Charleston County Revenue Collections Department

County Business License (unincorporated Charleston County)

A business in unincorporated Charleston County pays the county business license tax to the Revenue Collections Department; under §2 of Ordinance 2185, "County" means the unincorporated area. The Revenue Collections FAQ quotes the ordinance: "Every person engaged or intending to engage in any calling, business, occupation or profession..." and says anyone realising income from a business activity, other than as an employee of a licensed business, must buy a license. The rates are those of Appendix A of Ord. 2185, which Ord. 2270 (December 12, 2023) amended only for subclasses 8.3 and 8.6 and Ord. 2373 (December 18, 2025, effective for the license year beginning May 1, 2026) did not change; all three are in the county's CountyBL.pdf. The tax is a base rate on the first $2,000 of gross income plus a rate per $1,000 above it, by class: Class 1 $35.00 + $1.25, Class 2 $40.00 + $1.50, Class 3 $45.00 + $1.75, Class 4 $50.00 + $2.00, Class 5 $55.00 + $2.25, Class 6 $60.00 + $2.50, Class 7 $65.00 + $2.75, and subclass 8.1 "NAICS 230000 – Contractors, Construction, All Types" $55.00 + $1.55, with declining rates above $1,000,000 (90%, 80%, 70% and 60% of the class rate for each additional $1,000 in the $1-2, $2-3, $3-4 and over-$4 million bands). Appendix B, as restated by Ord. 2373 Exhibit A, lists NAICS sectors by class, among them 44-45 Retail trade (Class 1), 722 Food services and drinking places (Class 2), 62 Health care and social assistance (Class 3), 71 Arts, entertainment, and recreation (Class 3), 81 Other services (Class 3), 54 Professional, scientific, and technical services (Class 4) and 23 Construction (subclass 8.1). The ordinance states that "The license official shall determine the appropriate classification for each business in accordance with the latest issue of NAICS" (§6.B) and gives the license official "the authority to make the determination of the classification most specifically applicable" (§21.C); the license official assigns each business its class. Rates are doubled for nonresidents and itinerants with no fixed principal place of business in the county; for contractors the ordinance says non-resident rates apply to contractors without a permanent place of business in the county, and that a site trailer is not one. The license year runs May 1 to April 30 (§3) and the tax is due April 30 (§4.A), on the prior year's gross income; a new business pays on its estimated gross income for the rest of the license year, and a separate license is needed for each place of business and each classification (§4.B). The FAQ states that a zoning permit must be obtained before a new license is issued, and that renewals can be paid on the Revenue Collections Online Portal or mailed. A late payment draws a 5% penalty per month or part of a month, up to 100%, and penalties are not waived (§12.A). The license must be displayed, is not transferable, and an address change must be reported within 10 days (§8). Ord. 2185 §19 makes a violation punishable by a fine of up to $500 or up to 30 days, each day a separate offence. For contractors, the 8.1 text adds that "No contractor shall be issued a business license until all state and county qualification examination and trade license requirements have been met", requires a job sign and a list of subcontractors for each project, and provides per-job licenses. Under §21.B the class schedule is updated in each odd-numbered year. A business inside one of the 16 municipalities is licensed by that municipality instead.