South Carolina Temporary Guardianship Agreement

Q: Does South Carolina have a temporary guardianship agreement?

The statutory out-of-court instrument is for military deployment: a temporary agreement granting custodial responsibility during deployment (S.C. Code 63-15-514) or a power of attorney by a deploying parent (S.C. Code 63-15-520).

Q: Who signs a South Carolina deployment custodial agreement?

Both parents and any nonparent to whom custodial responsibility is granted sign it, and it must be in writing (S.C. Code 63-15-514). A power of attorney is signed by the deploying parent only.

Q: When can a South Carolina deploying parent use a power of attorney?

Only if no other parent possesses custodial responsibility, or an existing court order prohibits contact between the child and the other parent. The deploying parent may delegate all or part of custodial responsibility to an adult nonparent for the period of deployment (S.C. Code 63-15-520).

Q: Is there an official South Carolina form?

This guide does not point to an official statewide form. S.C. Code 63-15-514(B) requires the agreement to be in writing and signed by both parents and any nonparent to whom custodial responsibility is granted.

Q: How long does a South Carolina deployment agreement last?

For the period of deployment, meaning a move of more than 90 days but fewer than 18 months under orders that are unaccompanied or do not allow dependent travel (S.C. Code 63-15-502(9)). Unless the parents agree to end it, it ends 60 days after the deploying parent gives the other parent notice of return (S.C. Code 63-15-544(C)).

Q: Does a South Carolina agreement have to be filed with a court?

Only where a court has entered an existing order on custodial responsibility or child support. Then it must be filed in that case within a reasonable period of time, with the case number and heading (S.C. Code 63-15-522).

Q: Can a South Carolina caregiver handle school and medical decisions?

Under the deployment agreement, decision-making authority includes education and health care decisions if the parents grant them. Whether a particular school or provider accepts the document is not guaranteed.

Q: Can a non-parent adult enroll a child in a South Carolina school without a court order?

A school district may admit a child living with a non-parent adult for reasons that include a parent's military deployment more than 70 miles away for more than 60 days, serious illness or incarceration, and requires the adult to sign an affidavit accepting responsibility for educational decisions (S.C. Code 59-63-31 and 59-63-32).

Q: Who can be the caregiver under a South Carolina deployment agreement?

Any nonparent to whom custodial responsibility is granted must sign the agreement (S.C. Code 63-15-514(B)). Under the power of attorney, the caregiver must be an adult nonparent, meaning someone at least 18 or an emancipated minor (S.C. Code 63-15-502(1), 63-15-520).

Q: Can the South Carolina probate court appoint a guardian of a minor?

Generally no for the minor's person. Other than a 62-5-303(C) proceeding, probate court does not have jurisdiction over the care, custody and control of a minor's person (S.C. Code 62-5-201). Family court handles custody (S.C. Code 63-3-530(A)(46), 63-15-60). A conservator of a minor's property is available.

South Carolina's statutory out-of-court route is a custodial agreement for military deployment.

Find out where you stand in South Carolina

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Introduction

A South Carolina temporary deployment agreement grants custodial responsibility and is signed by both parents and any nonparent granted it. It ends 60 days after the deploying parent notifies the other parent of return, unless both agree to end it earlier.

