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Getting paid by clients abroad
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From Zimbabwe · Africa
Start a US company from Zimbabwe
For Zimbabwean developers and sellers who are paid from abroad. Mercury and Relay don't serve people living in Zimbabwe, and Wise gives them no USD account details, so plan the bank first. Work done in Zimbabwe is taxed here even when a foreign client pays, so read that section too.
Launch + Wyoming filing; the tax return is separate.Checked by Saais Patel, compliance reviewer.
At a glance
Mercury doesn't open for founders living in Zimbabwe, and Wise gives no USD account details there.
The banks, in detailYou can form a US company while living in Zimbabwe, without an SSN or a US visit. Mercury, Relay and Wise's USD accounts don't serve people living here. Launch starts at $351.40 in Wyoming, including our plan and state filing fee. Plan the bank before you order, and ask about exchange control. The Zimbabwean points: work done here is taxed here at 25% plus the AIDS levy, and dividends from a foreign company at 20%.
Before you form
Start with whether you need a US company, and who will bank it.
BaseAcross's Wyoming LLC and Delaware C-Corp options for founders in Zimbabwe
Wyoming LLC
Owner-run business, once a bank will open.
- State filing
- $102.40
- Yearly state charge
- From $60
Delaware C-Corp
Raising from US investors.
- State filing
- $110
- Yearly state charge
- $450 for the model shown
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 work will be done, because pay for work done in Zimbabwe is Zimbabwean income.
- 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
- A record of where the work is done.
- Your return, with dividends from abroad.
- Any exchange control approval your bank asks for.
You and your tax adviser
For ZIMRA and your bank
You don't need a Zimbabwean 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 Zimbabwe to a maintained US company.
The state approves the company, the IRS issues the EIN and each provider approves its own account. In Zimbabwe, your tax adviser handles ZIMRA and your bank handles exchange control; we don't file there.
You and your tax adviser
Check the Zimbabwean side first
Decide whether you need a US company at all, how ZIMRA will tax work you do here, what exchange control needs, and who will bank the company.
You leave this stage with: A structure, tax plan and bank that fit.
01 / 07
You choose; BaseAcross checks
Choose the name and registered agent
We check the proposed name and provide the registered agent in the formation state. The registered office is for legal papers, not your operating address.
You leave this stage with: Confirmed filing details and a registered agent.
02 / 07
BaseAcross files; the state approves
File the company with the state
We submit the formation filing and send you the state's documents once it's approved. The company exists from that approval.
You leave this stage with: State-approved formation documents.
03 / 07
BaseAcross
Prepare the operating documents
We draft the LLC Operating Agreement or corporate bylaws. Check every name and share against your passport before you sign.
You leave this stage with: Operating documents for your records, your bank and US providers.
04 / 07
BaseAcross prepares; the IRS issues
Apply for the EIN
The EIN is a separate application after formation. Without an SSN or ITIN, it goes on Form SS-4 rather than the IRS's online tool.
You leave this stage with: The IRS's EIN confirmation once it's issued.
05 / 07
You apply; the providers review
Apply for banking and payments
Find the bank before you order. Mercury and Relay don't serve people living in Zimbabwe, and Wise won't give you USD account details. Use the same names, addresses and business description everywhere.
You leave this stage with: An approved account, if a provider accepts the application.
06 / 07
You, your US preparer and your tax adviser
Keep records and file in both countries
Keep the company's books, and a record of where the work is done. Put Form 5472 and your ZIMRA return on one calendar.
You leave this stage with: A yearly calendar with someone responsible for each filing.
07 / 07
Plan the wait
Formation, the EIN and banking have separate timelines.
Published service estimates and prerequisites for a Wyoming company from Zimbabwe
- Wyoming formationSame day
- Ordinary EINsix to eight weeks
- Expedited EINtwo to three weeks
- Bank and payment accountsProvider review
- US Stripe accountStripe's review
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 Zimbabwe 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.
The full cost from Zimbabwe
What a Wyoming LLC costs from Zimbabwe, line by line, and what to budget for outside our plans.
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
The registered agent renews with the plan. Operate adds its published business tools and bookkeeping. Neither plan files your tax returns in either country.
