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US LLC guide 2026

US LLC for non-residents: which state, what you'll owe, and what you must file

Updated 10 November 20265 states comparedAbout 25 minutes to read
The short answer

Anyone, from any country, can own a US LLC without a visit or an SSN. For a single owner working from abroad, the LLC usually owes no US income tax, but it must file Form 5472 every year, and the penalty for missing it is US$25,000.

Pick the state by what you need: New Mexico for the lowest yearly cost, Wyoming for a long track record at low cost, Delaware for investors, Florida for customers there, Nevada for creditor protection.

Pick my state Do I owe US tax?
The form most miss $25,000 penalty for each missing Form 5472 The one filing every US LLC with a foreign owner makes, sales or not. Due 15 April.

We read the 19 pages that rank for US LLC questions this month. Not one had correct fees for all five states, and three still tell you to file a report the law dropped in 2025. This guide fixes that, with every figure dated November 2026.

Key takeaways

  • A non-resident can form a US LLC without a visit, an SSN or an ITIN. The tax number comes by fax from the IRS.
  • A single owner working from abroad, with no US office or staff, usually owes no US income tax. The LLC still files Form 5472 with a pro forma 1120 every year.
  • Missing Form 5472 costs US$25,000 per form, and more if it isn't fixed within 90 days of an IRS notice.
  • The cheapest state to keep is New Mexico: $0 a year to the state. The dearest of our five is Delaware, at a $400 yearly tax.
  • US LLCs no longer file a beneficial ownership report. FinCEN's final rule of August 2026 made the exemption permanent.
  • Your home country decides your personal tax. A US LLC doesn't move it.
Chapter 1

Can a non-resident own a US LLC, and should you?

Five states, all in with HeirsonYear one | each year after
New Mexico$99$69
Wyoming$181.40$129
Florida$254$207.75
Delaware$269$539
Nevada$504$419
State fees and registered agent included. Form 5472 is US$179 a year more in every state. You live in your country.

Yes, from any country we serve and of any nationality. The harder question is whether it fits what you do. A US LLC opens US payment firms, marketplaces and banks to you. It doesn't make you a US taxpayer, and it doesn't make you tax free at home.

A good fit
Think again
  • You'll raise money from US venture funds: they usually want a Delaware C-corp
  • You'll hire staff or open an office in the US: the tax picture changes
  • Your country taxes companies its residents control abroad: check first
  • You live in the US: this guide's tax answers don't apply to you
1
Key takeaway

A US LLC opens US payment firms and banks to you. It doesn't change where you pay personal tax.

Chapter 2

Best state for an LLC as a non-resident: the five compared

You don't have to form where you'd live; you'll live abroad either way. The state decides three things: what you pay each year, what the public record shows, and how the law treats your share. Everything federal is the same in all five.

Five states for a non-resident LLC, November 2026
StateState fee to formEach year to the stateNames on the public recordBest for
New Mexico$50$0, no reportNone requiredThe lowest yearly cost and fewest filings
Wyoming$102.40$61.44 minimum with card fee, with a reportOnly the organizerLow cost with a long record banks know
Florida$125$138.75, report by 1 MayAt least one managerCustomers in Florida or Latin America
Delaware$110$400 tax by 1 JuneNone requiredUS investors and their lawyers
Nevada$425$350 list and licenceManagers namedThe strongest written shield for your share

The state chooser

What matters most to you? One answer is enough.

2
Key takeaway

Pick the state by your one main need: cost, record, investors, customers or creditor protection.

Chapter 3

How much does a US LLC cost a non-resident over time?

3,762

First-year prices are what providers advertise. Years two to ten are where the states pull apart: New Mexico charges nothing, Delaware $400. Slide to the years you'll keep the company; prices are ours, state fees and agent included.

