You don't need to live in the US — or hold a US visa — to own a US business. Every year, non-residents form LLCs and corporations in American states to sell online, hold real estate, run software companies, and trade across borders. It's legal, it's common, and it works. It's also a jurisdiction with real filing obligations you need to plan for before you start.
Yes, non-residents can form US entities
The formation rules are state rules, and they don't check your passport:
- No citizenship or residency test to be an LLC member or corporate shareholder.
- Form from abroad — a registered agent in the state handles the paperwork and receives official mail; you never need to set foot in the US.
- No US visa required to *own* the entity.
What a non-resident needs is a US address for the registered agent, and the right paperwork for their home country. The entity itself has no opinion on where you live.
Choosing the structure
| Structure | Best for | Key trade-off |
|---|---|---|
| LLC | Most non-resident owners (single-member is common) | Cross-border filing quirks (see below); some home countries tax LLCs as corporations |
| C-Corp | Fundraising, US investors, larger operations | Double taxation; but a familiar global structure |
| S-Corp | Not available | Shareholders must be US citizens or green card holders |
For most non-resident solo founders, the single-member LLC is the starting point — cheap, private, flexible. But the LLC has a cross-border catch worth understanding before you commit.
The LLC cross-border catch
A single-member LLC is *disregarded* for US tax purposes — the IRS sees it as you, not a separate taxpayer. That's convenient for US owners and a complication abroad:
- Your home country may tax the LLC as a corporation. Some countries don't recognize the "disregarded entity" concept and tax the LLC's income at the corporate level — potentially a higher rate, and it can defeat the structure.
- The US treats your LLC income as your income, and you're taxed on US-source income as a non-resident (see below).
- Getting the treatment right depends on your country and the US tax treaty (if any) that applies. This is the #1 reason non-resident owners hire a cross-border accountant.
If your home country taxes LLCs unfavorably, a C-Corp is often the cleaner choice. Match the structure to how *your* country taxes it, not just to what the US prefers.
EIN and opening accounts
The EIN. Your US entity needs its own Employer Identification Number from the IRS. Non-residents can obtain one for an entity they own — the responsible party can be a non-resident individual.
The bank account. This is where non-residents hit friction:
- US banks generally require an in-person visit and an SSN or ITIN (and sometimes a US address). Many non-residents open accounts on a business trip or rely on the entity's EIN.
- International options exist — offshore-friendly banks and certain online banking platforms serve non-resident owners, sometimes at a higher cost. See our business bank account guide.
- Payment rails — how customers pay you (US ACH, cards, international wire) is a practical decision that shapes which banking solution you need.
US tax obligations as a non-resident owner
This is the part people underestimate. Owning a US business files you into the US tax system:
- US-source income is taxed in the US. As a non-resident alien, your US-source business income is subject to US tax. Your filing obligations depend on whether you have an activity that creates "effectively connected income."
- Withholding vs. filing. Some income streams get taxed by withholding at the source; business income usually means you file a US tax return instead. You may need an ITIN to file — see our ITIN guide.
- A foreign LLC is still a US taxpayer. The entity files (or passes through) based on its US tax classification — even with zero US presence.
- Home-country reporting. Your home country likely wants to know about your foreign entity and foreign bank accounts. Many countries have their own equivalent of FBAR-style reporting, with real penalties for late filing.
Practical decisions to make upfront
- Registered agent — required, low-cost, gives the entity a US address for official mail.
- State choice — low-fee, formation-friendly states (like Delaware or Wyoming) are common picks for non-residents; but the right state depends on your actual business and where it operates. See our entity-type and formation guides for the trade-offs.
- Where your customers pay — if you bill US customers, US payment processing changes your banking and tax picture.
- Whether you'll ever visit — in-person banking and some compliance steps are easier with a US visit, but none are strictly required.
Common questions
Can I be the only member of a US LLC while living abroad? Yes — single-member LLCs are standard for non-residents.
Do I need a visa to own a US company? No. Owning is not the same as working — if you also want to *work* for the company in the US, that's a separate visa question (see our LLC for visa holders guide).
Will my home country know about it? Whether it will isn't the question — whether you're required to *report* it is, and in most countries the answer is yes. The entity and its accounts are reportable under your home country's rules.
Can I pay myself from the company? As an owner you take distributions (profits), and the tax treatment of those distributions in your home country is a question for a cross-border accountant. There's no "salary" mechanism without US employment — which is a different beast.
Is a US company worth it if I'm abroad? For many sellers and founders, yes — the US market, the liability structure, and the access to US payment processing justify it. But it only pays off if you plan for the double filing.
The bottom line
A non-resident can absolutely own a US business — the formation is open, the structures are well-worn, and the market is why you're doing it. What separates successful non-resident owners from stuck ones is the tax and banking plan: choose the right structure for *your* home country, get the EIN, open workable payment rails, and budget for two tax systems. Form the entity right, and everything else becomes routine.