In South Carolina, there are temporary orders of protection and final orders of protection.

A temporary order of protection are can be issued if you request an “emergency hearing.” This emergency hearing will be held within 24 hours of when your petition is served upon the abuser. Unlike many other states that issue a temporary order without notifying the abuser (ex parte), South Carolina law calls for service upon the abuser before the emergency hearing so it’s possible that the abuser will be present at the emergency hearing. The temporary order is generally in effect for 15 days at which point a full court hearing will be held for a final order of protection.¹ However, the judge may extend the temporary order if your full court hearing is postponed.

Final orders of protection are issued only after a full court hearing, where both you and the abuser have a chance to present your sides of the story through evidence and testimony. Final orders of protection last for between six months and one year.² You may ask to have your order extended by filing a motion and showing “good cause.” See How do I extend, change, or cancel my order of protection? for more information.

There is a different type of order of protection for victims of stalking or harassment. For more information, see our Restraining Orders Against Stalking or Harassment page.

¹ S.C. Code § 20-4-50(a); see Petition for Order of Protection on the South Carolina Courts website
² S.C. Code § 20-4-70(a)

You can file a petition in any of the following counties:

• the county where you live;
• the county where you are currently in shelter, assuming that you are a state resident;
• the county where the abuser lives;
• the county where you and the abuser last lived together; or
• the county where the abuse took place.¹

¹ S.C. Code § 20-4-30(A)-(C)

In South Carolina, you can apply for an order of protection against a current or former same-sex partner as long as the relationship meets the requirements listed in Am I eligible to get an order of protection? You must also be the victim of an act of abuse, which is explained in What is the legal definition of abuse in South Carolina?

For non-married same-sex couples who are living together or who formerly lived together, it used to not be possible to get an order of protection. However, even though the language of the South Carolina statute says that only “a male and female” who live(d) together can qualify, the courts have ruled differently on this issue. In 2017, the South Carolina Supreme Court declared that this part of the statute was unconstitutional as applied to same-sex partners. Therefore, non-married, same-sex partners who live(d) together can apply for an order of protection in South Carolina.²

You can find information about LGBTQIA victims of abuse and what types of barriers they may face on our LGBTQIA Victims page.

¹ S.C. Code § 20-4-20(b)(iv)
² Jane Doe v. State of South Carolina, 421 S.C. 490, 808 S.E.2d 807 (2017)

The petition for an order of protection will ask for information about the abuser, how s/he abused you, and what kind of protection you need. If you need help filling out your petition, ask the clerk for help. Also, you can get help through one of the domestic violence agencies listed on our SC Advocates and Shelters page.

On the petition you will be the “petitioner” and the abuser will be the “respondent.” When you are filling out your forms, be specific. Write briefly about the most recent incident of violence, using descriptive language, such as slapping, hitting, grabbing, threatening, etc., that fits your situation. Include details and dates, if possible.

Note: Do not sign your form until you have shown it to a clerk. It may have to be signed in front of court personnel.

Whether the judge grants you a temporary order or not, you may be given a court date for a hearing on your petition within 15 days, assuming that your petition is not dismissed.¹ This hearing will be in front of a judge and both of you will have a chance to tell your sides of the story. At this hearing, a judge will decide whether or not to give you a final order of protection.

The respondent must be served notice of the hearing and the hearing date at least five days before the hearing.² It is the local law enforcement agency’s responsibility to serve notice of the hearing and your temporary order of protection to the abuser.³

You can find more information about service of process in our Preparing for Court – By Yourself section, in the question called What is service of process and how do I accomplish it?

¹ See Petition for Order of Protection
² S.C. Code § 20-4-70(b)
³ S.C. Code § 20-4-80

Here are some things you may want to consider doing. However, you will have to evaluate each one to see if it works for your situation.

• Review the order before you leave the courthouse. If something is wrong or missing, ask the clerk to correct the order before you leave.
• If you are concerned that the abuser will harass you when you leave the courthouse, ask the court officer if s/he would escort you to the door of the building. If you are afraid the abuser may follow you once you leave the courthouse, explain this to the court officer. The court officer might hold the abuser there for a few minutes while you leave so that you can get a head start , which would make it difficult for the abuser to trail you. This could be especially important if you are living in a shelter or confidential location and you do not want the abuser to know where you are staying.
• Make several copies of the injunction as soon as possible.
• Keep a copy of the order with you at all times.
• Leave copies of the order at your work place, at your home, at the children’s school or daycare, in your car, with a sympathetic neighbor, and so on.
• Give a copy to the security guard or person at the front desk where you live or work along with a photo of the abuser.
• Give a copy of the order to anyone who is named in and protected by the order.
• If the court has not given you an extra copy for your local law enforcement agency, take one of your extra copies and deliver it to them.
• You may wish to consider changing your locks, if permitted by law, and your phone number.