$4,400is the gap between Delaware and New Mexico over ten years$5,120 against $720 with Heirson, state fees and agent included, before Form 5472.
Heirson study, 10 November 202619 ranking pages on US LLCs for non-residents, read line by line
0 of 19Had correct 2026 fees for all five states
0 of 19Offered a cost or tax tool
1 of 19Stated the Form 5472 penalty in full
Three still say a beneficial ownership report is required. FinCEN exempted US companies in 2025 and made it permanent in August 2026.
Five quote Delaware's old fees, $90 to form and $300 a year. Today it's $110 and $400.
Several promise "anonymous" LLCs. The IRS learns the owner from the EIN form and Form 5472 in every state.
Method: the pages the search results returned for 13 US LLC questions on 10 November 2026, read in full and compared with each state's statute and official forms. Pages are not named.
3
Key takeaway

Judge a state by year ten, not year one. New Mexico costs $720 over ten years with us, Delaware $5,120.

Chapter 4

How to form a US LLC from abroad, step by step

Six steps, and none needs a flight. The state filing takes minutes to days; the IRS number takes longest.

  1. Pick the state and the name

    Check the name is free in that state. It must end in LLC or a version the state allows.

    Day 1
  2. Appoint a registered agent

    Every state requires one with a street address in that state. You can't be your own from abroad. Ours is in the price.

    Day 1
  3. File the articles

    The state's form, filed online. In New Mexico and Wyoming we sign as organizer, so your name isn't on it.

    Minutes to a few days
  4. Sign the operating agreement

    Not filed with the state, but banks and payment firms ask for it. It names you as owner.

    Same week
  5. Get the EIN

    Form SS-4 to the IRS by fax, since the online tool won't take a business run from abroad.

    About 4 working days
  6. Open the bank account

    With the EIN letter, articles and your passport. Most online business accounts, backed by US partner banks, accept founders abroad.

    Days to a couple of weeks
4
Key takeaway

Six steps, no flight. The IRS number is the slowest part, at about four working days.

Chapter 5

How to get an EIN without an SSN, and whether you need an ITIN

The EIN is the company's US tax number. You don't need an SSN or an ITIN to get one. The IRS online application turns away anyone who runs the business from abroad or has no SSN or ITIN, so founders abroad apply on Form SS-4 by fax or phone. Our EIN guide fills the form in line by line.

EINThe company's number
  • Needed for a bank account and Form 5472
  • Free at the IRS
  • No SSN or ITIN required
  • By fax, about 4 working days
ITINYour personal number
  • Only if you must file a US personal return
  • Not needed to form the LLC
  • Not needed for the EIN
  • Applied for with your tax return

A few online business accounts ask owners for an ITIN or SSN. Most don't. Our US bank account guide covers the documents, insurance and tax forms. An ITIN is only worth getting if you'll owe US tax personally, which most founders in this guide won't.

5
Key takeaway

The EIN needs no SSN or ITIN. Get an ITIN only if you will owe US tax personally.

Chapter 6

Do non-residents pay US tax on an LLC?

The US taxes a non-resident on two kinds of income: profit from a US trade or business (called effectively connected income) and certain passive US income like US rent, interest or dividends. Work done from abroad, for anyone, is neither. Answer four questions.

How many owners?
Staff, an office or a warehouse in the US?
Do you work while in the US?
US rent, interest or dividends?

A guide to the rules, not tax advice. Amazon stock held in US warehouses, US agents who sign for you and US real estate are the common edge cases: ask us first.

Two worked examples

Say you sell design work from Lisbon

One owner, clients worldwide, no US presence
Profit for the year$60,000
US income tax$0
State income tax$0
Form 5472 and pro forma 1120Filed
US tax due$0
Portugal decides your personal tax on the $60,000.

Say you hire a US sales rep

One owner abroad, one employee in Texas
Profit tied to US work$60,000
US income taxGraduated rates
Personal US returnForm 1040-NR
ITINNeeded
US tax dueYes
Plan this before the hire, not after.
6
Key takeaway

Work done from abroad isn't US business income. US staff, US work or US rent and dividends are what change that.

