For members of the military who are active duty, claim their home of record in a state other than South Carolina, and are currently stationed in South Carolina, personal property exemption benefits are available for watercrafts. Our office will need the following:
- A Leave and Earning Statement (LES) for the same month the watercraft was initially purchased, or up to 2 months prior
- If a co-owner is listed, the front and back of their dependent military ID if they are a dependent (expired IDs are not accepted), or their respective LES if they are also active duty
The requested documentation can be submitted to our office through the request ticket form linked below. Copies can be scans or images taken from a smartphone, as long as the information is legible and preferably in PDF or a common image file format (PNG, JPEG). Please also list either the Property ID (PIN) or Alt ID (AIN) off the bill, or the Hull ID (boat) or Serial Number (motor), or the watercraft’s title number in the body of your message.
Once the requested documentation has been received, we will follow up with you on the status of the account. However, if a non-dependent or non-active duty member is listed as a co-owner on the watercraft registration, you may be entitled to a half military exemption instead of the full exemption, and a partial amount of the watercraft bill would need to be paid with the Beaufort County Treasurer’s office (843-341-8404). You will also receive a paid tax receipt from the Treasurer.
For additional questions concerning watercrafts, you will need to contact the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (DNR) at either 803-734-3857 (Columbia) or 843-953-9301 (Charleston).