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From Finland · Europe

Start a US company from Finland

For Finnish founders who sell into the US as a US vendor or raise from US investors. A Finnish Oy already gets you Stripe, and Mercury and Wise Business both serve founders here. A US company whose board decides in Finland is Finnish-resident, so read that section first.

Start from Finland From $351.40 in the first year

Launch + Wyoming filing; the tax return is separate.Checked by Saais Patel, compliance reviewer.

At a glance

Mercury takes applications from founders living in Finland. Wise Business is the usual second account.

The banks, in detail
US tax treaty
In force
Local Stripe
Yes
Mercury
Yes
Currency
EUR
Our fee
from $249
Wyoming's fee
$102.40
Until we file
Refunded in full

You can form a US company while living in Finland, without an SSN or a US visit, and Mercury and Wise Business both open for founders here. Launch starts at $351.40 in Wyoming, including our plan and state filing fee. A Finnish Oy already gets you Stripe, so the reason is usually US customers or investors. The Finnish point: a US company whose board makes its top-level decisions in Finland is Finnish-resident, taxed at 20%.

Before you form

Start with whether you need a US company, and where its board will decide.

  • You may not need a US company

    Card payments from customers worldwide

    Stripe already supports Finnish businesses, and an Oy is what Finnish banks and the tax office understand.

    Getting access to Stripe
  • A Wyoming LLC or a C-Corp, after advice

    Selling into the US as a US vendor

    Some US buyers and platforms want a US contracting party. With its board deciding in Finland, either is Finnish-resident.

    US companies for SaaS
  • A Delaware C-Corp

    Raising from US investors

    US investors usually want a Delaware C-Corp. Where its board makes top-level decisions is the Finnish question.

    Raising from US investors
  • A US subsidiary

    A Finnish company expanding to the US

    A Finnish Oy can own a US company as its subsidiary. Price dealings between them at arm's length.

    US holding companies

BaseAcross's Wyoming LLC and Delaware C-Corp options for founders in Finland

Wyoming LLC

Owner-run business selling to US customers, after advice.

State filing
$102.40
Yearly state charge
From $60
Wyoming LLC formation

Delaware C-Corp

Raising from US investors; plan where its board meets.

State filing
$110
Yearly state charge
$450 for the model shown
Delaware C-Corp formation

Both charges are the state's, before our plan, optional services and your advisers' fees. Wyoming sets a minimum yearly charge, and Delaware's franchise tax depends on how it's calculated. Staff, stock or premises in another state can bring obligations there. An S-corporation isn't an option, because nonresident aliens can't hold its shares.

Prepare the information

Different documents are needed at different stages.

You provide

Before state filing

  • Your proposed company name, business activity and chosen structure.
  • Owners' names exactly as on their passports, ownership shares, managers and home addresses.
  • Where the board will make its top-level decisions, because Finland's residence test asks.
  • The approved company name and formation details.
  • The responsible party. Without an SSN or ITIN, the application goes on Form SS-4.
  • Accurate mailing and principal business addresses, and your signed authorization where required.
You confirm; we prepare

After formation, for the EIN

  • A passport for each owner the provider asks about.
  • Formation documents, the EIN confirmation and the operating agreement.
  • A real business address, your website, a description of the business and the source of funds, as each provider asks.
The provider verifies

For bank and payment applications

  • Board minutes showing where top-level decisions are made.
  • Financial statements on all the company's business, if it's resident here.
  • Your return, with any dividends or CFC income.
You and your tax adviser

For the Finnish Tax Administration

You don't need a Finnish company to form a US company. The EIN is the US company's tax ID. Send identity documents through a secure request, and only the ones asked for.

How it works

Seven steps from Finland to a maintained US company.

The state approves the company, the IRS issues the EIN and each provider approves its own account. In Finland, your tax adviser handles the Tax Administration; we don't file there.

You and your tax adviser

Check the Finnish side first

Decide whether you need a US company at all, and where its board will make its top-level decisions.

You leave this stage with: A structure and tax plan that fits Finland's rules.

01 / 07

Plan the wait

Formation, the EIN and banking have separate timelines.