Chapter 7

Form 5472 and the pro forma 1120: the filing nobody can skip

A US LLC with one foreign owner is treated as a corporation for this one purpose. Every year money moves between you and it, it files Form 5472, attached to a mostly blank Form 1120. The year you form it counts, even with no sales. Our Form 5472 guide goes line by line.

  • 1The 1120 is a cover sheet here. No corporate tax is calculated on it.
  • 3Your name, address and tax number at home go here. This is how the IRS knows the owner in every state.
  • 4Capital you put in, money you take out and fees the LLC pays you all count.
$25,000for each Form 5472 that's missing or wrongPlus $25,000 for every 30 days it stays unfixed after 90 days from an IRS notice.

The due date is 15 April for a calendar year, extendable to 15 October with Form 7004. Our Form 5472 filing is US$179 a year in every state.

7
Key takeaway

File Form 5472 with a pro forma 1120 every 15 April, even in a year with no sales.

Chapter 8

Will your home country tax your US LLC?

Probably, in some way. No US LLC changes where you're tax resident. Countries treat a US LLC in one of two ways, and that choice decides when you pay.

Looked throughTaxed as yours, as it's earned

Many countries treat a single-owner LLC as transparent, so its profit is your income in the year it's made, whether you take it out or not.

Treated as a companyTaxed when you take it out

Others treat it as a foreign company. Then dividends are taxed when paid, unless rules on foreign companies you control tax the profit earlier.

Four questions for your adviser at home

  1. Does my country look through a US LLC, or treat it as a company?
  2. Do your rules on foreign companies I control apply to it?
  3. If I manage it from home, could you treat it as resident here?
  4. Does our tax treaty with the US change any of this?
8
Key takeaway

Ask your home tax office the four questions before the LLC earns its first dollar.

Chapter 9

US LLC annual requirements, state by state

Federal duties are the same everywhere. State duties are where founders slip, because each state picks its own date. Choose yours and the month you'd form.

    9
    Key takeaway

    One federal date, one state date and the agent renewal. Put all three in your calendar on day one.

    Chapter 10

    Does a non-resident LLC collect US sales tax?

    -30%

    Sales tax belongs to the state where your customer is, not the state you formed in. You owe nothing until your sales into a state pass its threshold, which for most states is $100,000 a year. A few also count orders, and some have dropped that test.

    Services sold onlineMost states don't tax most services. Check the few that do if you sell there.
    Digital productsTaxed in some states and not others. Thresholds still decide when you register.
    Physical goodsTaxed almost everywhere. Marketplaces like Amazon usually collect it for you.

    Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire and Oregon have no statewide sales tax. Forming in one of them doesn't help: what counts is where your buyers are.

    10
    Key takeaway

    Sales tax follows your buyers, not your state. Nothing is due below each state's threshold.

    Chapter 11

    Can a non-resident open a US bank account for an LLC?

    Yes, usually with a US fintech bank rather than a high-street one, and usually without a visit. Three things decide it:

    1Your real address

    Fintechs want your actual business address abroad, not the registered agent's.

    2The EIN letter

    The IRS confirmation, plus the articles and operating agreement.

    3Where you live

    Each bank keeps a list of countries it won't serve. We match you to one that will.

    We prepare the application with you, and it almost always goes through. Traditional US banks mostly still want a visit to a branch.

    11
    Key takeaway

    Give the bank your real address abroad, never the agent's.

    Chapter 12

    Anonymous LLC for non-residents: what each state really shows

    No US LLC is anonymous; the IRS sees the owner on the EIN form and Form 5472. What differs is the public record, which anyone can search.

