The taxonomic status of the Eastern Asia endemic Sorolepidium is controversial. Some authors accept it as member of the large diverse genus Polystichum, whereas others suggest that it is an independent genus separated from the later by the exindusiate sorus and the absence of aristate teeth at the pinnae margins. Here we infer phylogenetic relationship of Sorolepidium using DNA sequences of the chloroplast rbcL gene. Phylogenies were inferred using maximum-parsimony, maximum-likelihood, and Bayesian inference methods. Molecular data establish that Sorolepidium is deeply nested within the large genus Polystichum and has a close relationship with P. duthiei and P. lachenense in the model-based analyses. The Kimura 2-parameter distances of the rbcL sequences between S. glaciale and P. duthiei and P. lachenense were 0.1 and 0.2%, respectively. Furthermore, S. glaciale differed from P. duthiei by a single nucleotide in their rbcL sequences. Close relationships between S. glaciale and P. duthiei and P. lachenense are also supported by the shared spore ornamentation with echinate fenestrate folds.