A US LLC is how many freelancers, agencies and online sellers in Pakistan get what a Pakistani account cannot give them: a US dollar business account, Stripe, PayPal and a company that US clients are happy to sign with. You can open one from Pakistan without a visa, without an SSN and without setting foot in the United States. What it cannot do is make your Pakistani tax obligations disappear, and any honest guide should say so up front.
This guide takes the questions in the order people ask them, from legality and tax to cost, banking and the formation itself. It is written for people who live in Pakistan and plan to stay there while selling abroad.
Can I open a US LLC from Pakistan, 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 travel. 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 most common myths.
On the Pakistani side, owning a foreign company is not a grey area as long as you treat it openly. Your income is declared to the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), and money moves between the LLC and Pakistan through banking channels, under the foreign exchange rules of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP). Those rules also cover residents who invest abroad, so if you plan to put more into the company than your formation costs, ask your bank or a tax adviser how they apply to you before you send the funds. The owners who get into trouble are the ones who hide their LLC, not the ones who declare it: the IRS knows your name from the EIN application and from the annual filings.
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. Its internal rules sit in the operating agreement, and its existence is proved by the Articles of Organization filed with the state. Next to a private limited company registered with the SECP, it shares the purpose, not the paperwork.
What a US LLC unlocks for freelancers and sellers in Pakistan
- 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, which is not available in Pakistan: Stripe does not accept businesses registered in Pakistan. A US LLC with an EIN and a US bank account qualifies for a Stripe US account, so you can take card payments, subscriptions and invoices from customers anywhere.
- PayPal Business in the company’s name: PayPal does not serve residents of Pakistan either, and the LLC opens that door as well. Our PayPal guide explains what works and what still gets blocked.
- Amazon.com and US platforms: Amazon has accepted sellers from Pakistan since 2021, 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 often prefer a supplier with an EIN and a US business address to an individual freelancer abroad.
- More than one way to get paid: with a US account, Stripe and PayPal, Payoneer becomes one channel among several instead of the only one.
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 Pakistani tax. Know the drawbacks before you form one.
- No tax saving at home: while you live in Pakistan, the profit you make through the LLC is still income you report to the FBR.
- Two sets of obligations: the LLC files with the IRS and with its state every year, and you report its income in your Pakistani return.
- Fixed costs, even with no revenue: registered agent, US business address and annual filings cost money every year. If you earn a modest amount from a single marketplace, Payoneer alone may be enough.
- 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.
- Money coming home still follows Pakistani rules: the LLC does not change how the SBP and your bank treat an inward remittance, and a clean paper trail matters.
If all your clients are in Pakistan, a sole proprietorship or a private limited company at home is simpler. The LLC earns its keep when your clients, your payment processors or your marketplace are 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, and our guide to sales tax nexus shows when that happens.
Pakistan tax: the FBR, your return and foreign income
Here the answer is plain, and not what some videos promise. A resident of Pakistan is taxed on worldwide income, and tax residence is mainly a matter of days: spend 183 days or more in Pakistan during the tax year, which runs from July to June, and you are resident. Since the US treats the LLC as transparent and charges it no tax, nothing stands between its profit and your Pakistani return. How that income is shown, as business income in your own hands or as income from a foreign company, deserves a conversation with a tax adviser before your first return.
In practice you file your annual return with the FBR through IRIS, report the income that comes from the LLC, and include the LLC and its accounts in the wealth statement filed with the return. Staying on the Active Taxpayers List matters too, since many transactions in Pakistan cost more for non-filers. Keep the books so they work for both the IRS and the FBR: one account used only by the LLC, invoices in the LLC’s name, and no personal spending from the company account.
Pakistan also has specific, often favorable tax treatment for IT and IT-enabled service exports whose proceeds come home through banking channels. Whether it still applies once you bill through a US company depends on how the money reaches you, a point to settle with your tax adviser. The United States and Pakistan have an income tax treaty, but since the LLC pays no US tax in the typical case, there is rarely any double tax to relieve.
One common confusion: the Roshan Digital Account is an SBP scheme for Pakistanis who live abroad. It is not meant for you if you live in Pakistan, and your LLC does not need one.
How much does it cost to open a US LLC from Pakistan?
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 on what your bank charges for international card payments. Budget as well for a Pakistani tax adviser, whose fee depends on your volume. 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.
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. Pakistan came off the FATF grey list in 2022 and is not under US sanctions, so applications from Pakistan go through the normal review, often with questions about the business and the source of the first funds. Mercury’s list of supported countries changes, so check it before you apply. 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 stays useful in Pakistan, especially for payouts from Fiverr or Upwork and withdrawals to a local bank, and it 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 Pakistan 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.
- The Pakistani side: you go over the LLC with your tax adviser, so that its income and accounts appear correctly in your next FBR return and wealth statement.
From application to your first payment in dollars, count two to four weeks in most cases, with every step visible in your dashboard. 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 settle the Pakistani side with your tax adviser, and we give them every document they need.
Frequently asked questions
Can I open an LLC in the USA from Pakistan?
Yes. The US requires no citizenship, residency or visa to own an LLC, and the formation itself requires no identity document. The whole process runs online, with no travel. You then declare the LLC’s income to the FBR, because you remain a Pakistani taxpayer.
How much does it cost to open an LLC in the USA from Pakistan?
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 Stripe available in Pakistan?
No. Stripe does not accept businesses based in Pakistan. The common, legitimate alternative is a US LLC with an EIN and a US bank account, which qualifies for a Stripe US account in the company’s name. Using someone else’s identity or documents to open Stripe is what gets accounts closed with the money inside.
Can I use Payoneer with a US LLC?
Yes. Payoneer offers business accounts, and many Pakistani owners keep it for marketplace payouts and withdrawals to a local bank, next to a Mercury account for Stripe and direct client payments.
Do I need an SSN or ITIN to open a US LLC from Pakistan?
No. The LLC gets its EIN from the IRS without an SSN or an ITIN, and that number is enough for the bank, Stripe and US clients. An ITIN is a personal number that most non-resident owners never need, as our guide to ITIN or EIN explains.
Do I pay tax in Pakistan on my US LLC income?
Yes, if you are resident in Pakistan. The LLC usually owes no US federal income tax, but its profit is part of your worldwide income, which you report to the FBR. How it is classified and which rates apply is a question for a Pakistani tax adviser.
Can I sell on Amazon USA from Pakistan with an LLC?
Yes. Amazon already accepts sellers from Pakistan, 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.
Do I need a Roshan Digital Account for my LLC?
No. The Roshan Digital Account is designed for Pakistanis who live abroad. The LLC keeps its money in its own US account, and what you pay yourself reaches your ordinary Pakistani account through banking channels.