A US LLC gives freelancers, agencies, SaaS founders and online sellers in India a US dollar business account, access to Stripe US and a company that US clients are comfortable signing with. You can open one from India without a visa, without an SSN and without traveling. It is also a foreign investment under Indian law and a foreign asset in your income tax return, and a guide that skips that part is doing you no favors.
This guide takes the questions in the order people ask them, from legality and FEMA to tax, cost, banking and the formation itself. It is written for people who live in India and plan to stay there while selling abroad.
Can an Indian citizen open an LLC in the USA, and is it legal?
Yes. US law sets no citizenship or residency condition for owning an LLC, and the formation itself requires no identity document. You do not need a visa, a Social Security number or an ITIN, and you do not need to fly anywhere. The company is registered online with the Secretary of State of the state you choose, receives an EIN from the IRS, and from that moment it is a full legal entity under US law. Our guide to forming a US LLC without a visa clears up the usual myths.
On the Indian side, it is legal and regulated. Owning a foreign company as a resident individual is an overseas direct investment (ODI) under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) allows it for an operating business through a defined route, covered further down. Your income from the LLC is then taxed in India and the company appears in your return. Founders run into problems when they skip the Indian paperwork, not when they follow it.
What a US LLC is, in a few sentences
LLC stands for limited liability company: the liability protection of a company with the simplicity of a sole proprietorship, no minimum capital and no audited accounts under US law. A single-member LLC owned by a non-resident is treated by the IRS as a disregarded entity by default, which means that for federal income tax it is looked through, as if its income were yours directly. Next to a private limited company incorporated with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, it shares the purpose, not the paperwork.
What a US LLC unlocks for Indian freelancers, agencies and founders
- A US dollar business account: clients in the US and around the world pay by ACH or wire to an account with US routing and account numbers, in the company’s name, and you decide when to convert and bring the money home.
- Stripe US instead of a restricted Stripe India: Stripe operates in India, but new accounts there have been restricted, and international payments collected from India are handled as exports under RBI rules, with extra documentation. A US LLC with an EIN and a US bank account qualifies for a Stripe US account with payouts in dollars.
- Amazon.com and US platforms: Amazon Global Selling already lets Indian sellers list on Amazon.com, but a US LLC gives you payouts in dollars into a US account, and Shopify Payments in the US treats you as a domestic merchant.
- A company US clients will sign with: larger buyers and US startups often prefer a supplier with an EIN and a US business address to an individual contractor abroad.
It suits the developer billing US startups, the agency with clients in North America, the SaaS founder charging in dollars and the Amazon.com seller, cases our guide to US LLCs for freelancers and agencies walks through.
The downsides, stated honestly
A US LLC is a tool for getting paid, not a way out of Indian tax. Know the drawbacks before you form one.
- No tax saving at home: while you are resident in India, the profit you make through the LLC is still taxable in India.
- FEMA paperwork before the money moves: putting capital into the LLC goes through your bank as an ODI, with reporting that continues every year.
- Two sets of obligations: the LLC files with the IRS and its state, and you report it in your ITR, Schedule FA included.
- Fixed costs, even with no revenue: registered agent, US business address, annual filings and a chartered accountant in India cost money every year. For a few small clients, invoicing from India as a freelancer is often simpler.
- Banks review every application: Mercury and other US fintechs check your identity, your home address and your business. A clear, legitimate business is usually approved, but approval is never automatic.
If all your clients are in India, a sole proprietorship, an LLP or a private limited company at home is the better fit. The US LLC earns its keep when your clients, your payment processor or your marketplace are in the US or elsewhere abroad.
US tax: why the LLC usually owes 0% federal income tax
On the US side, the news is usually good. A single-member LLC owned by someone who does not live in the United States is a foreign-owned disregarded entity. If it has no office, no employees and no dependent agent in the US, it is generally not engaged in a US trade or business, known as ETBUS, and its profits owe no US federal income tax: 0%. Wyoming adds no state income tax. When a US client asks for a tax form, the right one is a W-8BEN in your name as the foreign owner, not a W-9.
