22 businesses · for founders abroad
A US company for your kind of business, from abroad.
A US LLC works for almost any business you run from outside the United States. What changes is the detail: where your stock sits, who withholds tax on what you earn, who collects sales tax, and what Stripe or PayPal will ask. Pick your business for the rules that apply to it.
01 · By kind of business
Find your business, and the one rule it turns on.
Selling goods
Where your stock sits decides the tax, and who collects sales tax decides the work.
- Amazon FBAAmazon sellersYour stock sits in Amazon's US warehouses, and whether that means US tax is something accountants still disagree on.Read the page
- ShopifyShopify storesShopify isn't a marketplace, so once your sales into a state pass its threshold, collecting sales tax there is up to you.Read the page
- DropshippingDropshippersKeep your stock outside the US and the tax stays simple, though payment processors will look hard at your store.Read the page
- EtsyEtsy sellersEtsy enrols you at your own address, so the LLC is for what grows beside the shop: your own store, wholesale and the brand.Read the page
- Print on demandPrint-on-demand sellersYour print partner makes and ships everything, so you never hold stock in the US and the tax stays simple.Read the page
- TradeImporters and exportersSelling imported goods in the US can mean US income tax, so get an accountant's view before your first container.Read the page
Software and apps
Usually no US income tax, as long as the team works from outside the US.
- SoftwareSaaS and app companiesSoftware built from abroad usually owes no US income tax, until you hire a US employee or open an office there.Read the page
- App developersApp developersThe app stores' tax interview decides what they withhold, and your country's tax treaty sets the rate.Read the page
- Indie hackersIndie hackersYou'll probably owe no US income tax, but Form 5472 is due every year and the penalty for missing it starts at $25,000.Read the page
- AIAI startupsCredit programmes from cloud providers and AI labs want a real company, and some want a Delaware corporation.Read the page
Services and content
Work done from home stays foreign-source; the tax interview sets any withholding.
- FreelancersFreelancersWork you do from home stays foreign-source income, and your own country taxes it just as it did before.Read the page
- AgenciesAgenciesYour team working from home keeps the income outside US tax, and two or more owners means a partnership return every year.Read the page
- ConsultingConsultantsAdvice you give from home is foreign-source income, though months spent on site in the US can change that.Read the page
- CreatorsContent creatorsYouTube withholds tax on part of your earnings, and it's your country's treaty, not the LLC, that sets the rate.Read the page
- AffiliatesAffiliate marketersCommissions are usually services income outside US tax, but some networks withhold, and the tax interview sets the rate.Read the page
- Self-publishingKDP authors and self-publishersAmazon withholds up to 30% of your US royalties, and your country's treaty rate, not the LLC, decides how much.Read the page
Payments access
A US company lets you apply. The processor still reviews you.
- Stripe accessFounders who need StripeA US LLC lets you apply for a US Stripe account, but Stripe still reviews you and can say no.Read the page
- PayPal accessFounders who need PayPalPayPal is quicker than Stripe to limit a new account, so most founders use it alongside Stripe rather than instead.Read the page
Structures and capital
Holding, property, investors and teams: each has a rule that sets the shape.
- Holding structuresFounders forming a holding companyWhether a US holding company helps depends on your own country's rules, so talk to an adviser at home first.Read the page
- PropertyReal estate investorsRent from US property is taxed in the US, and the LLC usually belongs in the property's state rather than Wyoming.Read the page
- FundraisingFounders raising from US investorsIf your stock vests, you have thirty days to file an 83(b) election, and there's no way to file it late.Read the page
- Remote teamsFounders hiring US contractorsUS contractors don't make you a US employer, but anyone you pay $2,000 or more in a year needs a Form 1099-NEC.Read the page
- Can I form a US LLC for my business if I live outside the US?
- Yes. A US LLC has no citizenship or residency rule, and you can form one without a visa, a Social Security Number or a US address. What changes from one kind of business to the next is the tax, the payments and the yearly paperwork, which is what each page here covers.
- Will a US LLC make my business pay US income tax?
- Usually not, if you and your team do the work from outside the United States. A single-member LLC owned by a non-resident is a disregarded entity, and work done abroad is foreign-source income. The common exceptions are stock held in US warehouses, people working in the US, and US property, whose rent is taxed where it sits. Your own country still taxes you as it did before.
- What does every foreign-owned LLC file, whatever it sells?
- Form 5472 with a pro forma Form 1120, every year, even in a year with no income. Missing it carries a $25,000 penalty. The state adds its own: Wyoming's annual report with a $60 minimum tax, or Delaware's $400 annual LLC tax.
- Which state should my business form in?
- Most founders abroad form a Wyoming LLC: it costs less to keep and keeps the owner's name off the public record. A company raising from US investors usually forms a Delaware C-corporation, because that is what their paperwork assumes. An LLC that owns US property usually belongs in the property's state.
- Do I have to collect US sales tax?
- Only where you have nexus, and selling services or software from abroad usually doesn't create it. Marketplaces such as Amazon and Etsy collect sales tax on their own sales for you. Sales from your own store, on Shopify or elsewhere, are yours to handle once you pass a state's threshold.
- How much does a US LLC cost to start?
- $351.40 for the first year on Launch in Wyoming: $249 for the plan plus Wyoming's $102.40 filing fee, at cost. After that, Wyoming charges at least $60 a year.
Ready when you are
Answer the questions. We do the filing.
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