Ongoing safety planning is important after receiving the order. People can do a number of things to increase their safety during violent incidents, when preparing to leave an abusive relationship, and when they are at home, work, and school. Many batterers obey restraining orders, but some do not. It is important to build on the things you have already been doing to keep yourself safe. Click on the following link for suggestions on Safety Tips. Advocates at local domestic violence programs can also assist you in designing a safety plan and can provide other forms of support as well.

A judge can extend your order of protection if you file a motion asking for an extension and can prove “good cause” for the extension. The respondent has the right to a hearing on the extension of an order within thirty days of the date upon which the order will expire.¹ 

If you need to change your order of protection, you will need to return to court and file a motion to modify.² 

If you want to cancel (terminate) your order of protection, you can file a motion to terminate the order. If you and the abuser get back together (reconcile), the judge can grant an order of dismissal without a hearing if you appear personally in court, show proper identification, and sign a written request to dismiss based on the reconciliation.¹

¹ S.C. Code § 20-4-70(A)
² S.C. Code § 20-4-70(C)

According to federal law, which applies to all states, territories, and tribal lands, the courts are not supposed to make available publicly on the internet any information that would be likely to reveal your identity or location. This applies to all of these documents:

• the petition you file;
• the protection order, restraining order, or injunction that was issued by the court; or
• the registration of an order in a different state.¹

¹ 18 USC § 2265(d)(3)

Harassment is a pattern of intentional, substantial, and unreasonable intrusions into your private life that serve no legitimate purpose and would cause a “reasonable person” to suffer mental or emotional distress. Harassment may include, but is not limited to:

• following you;
• verbal, written, or electronic contact;
• visual or physical contact that takes place after you have told the person not to contact you or after you filed an incident report with the police;
• staying around or doing surveillance of your home, workplace, school, or other place you regularly go; or
• vandalism and property damage.¹

Stalking is a pattern of words or conduct that serves no legitimate purpose and is intended to cause, and does cause, you to reasonably fear that you or your family member will be:

• killed;
• assaulted;
• injured;
• criminally sexually abused;
• kidnapped; or
• subjected to property damage.²

Note: A “pattern” means two or more acts; “family member” means your spouse, child, parent, sibling, or a person who regularly lives in the same household with you.³

¹ S.C. Code § 16-3-1700(A), (B)
² S.C. Code § 16-3-1700(C)
³ S.C. Code § 16-3-1700(D), (E)

When you and the abuser live in different states, the judge may not have “personal jurisdiction” (power) over an out-of-state abuser. This means that the court may not be able to grant an order against him/her.

There are a few ways that a court can have personal jurisdiction over an out-of-state abuser:

1. The abuser has a substantial connection to your state. Perhaps the abuser regularly travels to your state to visit you, for business, to see extended family, or the abuser lived in your state and recently fled.
2. One of the acts of abuse “happened” in your state. Perhaps the abuser sends you threatening texts or harassing phone calls from another state but you read the messages or answer the calls while you are in your state. The judge could decide that the abuse “happened” to you while you were in your state. It may also be possible that the abuser was in your state when s/he abused you s/he but has since left the state.
3. If you file your petition and the abuser gets served with the court petition while s/he is in your state, this is another way for the court to get jurisdiction.

However, even if none of the above apply to your situation, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you can’t get an order. If you file, you may be granted an order on consent or the judge may find other circumstances that allow the order to be granted.

You can read more about personal jurisdiction in our Court System Basics - Personal Jurisdiction section.

Note: If the judge in your state refuses to issue an order, you can file for an order in the courthouse in the state where the abuser lives. However, remember that you will likely need to file the petition in person and attend various court dates, which could be difficult if the abuser’s state is far away.

To get a restraining order against stalking or harassment, you will have to file in Magistrate’s Court in any of the following counties:

• the county where the defendant currently lives;
• the county where the harassment or stalking occurred; or
• the county where you live but only if the defendant lives out of state or cannot be found.¹

¹ S.C. Code § 16-3-1750(B)

You can file a motion to ask that the final restraining order be extended for “good cause.” The defendant will have the chance to present evidence at a hearing within thirty days of the expiration date of the order to tell the judge why the order should not be extended. Then the judge will decide whether to extend it or not.¹

If you want to change your order, you can file a motion to modify the order.²

¹ S.C. Code § 16-3-1780(B)
² S.C. Code § 16-3-1780(D)

If the respondent is convicted of, pleads guilty to, pleads no contest to (“nolo contendere”), forfeits bail to, or is a juvenile who is adjudicated “delinquent”¹ of any of the following crimes or the attempt to commit any of these crimes, you can qualify for a permanent restraining order:

