State law brief
South Carolina
South Carolina's enacted gambling chapter does not name dual-currency sites
Sources reviewed Next review due
- Status on record
- No explicit prohibition on record
- Sweeps Coins redemption
- Not blocked by any state rule on our records
- Operators accepting players
- 160 scored operators, per our availability records
Did South Carolina S.362 create a sweepstakes exception or change current law?
No current-law conclusion follows from it. The official page lists S.362 as an introduced proposal referred to Senate Judiciary, and its text addresses skill-predominant games rather than sweepstakes casinos. Current analysis uses enacted code sections.
What the law says
South Carolina Title 16, chapter 19 prohibits setting up lotteries involving money, goods, merchandise, or things of value under section 16-19-10. Section 16-19-40 criminalizes specified games and betting in listed places, including gambling devices addressed by Title 12. Section 12-21-2710 separately makes certain slot, video, free-play, and chance devices unlawful, and section 12-21-2712 provides seizure and destruction procedures. These general provisions do not use the phrase sweepstakes casino or define online dual currency.
How it applies to dual-currency casinos
The official 2025-2026 S.362 page shows a proposal to add a skill-predominates safe harbor for paid skill games. It is listed as introduced and referred to Senate Judiciary, so it is proposal context, not enacted law. It does not create a sweepstakes-casino authorization. A dual-currency platform may characterize Gold Coin play as nonredeemable entertainment and a free Sweeps Coin route as removing consideration, while an agency or court could focus on purchased currency, redeemable prizes, casino-style simulations, or connected devices. Exact treatment depends on those facts.
Enforcement on file
The official set shows enacted criminal and seizure provisions and the S.362 proposal. No named South Carolina online sweepstakes-casino cease-and-desist, prosecution, or court decision was located in the reviewed sources.
Still unresolved
Whether a redeemable Sweeps Coin system is a lottery, gambling device, or unlawful game under South Carolina's existing text, especially where free entry and purchased play coexist, remains unresolved.
Sources we read
Information, not legal advice. State law, its enforcement and each operator's own terms change; for a decision that matters, talk to a lawyer licensed in South Carolina. 21+ only.