US LLC from Singapore: Tax-Free? Not If the Work Is Done Here

0:00Is income from a US company tax-free in Singapore?

It's late in Tampines, and Darren types a question into a search bar. Is income from my US company tax-free in Singapore? He's heard that Singapore doesn't tax money from overseas. So a US company ought to make his income foreign. The guide's answer is short. Not if you earn it in Singapore. Getting the company is the easy bit. No social security number, and no trip to the US. We're BaseAcross.

We set up US companies for founders outside America, so we'll be straight with you. The part that matters is where the work gets done.

0:37Do you even need a US company?

Before the tax, a fair question. Does he need a US company at all? Maybe not. The big card processor already takes Singapore businesses, and a Singapore company is what local banks understand. A US company adds US filings, so it needs a reason. One reason is American investors. They usually want a Delaware C-Corp, often as the parent of a Singapore company. Or US buyers and platforms that want a US company to sign with.

Darren's buyers want that, so he has his reason.

1:12Does a US company make your work foreign?

Now the rule people half-remember. Overseas income a person receives in Singapore is generally not taxable, even when it's paid into a Singapore bank account. But all income earned in Singapore is taxable. And pay for work you do here is earned here, whoever pays it and wherever it lands. So if Darren writes the code at his desk at home, a US company paying him doesn't make that work foreign.

Think of it like a container. It can sail anywhere, but what counts is where it was packed.

1:45Forming it and getting an EIN without an SSN

Setting the company up takes the least thought. A Wyoming LLC usually suits a business you run yourself, selling to US customers. A Delaware C-Corp suits raising from US investors. The company needs a registered agent. That's an address in that state for legal papers, not where you work. Then the EIN, the company's US tax number. Without a social security number, it's a paper form to the IRS, and we prepare it.

You'll pay in US dollars, so check your card's exchange rate and fees.

2:21Can you open a US bank account from Singapore?

Banking from Singapore is usually straightforward. One of the US fintech banks takes applications from founders here, and a multi-currency account can give the company US account details. Each provider reviews you, and each can say no. So use the same names, addresses and description everywhere. One thing a US account won't change, though. Where the money lands doesn't decide where it was earned.

2:48Two founders, one LLC: where is the work done?

The guide shows it with two founders and the same Wyoming LLC. It bills US clients a hundred thousand US dollars a year. The first founder does the work from Singapore. That income is earned here, so it's taxable here. The second has a team in America doing the work, and only receives the profit in Singapore. That's closer to overseas income, which generally isn't taxable for a person.

That's an illustration, not advice. Where the work is done is a question of fact for your tax adviser.

3:22Can Singapore tax the US company? (and no treaty)

Then there's the company's own side. Singapore can treat a US company as resident. That happens when it's controlled and managed here, usually where its board meets and makes the big decisions. Where it was formed doesn't decide it. And a company doing business here, resident or not, is taxed at a set rate on income sourced here, and on foreign income when it's received here. There's no income tax treaty with the United States.

So US dividends, interest and royalties paid to you are withheld at the full rate, unless an exemption applies. The company still files a report with the IRS every year, even without sales, and missing it is expensive. It's usually due in the spring, and there's a form to ask for more time, filed before the deadline.

4:12What to do first

What comes first? Your tax adviser. Ask where the work is done, and where the board will meet. Then form, then bank. Keep a record of both, and of every payment between you and the company. Put the IRS report and your Singapore returns on one calendar. Your adviser handles Singapore's tax office; we don't file there. The full guide, with every source and a checklist for your adviser, is linked below.

And Darren? He changed his search. Not whether it's tax-free, but where the work is done.