What remains is reporting. Every year the LLC files Form 5472 with a pro forma Form 1120, due by April 15, even if it made no profit. Missing it can cost a $25,000 penalty, which makes it the one deadline you cannot let slide. Our complete guide to Form 5472 explains what goes on it, and how a US LLC is taxed when you live abroad covers the cases where the 0% stops applying, such as an office or staff in the United States. Sales Tax only becomes a question if you sell goods to US buyers above a state’s threshold.
FEMA and the RBI: the ODI route for a US LLC
For FEMA, holding the membership interest of a US LLC is an overseas direct investment, governed since 2022 by the Overseas Investment Rules and Regulations. A resident individual may make one in an operating foreign entity, which a service or e-commerce LLC is, as long as it is not in financial services. You make the investment through an authorized dealer (AD) bank, which reports it to the RBI on Form FC, and the amount counts toward your Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) limit of $250,000 per financial year. Your bank may collect TCS on the remittance, which you can then claim against your income tax.
After the investment, reporting continues: an annual performance report on the LLC through the same bank, and reporting of any further capital you send. The rules also restrict structures in which the LLC invests back into India, so keep it an operating business that serves foreign clients. Late reporting can be regularized, but only with a late submission fee, so it is better done right from the start.
Paying LLC Place for its service is simply a payment for a service. Putting money into the LLC as its owner is the investment, and that is the part your bank handles under the ODI rules, ideally after a chartered accountant has checked the file.
Indian income tax: worldwide income, Schedule FA and your ITR
A resident and ordinarily resident individual is taxed in India on worldwide income. Since the US treats the LLC as transparent and charges it no tax, nothing stands between its profit and your Indian return. How that income is taxed, in your hands as it arises or as income of a foreign company taxed when distributed, depends on how Indian law classifies the LLC and on where it is effectively managed. That classification is the first question to put to your chartered accountant, before the first invoice.
Schedule FA is the part people forget. A resident who holds foreign assets, including an interest in a foreign entity and a bank account abroad in which they have signing authority, must list them in Schedule FA every year, even if they earned nothing. Schedule FA follows the calendar year rather than India’s April to March financial year, and holding foreign assets rules out the simpler ITR-1 and ITR-4, so you file ITR-2 or ITR-3. Leaving a foreign asset out can trigger a heavy penalty under the Black Money Act, even when the income itself was taxed.
If you also bill the LLC for your own services from India, the GST export of services rules come into play, another point for your CA. India and the United States have a tax treaty, but since the LLC pays no US tax in the typical case, there is rarely any double tax to relieve.
How much does a US LLC cost from India?
At LLC Place, formation on the Basic plan costs €389 for the first year. That covers the filing with the state, with LLC Place as organizer so your name does not appear on the public register, the registered agent, a US business address with mail scanning, the EIN without an SSN, the operating agreement in English and help opening the bank account. The state fee comes on top, billed at cost with no markup: €100 in Wyoming, €50 in New Mexico, €110 in Delaware.
From the second year, renewal costs €379 a year, with the registered agent, the address and deadline monitoring included. In Wyoming the Annual Report fee is part of the renewal, New Mexico requires no report, and Delaware adds €400 of franchise tax every year. The IRS filings, Form 5472 and the pro forma 1120, are optional on the Basic plan at €199 a year, or €398 a year with a dedicated US tax expert, and they are included in the Pro and Founder plans.
You pay by card in euros, so the amount in rupees depends on the exchange rate and your card’s foreign transaction charges. Budget as well for a chartered accountant in India and for your AD bank’s ODI charges. Our breakdown of what a US LLC costs in 2026 lists every line.
Bank account and payments: Mercury, Wise, Payoneer and Stripe
The EIN is your LLC’s tax number, and you do not need a Social Security number or an ITIN to get one. For a non-resident owner it is requested on Form SS-4 and usually takes one to three weeks at the IRS. LLC Place files it for you, and our guide to getting an EIN without an SSN shows how it works. Your PAN plays no part on the US side, and an ITIN is a personal number most non-resident owners never need.
With the formation documents, the EIN, the operating agreement, the US business address and your ID, you apply for the business account, most often at Mercury Bank. Mercury is a fintech whose deposits sit at its partner banks, Choice Financial Group and Column N.A., both FDIC members. Applications from India go through the normal review, often with questions about the business and the source of the first funds. Our guide to opening a Mercury account from abroad covers the documents and the usual reasons for a decline.
