South Carolina Alcohol Law Update

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Mark your calendars now to stay on top of these upcoming important dates to ensure you and your company remain compliant.

The South Carolina Department of Revenue (SCDOR), Alcohol Beverage Licensing (ABL) Division has issued guidance recently as to the implementation of requirements for liquor liability insurance, mandatory alcohol server training and forensic digital identification systems pursuant to changes in the state alcohol beverage laws.

Liquor Liability Insurance

Businesses open after 5 p.m. to sell alcohol for on-premises consumption are required to maintain a liquor liability insurance policy of at least $1 million unless they qualify for certain mitigation factors.

Starting January 1, 2026, all special events selling beer, wine, or liquor after 5 p.m. must have a liquor liability insurance policy or a general liability insurance policy with a liquor liability endorsement with an annual aggregate of $500,000.

Licensees can submit mitigation information to the SCDOR beginning November 1, 2025

Qualifying licensees can apply these mitigation factors to their liquor liability insurance policy beginning January 1, 2026. 

For more information on how to submit mitigation information to ABL, go to ABL Updates - How H.3430 Impacts Your Business | South Carolina Department of Revenue and select Liquor liability insurance. 

^{(Image Credit ABL Updates - How H.3430 Impacts Your Business | South Carolina Department of Revenue)}

Mandatory Server Training

• All on-premises alcohol servers and managers who oversee alcohol service must complete state-certified training every three years.
• Training includes alcohol law, ID verification, recognizing intoxication, and safe service practices.
• Certificates must be available for inspection and tracked by the S.C. Department of Revenue.
• Must complete training program by March 2, 2026 or within 30 days of employment. 

It is anticipated approved training programs will be listed on the ABL Division website soon, but the SCDOR has not yet approved any server training programs to meet the new requirements of the law.  Please continue to check the ABL Division website and ABL Updates - How H.3430 Impacts Your Business | South Carolina Department of Revenue for updates as to approved programs and only select programs that are labeled as meeting H.3430 requirements. 

Forensic digital identification systems​

• Effective January 1, 2026, any licensee selling alcoholic beverages for on-premises consumption between 12a.m. and 4a.m. must use a forensic digital identification system to validate the ID of anyone attempting to enter the premises.

• Effective now, Collegiate Sports Venues that sell beer and wine must use a forensic digital identification system to authenticate IDs at the point of sale.

• The following forensic digital identification systems are currently approved by the SCDOR:

  • Intellicheck Identity Verification
  • Tokenworks AgeVisor 3
  • Tokenworks IDentiFake
  • Tokenworks IDVisor Smart V2 ID Scanner

For more information, visit ABL Updates - How H.3430 Impacts Your Business | South Carolina Department of Revenue

Stronger Penalties for Violations relating to the sale of beer or wine

Effective January 1, 2026:

•  $2,500 fine for a first offense
• Up to 14-day license suspension for a second offense (within 2 years)
• License revocation for a third offense (within 3 years)

For additional information about any of the updates above or to discuss any questions that you may have, please contact Andrea Easler.