North America · Limited Liability Company
Register a company in United States
Founders who want Stripe, U.S. banking and the world's largest market — our home base, covered here in the most depth.
- Government fee
- $100
- $35–$500 (varies by state)
- Corporate tax
- 0% pass-through
- headline
- Min. capital
- ≈ none
- effectively none
- Setup time
- 1–10 business days (varies by state; expedite available)
The U.S. is where we go deepest — full state-by-state costs, EIN-without-SSN, Form 5472 and more.
Compare all 50 states + DCAt a glance
How United States scores for a non-resident
Relative edge
Unmatched for payment rails and reach — Stripe, U.S. banking and the world's biggest market.
Relative watch-out
The mandatory Form 5472 filing ($25k penalty) is a yearly chore no peer imposes.
Scores are Lanzamo's editorial judgement (0–100, higher = better for a non-resident founder), built on the verified data on this page — guidance, not advice.
The essentials
For non-resident founders
Can you run it from abroad?
The headline fee rarely decides it — these are the things that actually trip up a founder forming United States from another country.
100% foreign ownership
Non-residents can own 100% of a U.S. LLC — no SSN, ITIN or U.S. residency is required to form or own one.
Fully remote setup
Fully online, directly with the state or via a formation service. An EIN is obtainable without an SSN by filing Form SS-4 by fax or mail.
Resident director required
A registered agent with a physical address in the state of formation is required (a service provides this). No resident member or manager is required.
Banking for non-residents: Moderate
Traditional banks usually want an in-person visit; fintechs like Mercury and Wise onboard non-resident-owned LLCs remotely (approval is the bank's call).
Accounting burden: Moderate
Federal + state filings; foreign-owned single-member LLCs must file Form 5472 with a pro-forma 1120 every year, even at $0 income.
Why founders pick United States
- Access to Stripe, PayPal, Amazon and U.S. banking that customers and platforms trust
- 100% foreign ownership with no resident director and no minimum capital
- Pass-through taxation — no entity-level federal tax by default
- The deepest formation-service and fintech ecosystem of any jurisdiction
Watch out for
- Foreign-owned single-member LLCs must file Form 5472 yearly — a $25,000 penalty trap
- Costs and annual obligations vary widely by state, so the choice of state matters
- Traditional bank accounts usually require a U.S. visit
- U.S. tax on effectively-connected income can be complex — a cross-border CPA is wise
Is United States the right base for you?
Put United States side by side with 12 other startup-friendly countries — government fee, tax, capital and the resident-director catch — and decide with the full picture.
Official sources
Go straight to the authorities — these are the free, definitive sources for United States.
Data reviewed June 2026.
Frequently asked questions
Can a non-resident register a company in United States?
Non-residents can own 100% of a U.S. LLC — no SSN, ITIN or U.S. residency is required to form or own one.
How much does it cost to register a LLC in United States?
The government fee is about $100 ($35–$500 (varies by state)). There is no federal company registry — you file with a state. Filing fees range from $35 (Montana) to $500 (Massachusetts); ~$100 is typical. See our LLC cost-by-state tool for every state. Budget roughly $50/yr in mandatory government filings. Most states charge an annual or biennial report fee; a few (e.g. California) add a franchise tax — $800/yr is the famous high end. Several states have no annual report at all.
Do I need a resident director to form a company in United States?
No resident director is required. A registered agent with a physical address in the state of formation is required (a service provides this). No resident member or manager is required.
What is the corporate tax rate in United States?
An LLC is pass-through by default — no federal entity-level tax; owners report profit on their own returns. A foreign-owned single-member LLC with no U.S.-effectively-connected income often owes no U.S. federal income tax, but MUST file Form 5472 each year (a $25,000 penalty applies). An LLC can elect to be taxed as a C-corp (21% federal) or, for U.S. persons only, an S-corp.
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