Wise Business can serve as a second account, handy for holding several currencies and converting at a transparent rate, with its own acceptance criteria. Payoneer, widely used in India for marketplace payouts, also opens accounts in a company’s name. Our Mercury vs Wise comparison explains how the two differ, including on CRS reporting.
Stripe then asks for three things: the US company, its EIN and a US bank account in the company’s name for payouts. With the Mercury account open, you create a Stripe US account, verify your identity online, and payouts land in dollars in the LLC’s account. The Stripe guide walks through verification and the mistakes that freeze accounts.
Which state: Wyoming, New Mexico or Delaware?
With no physical presence in the US, you are free to choose, and three states cover almost every case. Wyoming is our default recommendation: €100 to form, an Annual Report from €60 a year, no state income tax, no public list of owners, and banks and Stripe know its documents well. New Mexico is the cheapest at €50 and asks for no Annual Report or yearly fee afterward, though the state sends no reminders either. Delaware makes sense mainly if you plan to raise money from US investors, and costs €400 in franchise tax every year, revenue or not. The full comparison is in our guide to New Mexico, Wyoming and Delaware.
How to open a US LLC from India in five steps
- Fill in the application: answer our online questionnaire about your business, the owners and the state. It takes about 10 minutes.
- State registration: we file the Articles of Organization with LLC Place as organizer, and your LLC is usually registered within 1 to 3 business days.
- EIN without an SSN: we apply to the IRS for your EIN, which usually arrives within one to three weeks.
- Bank account and Stripe: with the EIN and the documents, you open the US business account and then Stripe, and we prepare the application with you.
- ODI through your bank: when you put capital into the LLC, your AD bank sends it to the company’s US account as an ODI and reports it to the RBI on Form FC.
From application to your first payment in dollars, count two to four weeks on the US side in most cases, with every step visible in your dashboard, plus whatever time your bank needs for the ODI. Our article on how long it takes to form a US LLC explains where delays come from.
Form your US LLC in 10 minutes, with everything included from the first payment: registration, EIN without an SSN, registered agent, US business address and help with the bank account and Stripe. You handle the ODI with your bank and your CA, and we give them every document they need.
Frequently asked questions
Can an Indian citizen open an LLC in the USA?
Yes. The US requires no citizenship, residency or visa to own an LLC, and the whole process runs online, with no travel. As a resident of India, you make the investment under the ODI route through your bank, and you report the LLC and its income in your ITR.
How much does US LLC registration from India cost?
At LLC Place, €389 for the first year on the Basic plan, plus the state fee at cost (€100 in Wyoming, €50 in New Mexico, €110 in Delaware), then €379 a year from the second year. The IRS filings are optional at €199 a year, or €398 with a dedicated US tax expert, and included in Pro and Founder.
Is ODI required for a US LLC?
For a resident individual, yes: owning a foreign company is an overseas direct investment under FEMA. It goes through an AD bank, which reports it to the RBI on Form FC, within your LRS limit, and annual reporting follows. Your bank and your CA will tell you exactly which documents they need.
Do I need to show my US LLC in Schedule FA?
Yes. A resident must list foreign assets in Schedule FA, including an interest in a foreign entity and foreign bank accounts they control, every year and even with no income. That means filing ITR-2 or ITR-3 rather than the simpler forms.
Is US LLC income taxable in India?
Yes, if you are resident in India. The LLC usually owes no US federal income tax, but its profit is part of your worldwide income, taxed in India according to how the LLC is classified.
Can I use Stripe with a US LLC from India?
Yes. A US LLC with an EIN and a US bank account qualifies for a Stripe US account in the company’s name, with payouts in dollars, which is the usual route for Indian SaaS founders selling abroad.
Can I sell on Amazon USA from India with an LLC?
Yes. Amazon Global Selling already lets Indian sellers list on Amazon.com, so the LLC is not strictly required, but it lets you receive payouts in dollars into a US account and sell as a US business. Our guide to selling on Amazon USA from abroad covers payouts and the tax interview.