Key Things to Know

1
The South Carolina statutory instrument is for deployment: a temporary agreement granting custodial responsibility during deployment, signed by both parents and any nonparent granted responsibility (S.C. Code 63-15-514), or a power of attorney by a deploying parent (S.C. Code 63-15-520).
2
The agreement lasts for the period of deployment, meaning a move of more than 90 days but fewer than 18 months under orders without dependent travel (S.C. Code 63-15-502(9)). Unless the parents agree to end it, it ends 60 days after the deploying parent gives the other parent notice of return (S.C. Code 63-15-544(C)).
3
The agreement must be in writing and signed by both parents and the nonparent. The power of attorney is signed by the deploying parent only, and only where no other parent possesses custodial responsibility or an existing court order prohibits contact between the child and the other parent.
4
If a court has entered an order on custodial responsibility or child support, the agreement must be filed with that court within a reasonable period of time, with the case number and heading (S.C. Code 63-15-522). The deploying parent must notify the other parent of a pending deployment within 7 days of receiving notice (S.C. Code 63-15-508).
5
Custodial responsibility includes caretaking and decision-making authority, and decision-making authority includes education, religious training, health care, extra-curricular activities and travel. The agreement creates no independent, continuing right in the caregiver. Whether a particular school or provider accepts it is not guaranteed.
6
The power of attorney is revocable by the deploying parent through a signed revocation. Before deployment, the agreement may be changed by a writing signed by both parents and the nonparent, and a court may modify or end it on a best-interest finding (S.C. Code 63-15-542). The agreement is signed by any nonparent granted custodial responsibility (S.C. Code 63-15-514(B)); under the power of attorney, the caregiver must be an adult nonparent, meaning at least 18 or an emancipated minor (S.C. Code 63-15-502(1), 63-15-520). This is not a court guardianship: custody and parental rights are unchanged.
7
If this document does not fit your situation, or a longer or court-backed arrangement is needed, South Carolina uses the family court for custody of a minor's person. Probate court generally does not have jurisdiction over a minor's care, custody and control. A court route over a parent's objection is a contested case. See DocDraft's guardianship of a minor petition page. Report abuse or danger to the child to the state child protective agency. For a dispute between parents, see DocDraft's child custody agreement and parenting plan pages.

Key decisions before you file

Before you file a Temporary Guardianship Agreement in South Carolina, a few decisions shape the document: which option to choose and what each one means. The Temporary Guardianship Agreement guide walks through them.

Open the Temporary Guardianship Agreement guide

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TEMPORARY AGREEMENT GRANTING CUSTODIAL RESPONSIBILITY DURING DEPLOYMENT (South Carolina Code sections 63-15-514 to 63-15-522)

This agreement is made under the South Carolina Uniform Deployed Parents Custody and Visitation Act. It is not a court order and it is not a court guardianship. It applies while a parent who is a service member is deployed and ends as section 4 states. Deployment means being moved for more than ninety days but fewer than eighteen months under orders that do not allow dependents to travel.

PARTIES Deploying parent: [DEPLOYING PARENT FULL NAME], of [ADDRESS], [PHONE AND EMAIL]. Other parent: [OTHER PARENT FULL NAME], of [ADDRESS], [PHONE AND EMAIL]. Caregiver (nonparent): [CAREGIVER FULL NAME], of [CAREGIVER ADDRESS], [PHONE AND EMAIL]. Relationship to the child: [RELATIONSHIP]. Child: [CHILD FULL NAME], born [CHILD DATE OF BIRTH].
CUSTODIAL RESPONSIBILITY GRANTED For the period of deployment, the parents grant the caregiver the following caretaking authority and decision-making authority: [AUTHORITY GRANTED]. Decision-making authority may include decisions about the child's education, religious training, health care, extra-curricular activities and travel. Areas granted: [AREAS GRANTED]. [IF APPLICABLE: Limits set by the parents: [LIMITS ON AUTHORITY].]
WHAT THIS AGREEMENT DOES NOT DO This agreement does not create an independent, continuing right in the caregiver. It does not transfer custody, it does not end or reduce any parental right, and the caregiver does not become a legal guardian of the child.
TERM This agreement takes effect on [EFFECTIVE DATE] and is temporary. Unless the parents agree in writing to end it earlier, it ends sixty days after the deploying parent gives notice to the other parent of having returned from deployment.
CHANGES AND ENDING Before deployment, the parents may change this agreement by a writing signed by both parents and the caregiver. A court may also modify or end it on a finding of the child's best interest. The parents may also end it by a signed agreement after the deploying parent returns.
NOTICE AND ADDRESS CHANGES The deploying parent has given or will give the other parent notice of the pending deployment in a record within 7 days of receiving notice of it, with a custodial plan. The caregiver will notify the deploying parent and anyone else with custodial responsibility of any change of address.
FILING [IF APPLICABLE: A court has entered an order on custodial responsibility or child support. This agreement will be filed within a reasonable period of time in that case, with its case number and heading, as required. Case number: [CASE NUMBER]. Court: [COURT].]
[IF APPLICABLE: ALTERNATIVE, POWER OF ATTORNEY BY THE DEPLOYING PARENT ONLY, USED IN PLACE OF THIS AGREEMENT: Where no other parent possesses custodial responsibility, or an existing court order prohibits contact between the child and the other parent, the deploying parent delegates all or part of custodial responsibility to the caregiver, who is an adult nonparent (at least eighteen years of age or an emancipated minor), for the period of deployment. The deploying parent may revoke this power of attorney by a signed revocation. The power of attorney is signed by the deploying parent only; the other parent does not sign it.]
SIGNATURES Deploying parent signature: ______________________ Date: [DATE] Printed name: [DEPLOYING PARENT FULL NAME] Other parent signature (agreement only, not the section 8 power of attorney): ______________________ Date: [DATE] Printed name: [OTHER PARENT FULL NAME] Caregiver signature: ______________________ Date: [DATE] Printed name: [CAREGIVER FULL NAME]