• harassment in the 1^st or 2^nd degree;
• stalking;
• domestic violence in the 1^st, 2^nd, or 3^rd degree;
• domestic violence of a high and aggravated nature;
• shipping, transporting, receiving, or possessing a firearm or ammunition under the circumstances explained in section 16-25-30 of the law;
• criminal sexual conduct in the 1^st, 2^nd, or 3^rd degree;
• criminal sexual conduct with minors in the 1^st, 2^nd, or 3^rd degree;
• engaging a child for sexual performance;
• producing, directing, or promoting sexual performance by a child;
• assault with intent to commit criminal sexual conduct;
• incest;
• buggery;
• peeping, voyeurism, or aggravated voyeurism;
• crimes against a minor that are related to obscenity, material harmful to minors, child exploitation, and child prostitution - you can see the complete list on the South Carolina Legislature website by scrolling down to “Article 3,” beginning with section 16-15-305;
• indecent exposure;
• kidnapping;
• trafficking in persons;
• criminal sexual conduct when the victim is a spouse;
• sexual battery of a spouse;
• sexual intercourse with a patient or trainee;
• criminal solicitation or attempted criminal solicitation of a minor for purposes of:
  • getting the minor to participate in “sexual activity,” as defined in subsection (5) of this law;
  • performing a sexual activity in the presence of the minor; or
• administering, distributing, dispensing, or delivering a controlled substance or GHB to someone with the intention to commit a crime listed in subsections (1) - (7) of section (f) of this law.²

Note: You can also get a permanent restraining order if the abuser was charged with a criminal sexual conduct offense, but it was later pled down to “assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature” or if the abuser was charged with a domestic violence offense and it was later pled down to “assault and battery” or “assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature.”²

¹ S.C. Code § 16-3-1900(2)
² S.C. Code § 16-3-1900(3)

If you are filing in the General Sessions Court, you will be filing in the court that issued the criminal conviction upon which the permanent restraining order petition is based. If you file in the Court of Common Pleas, you must file in any of the following counties:

1. the county where the respondent lives;
2. the county where the criminal offense occurred; or
3. the county where the you live but only if the respondent doesn’t live in the state or cannot be found.¹

^​1 S.C. Code §16-3-1920(B)

You can file for a permanent restraining order under any of the following circumstances:

1. You are the victim of one of the qualifying criminal offenses that took place in South Carolina;
2. You are an adult who lives in South Carolina, and you are filing on behalf of a minor child who is the victim of one of the qualifying criminal offenses that took place in South Carolina;¹ or
3. You are the spouse, parent, child, or lawful representative of a victim of one of the qualifying criminal offenses that took place in South Carolina and the victim is:
   • dead;
   • a minor;
   • incompetent; or
   • physically or psychologically incapacitated.²
4. You are a witness to one of the qualifying criminal offenses that took place in South Carolina and you assisted in the prosecution of the crime.¹ Even if you don’t actually testify at trial, you can still qualify if:
   • you were subpoenaed to testify; 
   • you expect to be subpoenaed to testify; or
   • you are likely to be called as a witness to testify for the prosecution.³

¹ S.C. Code §§ 16-3-1900(1); 16-3-1910(C)
² S.C. Code § 16-3-1900(6)(b)
³ S.C. Code § 16-3-1900(7)

You only have to prove that the respondent was convicted of one of the qualifying criminal offenses. You do not have to prove that you suffered a physical injury.¹

¹ S.C. Code § 16-3-1910(J)

You can file a request to have the order extended before it expires.¹ However, there is no specific timeframe laid out in the law as to how long the extension can last.

^​1 S.C. Code § 16-3-1910(M)(2)

An order of protection is good anywhere in the United States as long as:

• It was issued to prevent violent or threatening acts, harassing behavior, sexual violence, or it was issued to prevent another person from coming near you or contacting you.¹
• The court that issued the order had jurisdiction over the people and case. (In other words, the court had the authority to hear the case.)
• The abuser received notice of the order and had an opportunity to go to court to tell his/her side of the story.
  • In the case of ex parte temporary and emergency orders, the abuser must receive notice and have an opportunity to go to court to tell his/her side of the story at a hearing that is scheduled before the temporary order expires.²

Note: For information on enforcing a military protective order (MPO) off the military installation, or enforcing a civil protection order (CPO) on a military installation, please see our Military Protective Orders page.

¹ 18 U.S.C. § 2266(5)
² 18 U.S.C. § 2265(a), (b)

In some states, you will need a certified copy of your order of protection. A certified copy says that it is a true and correct copy; it is signed and initialed by the clerk of court that gave you the order, and usually has some kind of court stamp on it. In South Carolina, a certified order either has an original judge’s signature or a stamp and seal on it.