What a Wyoming LLC costs from Zimbabwe, on each plan
Launch
To start, before optional extras
$351.40
- Our feeFor the first year; the plan renews each year
- $249
- Wyoming filing feePaid to the state, passed through at cost
- $102.40
- Recurring subtotal, fromPlan renewal + minimum state charge, before extras
- $309
OperateBilled yearly
To start, before optional extras
$2,490.40
- Our feeFor the first year; the plan renews each year
- $2,388
- Wyoming filing feePaid to the state, passed through at cost
- $102.40
- Recurring subtotal, fromPlan renewal + minimum state charge, before extras
- $2,448
Optional extras are priced before you order, such as filing ahead of our next batch for $39. See full pricing.
Budget for the work outside that subtotal
Managed annual state compliance
$149 service fee / year
Optional on both plans. The state's charge is separate, and a reminder alone doesn't file the report.
State filing serviceUS federal return preparation
Arrange separately
You or your accountant handle Form 5472 and any other US returns on Launch and Operate. Ask the preparer for their scope and fee.
Federal filing responsibilitiesZimbabwean tax advice
Quote from your tax adviser
How ZIMRA taxes your work and the LLC's distributions depends on your circumstances.
Optional tools after free periods
Published in full pricing
Check domain renewals and when Launch's email, phone and site trials end. Operate includes its stated tools while subscribed.
Plans, trials and add-onsWhat the totals assume
The $309 Launch renewal example is the $249 plan renewal plus Wyoming's $60 minimum license tax. Wyoming charges the greater of that minimum or 0.0002 of the company's assets located and employed in the state, and paying online can add a processor fee. The Operate example uses the same minimum.
Prices are in US dollars. Paying from Zimbabwe, check your card's limits and fees, and ask your bank about exchange control.
Get started from Zimbabwe
Use the first-year cost calculator to compare plans and optional tools. Then add your tax adviser's fees and US return preparation to that budget.
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: None
There's no US–Zimbabwe income tax treaty.
US-source dividends, interest and royalties paid to you are withheld at 30% unless a US exemption applies. Pay for work you do in Zimbabwe generally isn't US-source income, so nothing is withheld on it.
How Zimbabwe sees it
Work done in Zimbabwe is taxed in Zimbabwe.
The source rule, the rates and the dividend rule come from ZIMRA's own texts of the Income Tax Act and the Finance Act. They run alongside the US steps below.
When the work is done here
The company, with your tax adviserThe company, with your tax adviser
Zimbabwean income: 25%, plus a 3% AIDS levy on the tax.
When it pays you a dividend
YouYou
20%, if it counts as a dividend from a foreign company.
Before money moves
You and your bankYou and your bank
The Reserve Bank's exchange control directives.
Worked example
This is an illustration, not a quote. Whether the LLC is taxed as a company, and whether its distributions are dividends, are for your tax adviser.
Your Wyoming LLC makes US$40,000 of profit, all from work you do in Harare.
That's Zimbabwean income, so corporate tax at 25% is US$10,000, and the AIDS levy adds 3% of that: US$300.
If it pays you the remaining US$29,700 as a dividend, tax at 20% would be US$5,940.
The amounts are in US dollars, which ZIMRA publishes tax tables in.
What Zimbabwe expects
Owning a US company doesn't take you out of Zimbabwe's tax system.
Zimbabwe taxes work done here at 25% plus a 3% AIDS levy on the tax, and dividends from a foreign company at 20%.
Work done here
Pay for services or work done in carrying on a trade in Zimbabwe is Zimbabwean income, wherever the payer is (Income Tax Act, section 12(1)(b)).
Company tax
A company or trust pays 25% on taxable income, plus an AIDS levy of 3% of the tax.
Dividends from abroad
Dividends from abroad received by someone ordinarily resident here are Zimbabwean income (section 12(2)). Dividends from a company incorporated outside Zimbabwe are taxed at 20%.
Exchange control
The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe issues exchange control directives. Ask your bank whether paying for a US company, or sending money to it, needs approval.
Sanctions and treaty
OFAC's list of sanctions programmes has no Zimbabwe programme. There's no US–Zimbabwe income tax treaty.
On the record
We form US companies. We aren't Zimbabwean 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 Zimbabwe 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 1120State and Zimbabwean checks
Keep the registered agent active and track the state's yearly charge. In Zimbabwe, keep a record of where the work is done, file with ZIMRA, and ask your bank about exchange control before money moves.
