South Carolina Code 12-37-3160. Promulgation of regulations; circumstances constituting change in beneficial ownership; certification of details of property ownership; penalties for falsification
(B)(1) Except as provided pursuant to item (2) of this subsection, the county assessor annually shall send to each real property owner of record, or the owner’s agent of record, to the address of record, a certificate prescribed by the Department of Revenue which must be signed and returned by the property owner or the owner’s agent certifying details of the ownership of the property. If the owner or owner’s agent knowingly falsifies any detail on the certificate, then the owner or owner’s agent is subject to a civil penalty imposed by the Department of Revenue, the county assessor, or an assessor appointed to handle multiple county assessments pursuant to an intergovernmental agreement, as applicable. The amount must not be less than twice the taxes lawfully due on the property or more than three times the taxes lawfully due on the property. This civil penalty is enforceable and collectable in the same manner as property tax.
Terms Used In South Carolina Code 12-37-3160
- Assessable transfer of interest: means a transfer of an existing interest in real property that subjects the real property to appraisal. See South Carolina Code 12-37-3130
- Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
- Fee simple: Absolute title to property with no limitations or restrictions regarding the person who may inherit it.
- individual: means a human being. See South Carolina Code 12-2-20
- person: includes any individual, trust, estate, partnership, receiver, association, company, limited liability company, corporation, or other entity or group; and
(2) "individual" means a human being. See South Carolina Code 12-2-20 - Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
- Real property: shall mean not only land, city, town and village lots but also all structures and other things therein contained or annexed or attached thereto which pass to the vendee by the conveyance of the land or lot;
(2) "Personal property" shall mean all things, other than real estate, which have any pecuniary value, and moneys, credits, investments in bonds, stocks, joint-stock companies or otherwise;
(3) "Moneys" or "money" shall mean gold, silver and other coin, bank bills and other bills or notes authorized to be circulated as money, whether in possession or on deposit subject to the draft of the depositor or person having the beneficial interest therein on demand;
(4) "Credits" shall mean the remainder due, or to become due, to a person, after deducting from the amount of all legal debts, claims and demands in his favor the amount of all legal debts and demands against him, whether such demands be payable in money, labor or other valuable things, but, in ascertaining such remainder, no deduction shall be made for any (a) obligation to any mutual insurance company given for insurance, (b) subscription to the capital stock of any joint-stock company, (c) taxes assessed against the person, (d) subscription to any religious, scientific, literary or charitable purpose, (e) acknowledgment of a liability not founded on a legal and valuable consideration, (f) more of any joint liability with others than the person honestly believes he will be compelled to pay, (g) contingent liability or (h) acknowledgment of a debt or liability made for the purpose of diminishing the amount of credit to be returned for taxation. See South Carolina Code 12-37-10 - Trustee: A person or institution holding and administering property in trust.
(2) The annual certificate requirement provided pursuant to item (1) of this subsection does not apply to a real property owner who is a natural person. However, the assessor periodically may send certificates to natural persons subject to the same requirements provided pursuant to item (1) of this subsection.
(C) For purposes of this section, a "natural person" is an individual or group of individuals who directly owns real property outside of any legal entity. A natural person does not include a trustee, agent, officer, or member of a legal entity which has an ownership interest in real property. A legal entity includes, but is not limited to, a corporation, partnership, limited liability company, unincorporated association, or trust.