Published service estimates and prerequisites for a Wyoming company from Finland

  1. Wyoming formationSame day
  2. Ordinary EINsix to eight weeks
  3. Expedited EINtwo to three weeks
  4. Bank and payment accountsProvider review
  5. US Stripe accountStripe's review

  1. Wyoming formation

    Same day

    The clock starts
    Complete filing accepted by the state
    What can change it
    Our order checks and filing batch come first. Expedited filing changes our queue; it doesn't speed up the EIN.

  2. Ordinary EIN

    six to eight weeks

    The clock starts
    EIN application after formation
    What can change it
    Included in the plan. This is our published estimate; the IRS queue can change.

  3. Expedited EIN

    two to three weeks

    The clock starts
    EIN application after formation
    What can change it
    Optional $199 service. An estimate, with issuance controlled by the IRS.

  4. Bank and payment accounts

    Provider review

    The clock starts
    Company and owner information ready
    What can change it
    Mercury, Wise and any other provider set their own timing, may ask for more documents and can decline an application.

  5. US Stripe account

    Stripe's review

    The clock starts
    US bank account and website ready
    What can change it
    Stripe reviews the business and the person behind it, and can decline.

These are service estimates, not promised completion dates. The IRS and each provider set their own processing times. Names or addresses that differ between documents slow every stage.

What it costs

The same price from Finland as from anywhere.

Charged in US dollars, with the Wyoming state fee passed on at cost. Where you live changes which bank we introduce you to, not the price.

LLC cost calculator

Launch

To start

$351.40

$249 our fee + $102.40 Wyoming fee

Renews from $309 a year

OperateBilled yearly

To start

$2,490.40

$2,388 our fee + $102.40 Wyoming fee

Renews from $2,448 a year

Included in both plans

  • State formation filing
  • Registered agent and registered office
  • EIN application without an SSN
  • LLC Operating Agreement or corporate bylaws
  • Bank and payment application guidance
  • Filing calendar and reminders

What changes because you live here

The filing is the same from anywhere. Four things aren't.

Treaty status, payment availability, bank eligibility and time zones. Sources checked 14 October 2026; account approval remains with the provider.

1 of 4: The tax treaty

The tax treaty

The tax treaty: In force

The US–Finland income tax treaty is in force.

It exempts interest and royalties from US withholding, and caps dividends at 15%, or 5% for a qualifying company shareholder. Pay for work you do in Finland generally isn't US-source income, so the treaty matters less for a services business.

How Finland sees it

If its board decides in Finland, a US company is Finnish.

Residence and the filing duty come from the Finnish Tax Administration's own guidance; the rate and the CFC thresholds from PwC's summary. They run alongside the US steps below.

  1. If the board decides here

    The company

    Finnish-resident, taxed at 20%, with financial statements on all its business.

  2. If it's low-taxed and not resident

    You, with 25% or more

    The CFC rules can tax its undistributed profit to you.

  3. When it pays you a dividend

    You

    Taxed like a Finnish dividend, because the US has a treaty.

Worked example

A one-person LLC run from Helsinki, worked through

This is an illustration, not a quote. How Finland classes the LLC, and how it pays you, are for your tax adviser.

  1. Your Wyoming LLC makes €100,000 of profit, and as its only manager you make every top-level decision in Helsinki.

  2. Its place of effective management is in Finland, so it's Finnish-resident.

  3. Corporate tax at 20% is then €20,000, and it prepares financial statements on all its business.

  4. Being resident here, it can't also be a CFC.

What Finland expects

Owning a US company doesn't take you out of Finland's tax system.

Finland treats a company whose board decides there as resident at 20%, taxes a controlling owner on a low-taxed foreign company's profit, and taxes US dividends like Finnish ones.

Where the board decides

A foreign company is Finnish-resident if its place of effective management is in Finland: where its board or other body makes top-level decisions on day-to-day management. It then pays 20% on income from everywhere.

Sources

Books for all of it

A foreign company managed from Finland prepares financial statements on all its business, even if none of it is operated in Finland.

