Home South Carolina Uncontested Divorce Kit
2026 edition • Guide to SC's Free Simple Divorce PacketSouth Carolina Uncontested Divorce Kit
File on One Year Continuous Separation using SC's own free Simple Divorce Packet — explained line by line, including the Financial Declaration and your Corroborating Witness.
- Line-by-line guide to SC’s free Simple Divorce Packet — Coversheet, Summons, Complaint & Financial Declaration
- Corroborating Witness prep & a line-by-line walkthrough of the Financial Declaration (SCCA 430)
- Free eligibility check for South Carolina’s separation and residency rules
Do You Meet South Carolina's Separation Requirement?
South Carolina's Simple Divorce Packet is built for one specific, genuinely uncontested situation. Check below to see if it fits.
Use this kit if:
- You've lived in SC for 1 year before filing — or 3 months if both spouses live here, or your spouse alone has lived in SC for a year and you file where they live.
- You've lived separate and apart, without cohabitation, for 365 consecutive days — different residences, not different rooms.
- You have no marital property or debt, or you already have a signed agreement dividing it.
- You have no children (and none expected), or you have an agreement on custody, visitation, and support that meets the SC Child Support Guidelines.
- You have a trusted Corroborating Witness willing to testify at your hearing.
Talk to a lawyer if:
- You still live in the same house (even in separate rooms) or have been separated less than 365 days.
- You want to file on a fault ground (adultery, desertion, physical cruelty, habitual drunkenness) — this packet only covers the 1-year no-fault ground.
- You can't agree on property, debt, custody, visitation, or support.
- You're pregnant, there's domestic violence or coercion, or you can't locate your spouse or expect them to contest.
Agreement alone doesn't make a case suitable for the Simple Divorce Packet — property, support, and any minor-children terms still need to meet the court's own requirements.
What SC's Simple Divorce Packet Actually Requires
It's a real, workable path for genuinely uncontested cases — but it's not a shortcut around service, a witness, or the court's own review.
Gives you a single, standardized packet
South Carolina's Judicial Branch publishes one Self-Represented Litigant Simple Divorce Packet, used statewide, for people who meet its 1-year-separation, no-dispute eligibility. Our guide walks you through completing every form in that packet correctly.
What it doesn't do
It doesn't waive the hearing or witness requirement in the standard route (Family Court Rule 28's narrow affidavit-only alternative applies only when the only relief you're seeking is the divorce itself and a name change, and is still up to the judge). It doesn't cover fault grounds or contested issues. And South Carolina restricts commercial resale of its own official packet — so we focus our product on the instructions, checklists and witness prep rather than reselling the packet.
We can't promise your specific hearing date, whether the judge asks follow-up questions, or that your county's clerk won't have a local wrinkle — no honest DIY product can. Our roadmap is built to help you file a correct, complete packet the first time.
How It Works
A roadmap to your Final Order — not a promised timeline, since the court's calendar and paperwork accuracy both affect how long it takes.
Complete & File
Complete the Coversheet, Certificate of Exemption, Summons, Complaint, and notarized Financial Declaration. File with the Clerk of Court in the correct county and pay the filing fee (confirm the current amount with the Clerk).
Serve Your Spouse
Serve the filed documents by certified mail, acceptance, sheriff, private process server, or approved commercial delivery. No answer in 35 days opens the default path.
Request Your Hearing
File a Request for Hearing. Once the Clerk sets a date, mail the notice to your spouse at least 10 days ahead and file the notarized mailing affidavit.
Attend & Finalize
Testify with your Corroborating Witness. If granted, the Final Order and Report of Divorce are filed with the Clerk — you're not divorced until then.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can we live in the same house and be separated?
Generally, no. South Carolina courts interpret "separate and apart" to mean living in different residences for 365 continuous days. Living in separate rooms of the same home usually does not count.
What is a Corroborating Witness?
A person (friend, family member, neighbor) who comes to your hearing and testifies under oath that you and your spouse have lived apart for over a year. The standard hearing route requires one.
What is the Financial Declaration?
SCCA 430 is a detailed, notarized form listing income, expenses, assets, and debts. Family Court Rule 20 requires it when a party's financial condition is relevant, and the state's Simple Divorce Packet directs every user to complete it.
Do I have to go to court?
Under the standard route the packet describes, yes — the judge hears testimony from you and your witness. A narrower affidavit-only route exists under Family Court Rule 28, but only when the only relief you're asking for is the divorce and a name change, and it's still up to the judge.
What if I've lived in South Carolina less than a year?
You may still qualify: if both spouses currently live in SC, the residency period drops to 3 months; if you live elsewhere but your spouse has lived in SC for a year, you can file in your spouse's county. Active-duty military stationed here have their own continuous-presence rule.
What if we have children, property, or debt to divide?
You'll need a written agreement covering custody, visitation, and child support that meets the SC Child Support Guidelines, and property/debt division. If you can't agree, or the court has questions about the arrangement, this packet isn't the right fit on its own.
What does it cost to file?
The Family Court charges a $150 filing fee, payable by cash, cashier's check, or money order (not a personal check). That's paid to the Clerk of Court. An In Forma Pauperis fee waiver may be available if you qualify.
What can this page actually help me with?
It explains how South Carolina’s one-year separation route works and what the court’s own Simple Divorce Packet asks for. We are not a law firm, cannot give legal advice, and cannot appear or file on your behalf — you file with the court yourself.
Important Legal Disclaimer
PlainDivorce is not a law firm and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or approved by the South Carolina Judicial Branch. We do not provide legal advice, do not represent you in court, and no attorney-client relationship is created by using this site or the guide. The South Carolina Uncontested Divorce Kit is an independently written self-help information product explaining the Judicial Branch's own Self-Represented Litigant Simple Divorce Packet; it does not include or resell the official court forms, and it is not a certification that any document or process is court-approved.
We do not guarantee that your spouse will not contest the case, that a hearing will be waived or held on any particular date, that a judge will grant your divorce as requested, or that your case will finalize within any particular timeframe. The current published Family Court filing fee is $150 and may change; you are responsible for verifying current requirements and fees with your county's Clerk of Court before filing.
If you are experiencing domestic violence, coercion, or feel unsafe, do not rely on this self-help guide in place of legal advice or protective measures. Contact a family law attorney or your local domestic violence resources.
Content last reviewed: September 2026.