Non-US residents running online businesses (ecommerce, SaaS, consulting) form Wyoming anonymous LLCs and operate without ever visiting the US.
By Shafwan Ahmed, Operations & Fulfillment Lead, Anonymousllc.co
Wyoming anonymous LLC. Single-member disregarded entity for the non-resident owner. EIN obtained via fax (Anonymousllc.co handles this as third-party designee - no SSN/ITIN required). Bank account opened via Mercury or Relay's non-resident workflow. Operating agreement governs internal management.
Non-US residents operating in the US economy face additional scrutiny on state filings. An anonymous LLC means a US customer or competitor searching state records does not find the founder's name and home country. Combined with the privacy of the foreign address staying off US records, it provides strong founder-level privacy.
Best for non-resident founders. No state income tax (relevant for ECI-based federal tax planning). Best banking acceptance for non-resident-owned LLCs - Mercury, Relay, and Bluevine all have established workflows. EIN-by-fax process is well-trodden.
| State | Price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Wyoming (recommended) | $397 | Best for non-residents. Mercury / Relay accept WY LLCs. |
| New Mexico | $347 | Cheapest but banking is harder for non-residents. |
| Delaware | $407 | Strong for outside-investor / VC-track setups. $300/yr franchise tax. |
Yes. No US visa, SSN, or residency is required to own a Wyoming LLC. A non-resident forms the entity, obtains an EIN by fax, and runs it from abroad. Wyoming allows full foreign ownership of LLCs, so a founder in any country holds 100 percent of a US entity without setting foot in the United States. Anonymousllc.co acts as third-party designee to obtain the EIN by fax with no SSN or ITIN, and banking opens remotely through Mercury or Relay's non-resident workflow. The whole setup - formation, EIN, and bank account - runs 5 to 10 business days end to end and requires no US visit. This is the standard path for non-resident ecommerce, SaaS, and consulting operators who need a US business identity and US payment rails.
A non-resident-owned single-member LLC with no US effectively connected income owes no US income tax and files only a Form 5472 information return with a pro-forma 1120. The LLC is a disregarded entity for a single non-resident owner, so it is the owner's US tax position that matters, and without US effectively connected income there is no US income tax on the business profit. What is mandatory is the information filing: Form 5472 attached to a pro-forma 1120, reporting transactions between the LLC and its foreign owner. Wyoming charges no state income tax, so the analysis is federal. An ITIN comes into play only when the owner has US-source income requiring a personal US filing, and most non-resident owners without ECI need only the business EIN.
Form 5472 is an IRS information return required from any US disregarded entity with 25 percent or more foreign ownership. It carries a $25,000 penalty per year for non-filing. The form reports reportable transactions between the LLC and its foreign owner - capital contributions, distributions, loans - and is filed with a pro-forma 1120 even when the LLC owes no tax. The $25,000 penalty is automatic and applies per LLC per year for failing to file, regardless of whether any tax was due, so it is the single filing a non-resident owner cannot skip. Set up bookkeeping from day one to track owner-to-LLC transactions, because the form asks for them specifically. This obligation exists purely because of the foreign ownership, not because of any US income.
Mercury, Relay, Bluevine, and Brex serve non-resident-owned LLCs without a US visit. The standard package is the EIN, the formation document, and the owner's passport. These platforms built onboarding for foreign-owned US entities, so the account opens online after the EIN is in hand, about 8 to 10 days after the EIN issues in the overall timeline. Applying before the EIN arrives fails, because the bank needs the tax ID to complete know-your-customer checks. With the account live, the owner connects Stripe, Wise, and Payoneer for global payments. Approval for non-residents takes longer than for US residents and is not guaranteed at any single bank, which is why formation includes multiple bank applications rather than one.
Wyoming at $397 is the recommended state for non-resident online businesses, with the strongest banking acceptance and no state income tax. New Mexico is cheaper; Delaware suits VC-track startups. Mercury and Relay have established workflows for Wyoming LLCs, which makes Wyoming the practical choice when remote banking is the hardest part of a non-resident setup. New Mexico costs $347 and requires no annual report, but banking is harder for non-residents there. Delaware costs $407 plus a $300 annual franchise tax and is the standard only for founders raising institutional capital, where investors expect Delaware jurisdiction. For a bootstrapped ecommerce, SaaS, or consulting operator abroad, Wyoming's $397 package balances cost, privacy, and the banking access the business depends on.
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