The copy you originally received should have been a certified copy.¹ If your copy is not certified, go to the court that issued the order and ask the clerk of court for a certified copy. There is no fee to get a certified copy of a South Carolina order of protection.

Note: It may be a good idea to keep a copy of the order with you at all times. You may also want to bring several copies of the order with you when you move. Leave copies of the order at your work place, at your home, at the children’s school or daycare, in your car, with a sympathetic neighbor, and so on. You may want to give a copy to the security guard or person at the front desk where you live and/or work and to anyone who is named in and protected by the order.

¹ S.C. Code Ann. § 20-4-80

Custody, visitation, and child support provisions that are included in an order of protection can be enforced across state lines. Law enforcement and courts in another state are required by federal law to enforce these provisions.¹

¹ 18 USC § 2266

Your protection order can be enforced in South Carolina as long as:

•  It was issued to prevent violent or threatening acts, harassing behavior, sexual violence, or it was issued to prevent another person from coming near you or contacting you.¹
• The court that issued the order had jurisdiction over the people and case. (In other words, the court had the authority to hear the case.)
• The abuser received notice of the order and had an opportunity to go to court to tell his/her side of the story.
  • In the case of ex parte temporary and emergency orders, the abuser must receive notice and have an opportunity to go to court to tell his/her side of the story at a hearing that is scheduled before the temporary order expires.²

Note: For information on enforcing a military protective order (MPO) off the military installation, or enforcing a civil protection order (CPO) on a military installation, please see our Military Protective Orders page.

¹ 18 U.S.C. § 2266(5)
² 18 U.S.C. § 2265(a), (b)

As long as the child custody provision complies with certain federal laws,¹ South Carolina can enforce a temporary custody order that is a part of a protection order.

To have someone read over your order and tell you if it meets these standards, contact a lawyer in your area.  To find a lawyer in your area click here SC Finding a Lawyer.

¹ The federal laws are the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act (UCCJA) or the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (UCCJEA), and the Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act of 1980.

To enforce an out-of-state order, law enforcement typically may rely on the National Crime Information Center Protection Order File (NCIC-POF). The NCIC-POF is a nationwide, electronic database that contains information about orders of protection that were issued in each state and territory in the U.S. The Protection Order File (POF) contains court orders that are issued to prevent acts of domestic violence, or to prevent someone from stalking, intimidating, or harassing another person. It contains orders issued by both civil and criminal state courts. The types of protection orders issued and the information contained in them vary from state to state.¹

There is no way for the general public to access the NCIC-POF. That means you cannot confirm a protection order is in the registry or add a protection order to the registry without the help of a government agency that has access to it.

Typically, the state police or criminal justice agency in the state has the responsibility of reporting protection orders to NCIC. However, in some cases, the courts have taken on that role and they manage the protection order reporting process.² NCIC–POF is used by law enforcement agencies when they need to verify and enforce an out-of-state protection order. It is managed by the FBI and state law enforcement officials.

However, not all states routinely enter protection orders into the NCIC. Instead, some states may enter the orders only in their own state protection order registry, which would not be accessible to law enforcement in other states. According to a 2016 report by the National Center for State Courts, more than 700,000 protection orders that were registered in state protection order databases were not registered in the federal NCIC Protection Order File.² This means that if a law enforcement officer is trying to enforce a protection order from another state that is missing from the NCIC, the victim would likely need to show the officer a hard copy of the order to get it immediately enforced. If you no longer have a copy of your original order, you may want to contact the court that issued the order to ask them how you can get another copy sent to you.

¹ National Center for Protection Orders and Full Faith & Credit
² See State Progress in Record Reporting for Firearm-Related Background Checks: Protection Order Submissions, prepared by the National Center for State Courts, April 2016

South Carolina state law gives full protection to an out-of-state protection order even if it contains protections that could not be included in a South Carolina order of protection as long as you can show the officer a copy of the order and can truthfully tell the officer that you believe the order is still in effect.¹ It does not have to be entered into the state or federal registry in order to be enforced by a South Carolina police officer, but the officer does need to believe that it is a valid (real) order.

¹ S.C. Code § 20-4-330

It should not be more difficult to get your order of protection enforced even if you do not register it in South Carolina. South Carolina state law does not require registration or entry into the NCIC for an order to be enforced, and law enforcement officials must enforce an out-of-state order as long as you can show them a copy and tell them that it is still valid.¹

If you are unsure about whether registering your order is the right decision for you, you may want to contact a local domestic violence organization in your area.  An advocate there can help you decide what the safest plan of action is for you in South Carolina.  To see a list of local domestic violence organizations in South Carolina, go to our SC Advocates and Shelters page.

¹ S.C. Code § 20-4-340