Delaware LLC · for non-US residents
Forming the LLC is the easy part.
Formation takes a week or two, fully remote. What catches people is after, a mandatory Form 5472 carrying a $25,000 penalty, and banking that won't accept your registered-agent address.
Best if you sell to US customers or on US platforms and want a credible US entity, and will keep up the compliance.
Who this is for
Who a Delaware LLC is right for.
You need US payment rails
Stripe, a US bank account or USD invoicing, and your income actually requires it.
SaaS, digital, e-commerce
Building a product or service with US clients or US payment rails behind it.
Planning to raise US venture capital?
That track usually needs a Delaware C-corp, not an LLC — talk to us first so we point you at the right structure before you file.
Contracts with US companies
You need a credible US entity to sign with US counterparties, and will budget the annual CPA.
What we handle
The formation, end to end.
- 1
Your LLC name
Cleared in the Delaware registry and reserved in the filing; it must carry "LLC." Yours once the State records it.
- 2
A Delaware registered agent
Required by law, physical Delaware address, $49–$200/yr, included year one. Many banks won’t accept this address, so you’ll need a separate US business address.
- 3
The Certificate of Formation
Filed with the State, $110, about a week for standard processing; expedited options exist.
- 4
Your EIN, no SSN
Form SS-4 by phone or fax, "Foreign" where the SSN goes. Free; the IRS faxes the number back in about four business days, and every later step waits on it, so we start it early.
Three packages
Three ways to have us do it.
You've run a business for years — you know exactly how invoicing, tax and accounting work at home. The US is the same business in a system you don't know yet: how do you invoice a US customer, what replaces the e-invoicing and accounting software you run now, what has to be in place before the first payment lands? Ask an AI and it invents an answer; ask a formation site and it's “out of scope.” We answer these questions straight, or tell you exactly who can — for as long as you run the company. That's what the $500 buys, not just the filing.
One payment, the state filing included. The company formed, your EIN, a US mail-forwarding address, the documents. Done.
The company, formed, documents digital.
One payment
- Name check, filing and all state fees
- Registered agent, year one
- Certificate of Formation and formation documents
- A US mail-forwarding address (receives and forwards your post), since many banks won’t accept the agent’s
- EIN via Form SS-4, without an SSN
- Digital corporate seal and support for the life of your company
Not in this package
- Certified or apostilled copies
- Physical corporate kit
Formed, papers certified and apostilled.
One payment
- Everything in Formation
- Hard copies, couriered to you
- Certified copy with gold seal or apostille
- Notarized statement
- Operating agreement and bank resolution
Not in this package
- Physical corporate kit
Formed, papered, and bound.
One payment
- Everything in Formation + certified docs
- Deluxe corporate kit: embossed binder, minute book, ledger
- Twenty printed membership certificates
- Corporate seal embosser
Not in this package
- The bank and Stripe approvals, those aren't ours to give
You pay the package, once, and the formation is done. The only thing after is the LLC's own yearly upkeep, paid to others, not us: Delaware's $400 annual tax and a CPA for Form 5472. That is what the $25,000 below is about.
The filing most guides skip
$25,000The automatic penalty for a foreign-owned LLC that misses Form 5472, per year, even with zero revenue. Penalty relief may be available in some circumstances, but shouldn’t be assumed.
Every foreign-owned single-member LLC files Form 5472 with a pro forma 1120 by April 15, revenue or not. A decade of CPA filings costs $5,000–$20,000; one missed year costs $25,000. Most founders find out in year two, after the first deadline has already passed.
Our part, every year
- Registered agent, renewed.Invoiced by us each year, the one line you pay us again.
- Two dates we both hold.June 1, the $400 annual tax. April 15, Form 5472.
- A CPA who files 5472.Introduced before your first tax year closes; foreign-owned LLCs are their daily work.
- One address for every question.The bank, the filing, the renewal, the next company.
What the company actually gets you.
Eligible to apply for US Stripe
Your US company and EIN let you apply for US Stripe, no SSN needed — for most non-residents this is the payment processor and a big reason the LLC is worth forming. We show you how and what they’ll want; the application is yours, the yes is Stripe’s.
A USD business account
A business or multi-currency account that can work without a US address, depending on your country of residence and the provider’s current rules — we show you the current options and what each will want.
A US entity clients trust
A real Delaware LLC on your invoices and contracts, the credibility US platforms and counterparties expect before they sign.
A few honest limits, so you plan around them. The US business address we provide is a mail-forwarding address, a Delaware address that receives and scans or forwards your post, not a physical office — and because it’s a mail-forwarding address, some banks, Stripe and other providers may not accept it as an operating address; acceptance depends on each provider. PayPal needs a US SSN or ITIN, so use Stripe instead. And an LLC is not a visa, so it carries no US residency (that path is under Destinations). The company qualifies you to apply; the final yes is the bank's and Stripe's, and we tell you that before you pay.
Before you pay
The questions people ask first.
- Do I need to visit the US?
- No, filing, registered agent and EIN are all remote. Plan the timeline, though: the slow part is the bank, not the State or the IRS, so formation to a funded account is realistically 3–4 months.
- Which account should I start with?
- It depends on your country of residence and each provider’s current rules. Some business and multi-currency accounts open on your EIN with no US residency; like every US bank, they won’t accept a registered-agent address, so you’ll need a real US business address. We show you the options that currently work for your country and what each will want, rather than tie you to one name that may change.
- Will it give me Stripe?
- Your US company and EIN let you apply, on your EIN alone, no SSN needed — we show you how and what Stripe will want, but the approval is Stripe’s, not ours. PayPal is the opposite: it requires an SSN or ITIN, so most non-residents cannot use it. Check which one your business runs on before forming.
- What does “support for the life of your company” include?
- We stay your single point of contact for your filings, renewals and the questions that come up along the way. It doesn’t include legal, tax or accounting advice — where you need that, we point you to the right specialist.
- What does it really cost to run?
- The $400 annual tax by June 1, a registered agent at $49–$200, and a CPA for Form 5472 at $500–$2,000, a realistic all-in of $950–$2,600 a year. The advertised '$200 to form' is the first-year DIY minimum, not the running cost.
- Do I owe US tax?
- Usually not on foreign income, a non-resident single-member LLC with no US staff or dependent agent typically owes no US income tax. But Form 5472 is still mandatory every year, and your home country’s CFC rules (Germany, Canada, Australia, Turkey and others) may tax the income locally. Check both before forming.
- Delaware or Wyoming?
- For a non-resident the two are near-identical day to day, no bank, client or processor evaluates your state, and both carry the same federal Form 5472. The difference is reputation and cost: Delaware is the entity everyone recognises and US investors expect, so you never have to re-form later; Wyoming saves roughly $340 a year in state fees and nothing else. Unless shaving that $340 is the only thing driving the decision, Delaware is the one you won’t second-guess.
Official sources
- Corporate fee scheduleDelaware Division of Corporations
- LLC annual tax ($400, due June 1)Delaware Division of Corporations
- Instructions for Form SS-4 (EIN)IRS
- Registered agent requirement (§18-104)Delaware Code, Title 6
- Instructions for Form 5472IRS
- Publication 519: US tax guide for aliensIRS