Window Tint Guide: Understand
South Carolina Window Tint Law (2026): The Complete Guide
South Carolina's window tint law fits on a single page of the state code, but it covers a lot of ground: how dark film may be, where it may go, what it must not look like, which vehicles get an exception, what paperwork has to stay on the glass and what happens when something is wrong. Most of the confusion online comes from people quoting one sentence of it and skipping the rest.
This guide walks through S.C. Code § 56-5-5015 from subsection (A) to (K), adds the one state regulation that fills in the sticker details, and points out the places where the text is easy to misread. It is a plain-language summary, not legal advice. If your situation is unusual, check with the South Carolina Department of Public Safety (SCDPS) or a lawyer.
The short answer
South Carolina allows aftermarket film on side and rear windows as long as the film and the factory glass together still let through at least 27 percent of visible light, the film is nonreflective and not red, yellow or amber, and each tinted window carries a certificate of compliance. Windshield film may only run above the AS1 line. Windows behind the driver on multipurpose passenger vehicles are exempt from the light limit; pickups are not.
Key points
- The legal floor on regulated windows is 27 percent combined light transmission, measured through the film and the factory glass together.
- Windshield film may only sit along the top, above the AS1 line, and if no AS1 line is visible, no film may go on the windshield at all.
- On multipurpose passenger vehicles, other trucks, buses and RVs, the light limit does not apply behind the driver; on pickup trucks it does.
- Every window with aftermarket film needs a certificate of compliance showing the film's percentage, the installer's name, address and phone number, and the install date.
- Owners and drivers face a misdemeanor of up to $200 or 30 days; installers who skip the certificate face a minimum $1,000 fine per offense.
The basics
What the Law Covers and What It Leaves Alone
The tint law is S.C. Code Ann. § 56-5-5015, titled Sunscreen devices. Subsection (A) says no one may drive a vehicle that is required to be registered in South Carolina on a public road if its windshield, front side windows or windows behind the driver carry a sunscreen device that breaks the rules in the rest of the section.
The law uses the phrase sunscreening device, which subsection (J) defines as a film material or device designed to be used with the car's safety glass to reduce the effects of the sun. In everyday terms, that is window tint, and it also covers clear heat-rejecting film, since that is designed to reduce the sun's effects too.
One sentence in subsection (A) clears up a common worry: if no aftermarket film has been added to a window, the light transmittance rules do not apply to it. Dark glass that came from the factory is not a tint violation by itself. The rules start to matter when film goes on top of that glass.
A state regulation, S.C. Code Regs. 38-621, adds the practical details for the compliance sticker. Between the statute and that regulation, you have the whole set of state rules for tinted cars.
Window by window
What Each Window May Carry
The statute treats the windshield, the side windows and the rear-most window separately. Here is each rule in plain words, followed by the details people most often miss.
- Windshieldsubsection (B)
- Film may be used only along the top of the windshield and may not extend below the AS1 line, a marking the glass maker puts on the windshield. If the AS1 line is not visible, no film may be applied to the windshield. The statute sets no darkness number for that top strip. The AS1 line explained
- Front side windowssubsection (C)
- The windows immediately to the driver's left and right, including small side wings, may carry a single film. It must be nonreflective, and the film plus the factory glass must let through at least 27 percent of visible light combined. This applies to every vehicle type. How the 27% math works
- Rear side windowssubsections (C) and (I)
- On cars and pickup trucks, the side windows behind the driver follow the same 27 percent combined rule. On multipurpose passenger vehicles and the other vehicle types listed in subsection (I), the light transmittance limit does not apply to windows behind the driver. SUVs, vans and pickups
- Rear-most windowsubsection (D)
- Film on the back glass must be nonreflective and, since January 1, 1993, must leave at least 27 percent combined light transmission. If any film is on the rear-most window, the vehicle must have both a right and a left outside rearview mirror.
Subsection (D)(3) protects one narrow group: film installed on a rear-most window before January 1, 1993, that met the old 20 percent standard at the time is not a violation as long as that original film is still in place.
The film itself
Nonreflective, No Red, Yellow or Amber, and Only One Layer
Darkness is only one test. Subsection (B) opens with a rule written for every film: it must be nonreflective and may not be red, yellow or amber. Subsection (J) defines nonreflective as a product primarily designed to absorb light rather than reflect it, which is why mirror-finish films are a problem in South Carolina no matter how light they are.