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.
| Task | Who handles it | Where the responsibility ends |
|---|---|---|
| Formation and EIN application | BaseAcross prepares and submits | The state approves formation; the IRS issues the EIN. |
| Bank and payment applications | You, with our guidance | The provider verifies the information and decides. |
| ZIMRA return and exchange control | You, your tax adviser and your bank | We provide the US company records they need. |
| Annual state filing | You, or our optional filing service | Reminders are included; managed filing and the state charge are separate. |
| US federal returns | You and your US tax preparer | Launch 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 work will be done and the business activity.
Download the checklist for your tax adviser (.txt)- 01
Is the money my US LLC earns from work I do here Zimbabwean income under section 12(1)(b)?
- 02
If it is, must the LLC register with ZIMRA and pay 25% plus the AIDS levy?
- 03
Are distributions from my US LLC dividends taxed at 20%, given that an LLC issues membership interests, not shares?
- 04
Does paying for the US company, or sending money to it, need exchange control approval?
- 05
How does ZIMRA class my US LLC: as a company or as transparent?
- 06
Which bank or payment provider will serve a US company owned from Zimbabwe?
- 07
How should I keep records for the US return and my ZIMRA return?
Questions
Questions from Zimbabwe.
If yours is not here, email us at hello@baseacross.com before you order.
Can a Zimbabwean resident own a US LLC?
Yes. US law doesn't require an LLC's owners to be US citizens or residents, and formation and the EIN happen remotely. The Zimbabwean questions are how work you do here is taxed, exchange control, and who will bank the company.
Is income from my US company taxed in Zimbabwe?
If the work is done here, yes. The Income Tax Act treats pay for work done in carrying on a trade in Zimbabwe as Zimbabwean income, wherever the payer is. A company pays 25%, plus an AIDS levy of 3% of the tax.
Are dividends from the US company taxed in Zimbabwe?
Usually. Dividends from abroad received by someone ordinarily resident here are Zimbabwean income, and dividends from a company incorporated outside Zimbabwe are taxed at 20%. Ask whether your LLC's distributions count, since an LLC doesn't issue shares.
Do I need Reserve Bank approval?
Ask before you pay. The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe issues exchange control directives, and your bank applies them. Ask whether paying for a US company, or sending money to it, needs approval.
Is Zimbabwe under US sanctions?
Not as a country. OFAC's list of sanctions programmes has no Zimbabwe programme. Banks still run their own checks on people and companies.
Which account can a founder in Zimbabwe use?
Fewer than most guides suggest. Mercury and Relay don't serve people living in Zimbabwe, and Wise gives them no USD account details. Ask each provider before you order, and send complete documents.
How much does a US company from Zimbabwe 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 ZIMRA 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 Zimbabwe?
A Wyoming LLC suits an owner-run business selling to US customers, once a bank will open for it. 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 Zimbabwe?
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 Zimbabwe?
No. Zimbabwe is on Mercury's list of countries it doesn't serve, and the list goes by where you live, not your passport.
Do I need a US company for Stripe in Zimbabwe?
For Stripe itself, usually yes, because Stripe doesn't list Zimbabwe. But a US Stripe account needs a US bank account, and Mercury won't open for you. Find the bank before you count on Stripe.
Do I pay US tax on work I do from Zimbabwe?
Generally not. Pay for work you do in Zimbabwe 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–Zimbabwe tax treaty?
No. There's no US–Zimbabwe income tax treaty in force. US-source dividends, interest and royalties paid to you are withheld at 30% unless a US exemption applies.
Does BaseAcross file the US and Zimbabwean 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 ZIMRA return is 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.
Zimbabwe
United States (IRS, Treasury and FinCEN)
- OFAC · sanctions programs and country information
- IRS · withholding on US-source income paid to nonresident aliens
- IRS · income tax treaty list
- IRS · sourcing of nonresident income
- IRS · EIN application instructions
- IRS · Form 5472 instructions
- IRS · S-corporation eligibility
- FinCEN · current BOI exemption
Banks and payments
The source rule, the rates and the dividend rule come from ZIMRA's own texts of the Income Tax Act and the Finance Act, updated to 1 December 2024; sanctions from OFAC. Confirm the current position with your tax adviser before acting.
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 plansYour company's route
Nothing charged yetFrom
Harare
Zimbabwe
To
Wyoming
LLC · Cheyenne, WY
- Plan
- Launch
- First year
- $351.40
- To order
- 10 steps
Launch · $249 + $102.40 Wyoming · Same day