Does a Power of Attorney Need a Notary in South Carolina?

Yes, a notary is required.

Acknowledged or proved under section 30-5-30, the rule for recordable documents.

In the official wording

"acknowledged or proved pursuant to Section 30-5-30."

From the official pages listed below, checked November 2026.

What else the signing needs

Witnesses: Witnessed with the same formality and witness requirements as a South Carolina will; the section doesn't state the number.
"attested with the same formality and with the same requirements as to witnesses as a will in South Carolina"
Agent's acknowledgment: An agent accepts by acting or other conduct showing acceptance.
"by exercising authority or performing duties as an agent"
Recording for real estate: After the principal becomes incapacitated, the agent can act only once the power of attorney is recorded the same way as a deed.
"has been recorded in the same manner as a deed"
Official form: South Carolina's version of the act has no statutory form: the article goes from Part 2 (Authority) to Part 4, and the only form in it is an optional agent's certification (62-8-119(f)).
Durable after incapacity: Durable unless it says incapacity ends it.
"is durable unless it expressly provides that it is terminated by the incapacity of the principal."

Next step

Sign by video with our New Jersey notary while you're in South Carolina, 7 AM to 9 PM Eastern, seven days a week, by appointment. New Jersey law lets a New Jersey notary notarize for a signer located in another state (N.J.S.A. 52:7-10.10). How South Carolina treats it: The state says a notarial certificate made in another jurisdiction is sufficient in the state when it meets the law of the place where it was made. More on South Carolina signers.

If the agent will use it for real estate, ask the title company or the county register of deeds before you sign.

Witnesses are required too. Talk to us before booking so we can plan the session, or sign in person with a notary and witnesses.

Notarize it online ($50 per session) Request a mobile notary in South Carolina

Booking sends a request; we confirm the time and the price before you pay.

In person, we look for a notary commissioned in the state near you; you approve the price first.

If a local notary in the state does it: Acknowledgment, jurat or signature witnessing, per signature, $5, under the state's fee rules (South Carolina notary fees).

Get it notarized online today

Online notary: open now until 9 PM ET · sessions by appointment · times confirmed by email

A New Jersey notary can notarize this with you on a video call, wherever you are in the U.S. $50 for the session, $10 for each extra signer. Any other fee shows in the booking form before you confirm. Open 7 am to 9 pm ET, every day, by appointment.

What you need

A valid government photo ID
A computer or phone with a camera
The unsigned document

Book an online session

Our certificate states the act was performed using communication technology, as New Jersey law requires. What it must say

Most U.S. recipients accept a remotely notarized document; check with whoever will receive it. What to ask them · Several signers

And a health care power of attorney?

Witnesses; the rule we read doesn't mention a notary. Two witnesses. The agent or successor agent and the principal's physician or the physician's employee can't witness, and in a health facility no more than one witness may be its employee. The form's notary section is optional.

"THIS POWER OF ATTORNEY WILL NOT BE VALID UNLESS TWO PERSONS SIGN AS WITNESSES."

Two adult witnesses.

From South Carolina statutory form health care power of attorney (Richland County Probate Court). A health care document follows its own signing rule, separate from the financial one.

Official sources

S.C. Code Title 62, Article 8, South Carolina Uniform Power of Attorney Act (SC Legislature) (checked November 2026)
South Carolina statutory form health care power of attorney (Richland County Probate Court) (checked November 2026)
S.C. Code Title 62, Chapter 8, South Carolina Uniform Power of Attorney Act (South Carolina Legislature, 2025 Code) (checked November 2026)

We are not lawyers, and this is general information, not legal advice. Checked November 2026. Rules change, and whoever receives the document decides what it accepts; we can't guarantee acceptance.

Common questions

Is notarization required for a power of attorney in South Carolina?

Yes, a notary is required. Acknowledged or proved under section 30-5-30, the rule for recordable documents.

Are witnesses needed for a South Carolina power of attorney?

Witnessed with the same formality and witness requirements as a state will; the section doesn't state the number.

Does the agent sign anything in South Carolina?

An agent accepts by acting or other conduct showing acceptance.

Does a South Carolina power of attorney have to be recorded for a house sale?

After the principal becomes incapacitated, the agent can act only once the power of attorney is recorded the same way as a deed.

Does a medical power of attorney need a notary in South Carolina?

Witnesses; the rule we read doesn't mention a notary. Two witnesses. The agent or successor agent and the principal's physician or the physician's employee can't witness, and in a health facility no more than one witness may be its employee. The form's notary section is optional.

Can I sign a South Carolina power of attorney with an online notary?

Our New Jersey notary can notarize it by video while you're in the state. The state says a notarial certificate made in another jurisdiction is sufficient in the state when it meets the law of the place where it was made. Witnesses are required too, so talk to us before booking, or sign in person.

Keep going

A power of attorney in another state: Pennsylvania · South Dakota · every state

Does a power of attorney need to be notarized in South Carolina?