The statute also defines luminous reflectance, the share of light a film bounces back outward, but it does not set a numeric reflectance limit. The test it applies is the nonreflective definition. If a film is sold mainly for its mirror look, it is not the kind of product the law has in mind.
Subsections (C) and (D) both say a single sunscreening device may be installed on those windows. Stacking two films to get darker is not what the statute allows, and it usually fails the 27 percent test anyway.
Vehicle type
Which Vehicles Get the Rear-Window Exception
Subsection (I) says the light transmittance requirement applies to windows behind the driver on pickup trucks, but not to windows behind the driver on other trucks, buses, trailers, mobile homes, multipurpose passenger vehicles and recreational vehicles. That one sentence explains why a sedan, a crossover and a crew-cab pickup parked side by side can have different legal answers.
Subsection (J) defines a multipurpose passenger vehicle as one designed to carry ten people or fewer that is built either on a truck chassis or with special features for occasional off-road use. The federal definition in 49 CFR 571.3 is essentially the same. You do not have to guess: federal rules require the certification label on the driver's door edge or door pillar to list the vehicle's type classification, such as MPV or truck.
Two limits on the exception matter. It covers only windows behind the driver, so the front side windows of an SUV still need 27 percent combined. And it lifts only the light transmittance requirement; it says nothing that removes the nonreflective rule, the color ban or the certificate requirement.
Paperwork
The Certificate of Compliance on Every Tinted Window
Subsection (E) says every vehicle with aftermarket film must bear a certificate of compliance at all times, whether a professional or the owner installed the film. One certificate goes on the inside, lower right-hand corner of each window that has film. It must show the percentage of light transmission allowed by the film, the installer's name, address and telephone number, and the date of installation.
Regulation 38-621 adds that the sticker may be no larger than 2 inches square, goes between the film and the glass, and sits in the lower left corner of each glazing surface as seen from outside, which is the same corner as the statute's lower right seen from inside. The professional tinter supplies it, or the retail store does when a consumer buys film to install.
Subsection (F) requires film manufacturers to supply the certificate and instructions for attaching it. Subsection (G) says no one may sell film for vehicle use that does not comply, and no one may install film on a road vehicle without 'permanently affixing' the certificate.
- Certificate details
- Placement, contents, what to do if a used car has none, and why the sticker cannot simply be moved to another car. Read the certificate guide
Exemptions
The Two Exemptions in the Statute
Subsection (H) lists two cases where the section does not apply. The first is a vehicle registered in South Carolina in the name of a person, or that person's legal guardian, who has an affidavit signed by a physician or optometrist licensed in South Carolina stating that a physical condition makes darker or more reflective film necessary. The affidavit must be in the vehicle whenever it is driven, must be shown to an officer on request and must be updated every two years.
In a 2015 opinion, the South Carolina Attorney General's office concluded that this medical exemption reaches the placement of film as well as its darkness and reflectance. Attorney General opinions are not court rulings, but they show how the state's lawyers read the text.
The second exemption is for law enforcement vehicles used regularly to transport a trained police dog. There is no general exemption for limousines, rideshare cars or show cars in this section.
- Medical exemption
- Who can sign the affidavit, what it has to say, the two-year renewal and the practical steps before anyone installs film. How the medical exemption works
Penalties
Who Can Be Charged, and With What
Subsection (K) covers owners and drivers: a person who owns or operates a vehicle in violation of the section is guilty of a misdemeanor triable in magistrate's court and, on conviction, must be fined not more than $200 or imprisoned not more than 30 days.
Subsection (G) sets separate penalties for breaking the sales and sticker rules in subsections (E) and (G). A professional window tinter faces a fine of not less than $1,000 or up to 30 days, or both, for each offense. A consumer faces a fine of not less than $200 or up to 30 days for each offense. Note that these are minimums, unlike the cap in subsection (K).
Court assessments can be added on top of any fine, so the amount on a ticket is not always the fine alone. The penalty guide in this series covers that, along with how officers measure tint and how people fix the problem.
