US LLC from Uruguay: Not a Tax Haven. Two Layers of Tax, Explained

0:00Can a Uruguayan own a US company?

Sofía builds software in Montevideo. She wants to take card payments for it, and the big card processor doesn't take Uruguayan businesses. A US company is a common route to it. So, can she have one from Uruguay? As far as America goes, yes. No social security number, and no trip to the US. Cheyenne, in Wyoming, is three hours behind Montevideo in July, and four in January. We're BaseAcross.

We set up US companies for founders outside America, so we'll be straight with you. The American side is simple. The Uruguayan questions are where the work is done, and how dividends are taxed. Let's cut it out, piece by piece.

0:43The myth: is Uruguay a tax haven?

First, a myth. Is Uruguay a tax haven? No. Uruguay taxes business income from activities carried out in Uruguay. And residents pay tax on income from foreign companies, like dividends, with credit for foreign tax up to the same rate. Income from work done abroad is mostly outside its tax. So the short version is this. Uruguay isn't a haven. It taxes the work where it's done. Which means the question for Sofía isn't where her company is.

It's where her desk is.

1:16Where the work is done

So where is the work done? A company is Uruguayan only if it's incorporated in Uruguay. So a US LLC isn't Uruguayan just because Sofía runs it. But a foreign company can still have a permanent establishment in Uruguay. If the work is done here, it can be taxed here. A US company can apply for US card payments, but work done in Montevideo is still taxed in Uruguay. That's why where the work will be done is on the very first list of questions.

How yours would be treated is for your adviser.

1:50Forming it: Wyoming or Delaware, and the EIN

Next, forming the company, and it's the quick part. A Wyoming LLC for a business you run yourself, once you know how Uruguay will source its income. A Delaware C-Corp if US investors want shares. The company needs a registered agent, an address in that state for legal papers, not where you work. Then the EIN. Without a social security number, it's a paper form to the IRS. You'll pay in US dollars, so check your card's exchange rate and fees.

2:22The bank: the easy part

The bank, and in Uruguay this is the easy part. The US fintech banks most videos recommend take applications from founders here, and a multi-currency account can give you US account details. The card processor needs the US company. With it, and a US bank account, you can apply, and it can decline. Each provider decides for itself. So use the same name, address and description of the business everywhere.

2:50Two layers of tax: a worked example in pesos

Now the two layers, in the guide's own illustration. Say Sofía's US company makes three million two hundred thousand pesos of profit in a year, from work she does in Montevideo. If Uruguay treats that as a permanent establishment, the business rate takes eight hundred thousand. If the remaining two million four hundred thousand is then paid to her as a dividend, the dividend rate takes two hundred and eighty-eight thousand more.

Work done abroad, for clients abroad, would mostly fall outside Uruguayan tax. That's an illustration, not a quote. How Uruguay classes a US LLC is for her

3:29The US side: no treaty, a 2026 rule, Form 5472

adviser. Last, the American side, and one new rule. There's no income tax treaty between Uruguay and the United States. So US dividends, interest and royalties are withheld at the full rate. That's one reason a Delaware C-Corp's dividends cost a founder in Uruguay more. Work done in Uruguay isn't US income, so nothing is withheld on it. And since the first of January 2026, Uruguay has a new regime for individuals with foreign companies.

What it covers is a question for your adviser. 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.

4:16The order to do it in

So here's the order. Work out where the work will be done, with your adviser. Then form, then bank. Put the IRS report and your Uruguayan return on one calendar. The full guide, with every source and a checklist for your adviser in English and Spanish, is linked below. And Sofía? She took the two-layer question to her adviser first.