South Carolina Requirements for Temporary Guardianship Agreement

Deployment Agreement Under 63-15-514
The South Carolina statutory instrument covers deployment (S.C. Code 63-15-514, 63-15-520).
Both Parents and Caregiver Sign the Agreement
The deployment agreement must be in writing and signed by both parents and any nonparent granted custodial responsibility (S.C. Code 63-15-514(B)).
Power of Attorney Limited to Certain Cases
A deploying parent may delegate custodial responsibility by power of attorney only if no other parent possesses it or a court order prohibits contact with the other parent (S.C. Code 63-15-520).
Term Tied to Deployment
The agreement lasts for the deployment period, a move of more than 90 days but fewer than 18 months under unaccompanied or no-dependent-travel orders, and ends 60 days after notice of return unless the parents agree to end it earlier (S.C. Code 63-15-502(9), 63-15-544(C)).
File in an Existing Court Case
Where a court has entered an order on custodial responsibility or child support, the agreement must be filed with that court within a reasonable period of time, with case number and heading (S.C. Code 63-15-522).
Notice of Deployment to the Other Parent
The deploying parent must notify the other parent in a record within 7 days of receiving deployment notice and share a custodial plan (S.C. Code 63-15-508).
Authority Granted and No Continuing Right
The agreement lists the caretaking and decision-making authority granted, which may include education and health care, and creates no independent, continuing right in the caregiver (S.C. Code 63-15-502, 63-15-516).
Caregiver and Revocation
Under a power of attorney, the caregiver must be an adult nonparent, at least 18 or an emancipated minor, and the deploying parent may revoke it by a signed revocation (S.C. Code 63-15-502(1), 63-15-520).

Frequently Asked Questions

Does South Carolina have a temporary guardianship agreement?

Who signs a South Carolina deployment custodial agreement?

When can a South Carolina deploying parent use a power of attorney?

Is there an official South Carolina form?

How long does a South Carolina deployment agreement last?

Does a South Carolina agreement have to be filed with a court?

Can a South Carolina caregiver handle school and medical decisions?

Can a non-parent adult enroll a child in a South Carolina school without a court order?

Who can be the caregiver under a South Carolina deployment agreement?

Can the South Carolina probate court appoint a guardian of a minor?

Find out where you stand in South Carolina

Introduction

Key Things to Know

Key decisions before you file

Customize your Temporary Guardianship Agreement Template with DocDraft

South Carolina Requirements for Temporary Guardianship Agreement

Deployment Agreement Under 63-15-514

Both Parents and Caregiver Sign the Agreement

Power of Attorney Limited to Certain Cases

Term Tied to Deployment

File in an Existing Court Case

Notice of Deployment to the Other Parent

Authority Granted and No Continuing Right

Caregiver and Revocation

Frequently Asked Questions