Petition (Formal)" halves cover both appointment tracks, and it serves both testate (probate of will) and intestate appointments — so no separate testate/intestate petition forms exist. After the court appoints, the personal representative qualifies under § 62-3-601 and the Probate Court issues a Certificate of Appointment evidencing authority. The FORMAL track carries two extras printed on the face of the form: "IF THIS IS A FORMAL PROCEEDING, IN ADDITION TO THIS FORM PETITION, YOU MUST ALSO FILE A SUMMONS (FORM SCCA 401PC), AND PAY THE STATUTORY FILING FEE OF $150.00. A HEARING IN THE PROBATE COURT ON THE PETITION MAY BE REQUIRED." No attorney mandate applies to opening the estate: S.C. Code Ann. § 40-5-80 preserves a citizen's right to "prosecut[e] or defend[] his own cause," and the Supreme Court order holding that a non-lawyer administrator must appear by counsel (Order 2005-07-07-01) is addressed to perfecting an APPEAL on the estate's behalf, not to filing the 300ES.
County Probate Court handles decedents' estates in South Carolina. Probate Court; the personal representative must qualify under § 62-3-601 before letters / the Certificate of Appointment issue issues the Letters after the court grants the petition.
In South Carolina the court issues Certificate of Appointment of Personal Representative to the personal representative — the executor when there is a will, or the administrator when there is none. They give that person authority to act for the estate.