Sources

Controlled foreign companies

If you, alone or with related parties, control at least 25% of a foreign company taxed below three-fifths of what Finland would charge, its undistributed profit can be taxed to you. A foreign company that's resident in Finland can't be a CFC.

Sources

Residence

You're resident with a permanent home or habitual abode in Finland, or after more than six months here. Finnish nationals stay resident for three years after leaving unless they show no essential ties.

Sources

On the record

We form US companies. We aren't Finnish tax advisers. These are the rules as they're generally published, they change, and how they apply to you depends on details this page can't know. Take this list to a tax adviser in Finland before you order, and we'll tell you what the US forms need.

After formation

Someone has to own each filing, in each country.

US information reporting

A US LLC with one foreign owner is usually a disregarded entity that files Form 5472 with a pro forma Form 1120 when it has reportable transactions with you. Money you put in, take out or are paid for your work can count even in a year without sales. The IRS penalty for not filing starts at $25,000.

For a calendar-year company, the return is usually due 15 April, and Form 7004 requests an extension before then. A C-Corp, or an LLC with more than one owner, files different returns.

Form 5472 and the pro forma 1120

State and Finnish checks

Keep the registered agent active and track the state's yearly charge. In Finland, keep board minutes, and expect corporate returns and financial statements if the company is managed here.

US-created companies are exempt from BOI reporting under FinCEN's current rule, effective 14 August 2026. Banks and payment providers still verify who owns the company.

Who handles each formation, banking and filing responsibility
TaskWho handles itWhere the responsibility ends
Formation and EIN applicationBaseAcross prepares and submitsThe state approves formation; the IRS issues the EIN.
Bank and payment applicationsYou, with our guidanceThe provider verifies the information and decides.
Finnish returnsYou and your tax adviserWe provide the US company records they need.
Annual state filingYou, or our optional filing serviceReminders are included; managed filing and the state charge are separate.
US federal returnsYou and your US tax preparerLaunch and Operate remind you; they don't file the return.

Prepare the conversation

Take these questions to your tax adviser before you order.

Bring the owners, where each lives, the operating agreement, where the board will meet and the business activity. Each question is also in Finnish.

Download the checklist for your tax adviser (.txt)
  1. 01
    EN

    Would my US LLC's place of effective management be in Finland, making it resident and taxed at 20%?

    FI

    Olisiko yhdysvaltalaisen LLC-yhtiöni tosiasiallinen johtopaikka Suomessa, jolloin se olisi yleisesti verovelvollinen ja maksaisi 20 prosentin veroa?

  2. 02
    EN

    How does Finland class my US LLC: as a company or as transparent?

    FI

    Miten Suomessa luokitellaan yhdysvaltalainen LLC-yhtiöni: yhteisöksi vai läpivirtaavaksi?

  3. 03
    EN

    Could the CFC rules tax me on its profit before it pays me?

    FI

    Voidaanko minua verottaa sen voitosta väliyhteisölain perusteella jo ennen kuin se jakaa voittoa?

  4. 04
    EN

    How would dividends from it be taxed: as capital income or earned income?

    FI

    Miten siltä saamani osingot verotetaan: pääoma- vai ansiotulona?

  5. 05
    EN

    Which financial statements must it prepare in Finland?

    FI

    Millaiset tilinpäätökset sen on laadittava Suomessa?

  6. 06
    EN

    Would a Finnish Oy serve me better than a US company?

    FI

    Olisiko suomalainen osakeyhtiö minulle parempi vaihtoehto kuin yhdysvaltalainen yhtiö?

  7. 07
    EN

    How should I keep records for the US return and my Finnish return?

    FI

    Miten minun pitäisi hoitaa kirjanpito Yhdysvaltain veroilmoitusta ja suomalaista veroilmoitustani varten?

Questions

Questions from Finland.

If yours is not here, email us at hello@baseacross.com before you order.

Can a Finnish resident own a US LLC?

Yes. US law doesn't require an LLC's owners to be US citizens or residents, and formation, the EIN and the bank applications all happen remotely. The Finnish questions are where the board decides and the CFC rules.

Can Finland tax my US company as Finnish?