- Tint tickets
- What a citation means, how assessments add up, whether it carries license points and how to get the car compliant. What happens after a tint ticket
| Window | Cars | MPVs (many SUVs and minivans) | Pickup trucks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Windshield | Top strip above the AS1 line only | Top strip above the AS1 line only | Top strip above the AS1 line only |
| Front side windows | 27% combined or lighter | 27% combined or lighter | 27% combined or lighter |
| Rear side windows | 27% combined or lighter | No light transmittance limit | 27% combined or lighter |
| Rear-most window | 27% combined, plus both outside mirrors | No light transmittance limit; both outside mirrors if filmed | 27% combined, plus both outside mirrors |
| Every filmed window | Nonreflective, not red, yellow or amber, certificate on the glass | Nonreflective, not red, yellow or amber, certificate on the glass | Nonreflective, not red, yellow or amber, certificate on the glass |
Summary of S.C. Code Ann. § 56-5-5015 as published in October 2026. Check the door-jamb label for your vehicle's classification. Not legal advice.
Want film that passes on your exact car?
We check the legal shade for your vehicle before installing, account for factory privacy glass, and put the South Carolina certificate of compliance on every tinted window.
Common questions
Is mirror or reflective tint legal in South Carolina?
No. The statute requires every sunscreening device to be nonreflective and defines that as a product primarily designed to absorb light rather than reflect it. A film sold mainly for its mirror finish does not fit that definition, even in a light shade and even behind the driver on an SUV, because the MPV exception lifts only the light transmittance limit, not the nonreflective rule.
Can I put clear heat-rejecting film on my whole windshield in SC?
Not under the statute's plain text. A sunscreening device is any film designed to reduce the effects of the sun, and the windshield rule allows film only along the top, above the AS1 line, without an exception for clear film. The medical affidavit is the one route the law provides for more. This is not legal advice; ask SCDPS if your case is unusual.
Does my SUV need stickers if it only has factory privacy glass?
No. The certificate requirement applies to vehicles equipped with an after-factory sunscreening device, and the statute says the light transmittance rules do not apply where no aftermarket film has been added. Factory-tinted glass with nothing on it needs no certificate. Once film goes on any window, that window needs its own certificate.
Does SC tint law apply to cars registered in another state?
Subsection (A) applies to vehicles required to be registered in South Carolina. If you live here and your car should be registered here, the law applies even if the plates have not been changed yet. Whether it reaches a visitor's car registered elsewhere is a question the statute does not answer directly, so ask SCDPS or a lawyer if it matters to you.
What is the fine for illegal window tint in South Carolina?
For an owner or driver, subsection (K) makes it a misdemeanor triable in magistrate's court with a fine of not more than $200 or up to 30 days in jail. State court assessments are added to the fine. Installers and consumers who break the sticker or sales rules face separate minimum fines of $1,000 and $200 per offense.
Sources
- S.C. Code Ann. § 56-5-5015, South Carolina Legislature (https://www.scstatehouse.gov/code/t56c005.php), accessed October 2026
- S.C. Code Regs. 38-621, Installer to Apply Non-Transferrable Approval Certificate, Chapter 38 Department of Public Safety, South Carolina Legislature (https://www.scstatehouse.gov/coderegs/Chapter%2038.pdf), accessed October 2026
- Opinion to Senator Luke A. Rankin on S.C. Code § 56-5-5015(H)(1), May 13, 2015, Office of the South Carolina Attorney General (https://www.scag.gov/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Rankin-L.-OS-9832-FINAL-Opinion-5-13-2015-00643993xD2C78.pdf), accessed October 2026
- 49 CFR 571.3, Definitions, eCFR (https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-49/subtitle-B/chapter-V/part-571/subpart-A/section-571.3), accessed October 2026
- 49 CFR 567.4, Requirements for manufacturers of motor vehicles, eCFR (https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-49/subtitle-B/chapter-V/part-567/section-567.4), accessed October 2026
- 49 CFR 571.205, Standard No. 205, Glazing materials, eCFR (https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-49/subtitle-B/chapter-V/part-571/subpart-B/section-571.205), accessed October 2026
Prices on this page are The Auto Show’s published starting prices. Film ratings and warranty terms come from the manufacturer. This guide explains South Carolina law in plain words; it is not legal advice.