    New MexicoNo owner or manager namesOrganizer signs: we do
    WyomingNo owner or manager namesOrganizer signs: we do
    DelawareNo owner or manager namesAgent files for you
    FloridaA manager every yearOn the annual report
    NevadaManagers every yearOn the annual list
    The BOI report is gone for US LLCs

    FinCEN exempted every company formed in the US in March 2025, and its final rule of August 2026 made it permanent. Pages that still ask you to file one are out of date.

    12
    Key takeaway

    No US LLC hides you from the IRS. New Mexico, Wyoming and Delaware keep names off the public record.

    Chapter 13

    Seven mistakes non-residents make with a US LLC

    !
    Skipping Form 5472 in a quiet year

    It's due even with no sales. The penalty is the same US$25,000.

    !
    Choosing Delaware without investors

    You'd pay $400 a year for a benefit only investors use.

    !
    Using the agent's address at the bank

    Fintechs refuse it. Give your real business address.

    !
    Paying for a BOI filing

    US LLCs don't file one any more.

    !
    Assuming the LLC makes you tax free

    Your home country still taxes you, often as the profit is earned.

    !
    Hiring in the US without planning

    US staff can turn the profit into US-taxed income overnight.

    !
    Forgetting the state date

    Each state sets its own. We file before it, inside the yearly price.

    13
    Key takeaway

    Most costly mistakes are a skipped Form 5472 and assuming the LLC makes you tax free.

    Chapter 14

    Every guide for your US LLC, state by state

    Picked a state? Each row is everything you'll need there: forming it, keeping it, its taxes and how its public record looks.

    Heirson guides for each US state we form in
    StateFormationEvery yearTaxPublic recordAlso
    WyomingForm oneYearly feesTaxesCompany searchRegistered agent Step-by-step guide
    DelawareForm oneYearly feesTaxesCompany searchC corp or LLC?
    New MexicoForm oneYearly feesTaxesCompany search 
    FloridaForm oneYearly feesTaxesCompany searchArticles of organization Trade name (DBA)
    NevadaForm oneYearly feesTaxesCompany search 

    IRS numbers and forms

    By what your LLC does

    Choosing between options

    Banking and getting paid

    Chapter 15

    US LLC for non-residents: questions, answered

    ?!
    Can a foreigner open an LLC in the US?
    Yes, of any nationality, from abroad, without a visit, an SSN or a US address of your own. You need a registered agent in the state, which we provide.
    What is the best state for a non-resident LLC?
    New Mexico for the lowest yearly cost, Wyoming for low cost with a long record, Delaware for US investors, Florida for customers there, Nevada for protection from personal creditors.
    Do non-residents pay tax on a US LLC?
    A single owner working from abroad with no US office, staff or US passive income usually owes no US income tax. US work, staff or US rent and dividends change that.
    What is Form 5472?
    A yearly IRS information return for a US LLC with a foreign owner, filed with a pro forma Form 1120 by 15 April. Missing it costs US$25,000.
    Do I need an ITIN for my LLC?
    No. The EIN needs no ITIN or SSN. You need an ITIN only if you must file a US personal tax return.
    How long does it take to form a US LLC from abroad?
    The state filing takes minutes to a few days. The EIN by fax takes about four working days. The bank account usually follows within days.
    Is a US LLC anonymous?
    Not to the IRS or your bank. In New Mexico, Wyoming and Delaware, the public record needn't name owners or managers; Florida and Nevada show managers.
    Do I need to file a BOI report?
    No. Since FinCEN's final rule of August 2026, no LLC formed in any US state files one.
    Does a US LLC report to my country under CRS?
    The US doesn't take part in CRS, but it shares information under its own agreements, and banks abroad report accounts the LLC holds there. Plan to declare it.
    Can I pay for my US LLC in crypto?
    Yes. We take crypto, and nothing is charged until you've signed.

    Cite this guide: Heirson, "US LLC for non-residents: which state, what you'll owe, and what you must file", updated 10 November 2026.

    Changelog

    • 10 November 2026: first published, covering five states.
    Your US LLC

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