It can. A foreign company is Finnish-resident if its place of effective management is in Finland: where its board or other body makes top-level decisions on day-to-day management. It then pays 20% on income from everywhere.

What does a Finnish-resident US company have to file?

Financial statements on all its business, even if none of it is operated in Finland, alongside its Finnish return.

Can the CFC rules tax me on profit the company keeps?

They can, if you control at least 25% of it, alone or with related parties, and it's taxed below three-fifths of what Finland would charge. A foreign company that's resident in Finland can't be a CFC.

How much does a US company from Finland cost?

Launch starts at $351.40: $249 for the plan plus $102.40 for the Wyoming filing. The plan and Wyoming's minimum yearly charge then total $309 a year. Your tax adviser's fees, US return preparation and Finnish filings are separate. Wyoming's license tax can be more than its $60 minimum.

Should I form a Wyoming LLC or a Delaware C-Corp from Finland?

A Wyoming LLC suits an owner-run business selling to US customers, once you know where its decisions will be made. A Delaware C-Corp suits raising from US investors. Nonresident aliens can't hold shares in an S-corporation.

Can I get an EIN without an SSN or ITIN?

Yes. Without an SSN or ITIN, the application goes on Form SS-4 instead of the IRS's online tool. We prepare it after the company is formed, and the IRS issues the number.

How long does it take from Finland?

Each stage has its own clock. Wyoming's published turnaround is same day once a complete filing is accepted. Our ordinary EIN estimate is six to eight weeks after the application, or two to three weeks with the $199 expedited option. Banks, payment providers and Stripe each set their own review times. These are estimates, not promises.

Can I open a Mercury account from Finland?

Usually you can apply. Finland isn't on Mercury's list of countries it doesn't serve, and the list goes by where you live. Mercury still reviews each company and can decline.

Can I use Wise Business for the US company?

Usually, yes. Finland is on Wise's list of places where people can hold money, so a US company run from Finland can get USD account details. Wise reviews each business.

Do I need a US company for Stripe in Finland?

No. Stripe supports businesses in Finland, and an Oy gets you Stripe too. A US company is for selling as a US vendor, US contracts, US investors or platforms that need one.

Do I pay US tax on work I do from Finland?

Generally not. Pay for work you do in Finland is generally not US-source income, so a US company with no US office or staff often owes no US income tax on it. A single-owner LLC still files Form 5472 with a pro forma Form 1120 when it has reportable transactions with you.

Is there a US–Finland tax treaty?

Yes, it's in force. It exempts interest and royalties from US withholding, and caps dividends at 15%, or 5% for a qualifying company shareholder. Because of it, Finland taxes dividends from a US company like Finnish ones.

Does BaseAcross file the US and Finnish returns for me?

On Launch and Operate, we add deadlines and reminders; you or your accountant file the federal returns. Managed annual state compliance is an optional $149 service fee a year, with the state's charge separate. Your Finnish returns are for you and your tax adviser.

Does my new US LLC need a BOI report?

US-created companies are exempt under FinCEN's current BOI rule, effective 14 August 2026. A company formed outside the US and registered to do business there is a different case. Banks still collect ownership details for their own checks.

Sources and editorial scope

Check the published rules behind the explanation.

Prepared by the BaseAcross team and reviewed by Saais Patel, compliance reviewer. Sources checked . This is general formation information, with source links for the tax and banking context. An individual tax or legal review remains with your qualified advisers.

Finland

United States (IRS, Treasury and FinCEN)

Banks and payments

States

Residence, the filing duty and dividends are read from the Finnish Tax Administration's own pages. The rate and the CFC thresholds come from PwC's Worldwide Tax Summaries. Confirm the current position with your tax adviser before acting.

Europe

Other countries in the region.

Every country

Ready when you are

Answer the questions. We do the filing.

It takes about four minutes. You see the whole order, state fee included, before anything is charged.

Compare the plans

Your company's route

Nothing charged yet

From

Helsinki

Finland

To

Wyoming

LLC · Cheyenne, WY

Plan
Launch
First year
$351.40
To order
10 steps
Start from Finland

Launch · $249 + $102.40 Wyoming · Same day