A free checker for whether US tax applies to your US LLC when you live abroad, and the filings that apply anyway, each linked to its official page.
5.0(1 rating)Answer a few questions about you and your LLC to see whether US income tax likely applies, and the filings that apply anyway. Every line links the IRS, FinCEN or state page it comes from.
Are you a US person?
Who owns the LLC?
Does the LLC do anything in the US?
Doing work in the US at any time of the year usually counts as doing business there.
Does the LLC get US investment income?
Interest on deposits at US banks doesn't count: it's left out of income when it isn't tied to a US business.
Which state is the LLC in?
I'd pick Wyoming in most cases, and Delaware if you plan to sell the company or raise money from investors. Each state here is from its own fee page.
Where do you live?
US income tax
Filings that apply anyway
This is how the IRS, FinCEN and each state's own pages describe the rules, not tax advice. Tax treaties and your own facts can change the answer, so check your case with a licensed advisor.
This free checker tells you whether US income tax likely applies to your US LLC when you don't live in the US, and which filings apply anyway, with every line linked to the IRS, FinCEN or state page it comes from.
Answer a few questions about you and the LLC, pick its state, and see the answer.
Here's how US tax works for a non-resident's LLC, the filings people miss, and what your own country taxes.
Does a US LLC pay US tax if you don't live in the US?
Usually not, when all the work happens outside the US. A US LLC with one owner is a disregarded entity: the IRS looks through it to you. And nonresidents pay US income tax only on income from US sources and income tied to a US business.
Pay for services comes from where the work is done. So if you work from abroad, that income isn't US income, even though the LLC is American.
It changes when the LLC does business in the US, like work you do while you're there, or an office, staff or stock. Income tied to that business is taxed at the same rates as a US citizen's.
The filings that apply anyway
No US tax doesn't mean no US paperwork:
- An EIN, the LLC's tax number, applied for by phone, fax or mail when you live abroad
- Form 5472 with a pro forma Form 1120 each year, by fax or mail, with a $25,000 penalty for missing it
- The state's own yearly fee, like Delaware's $400 LLC tax or Wyoming's $60 annual report license tax
Companies formed in the US no longer file a beneficial ownership (BOI) report with FinCEN.
US investment income is different
US dividends, rent and royalties the LLC earns are taxed at 30% of the gross amount, or a lower treaty rate, when they aren't tied to a US business.
Interest on deposits at US banks is left out of income when it isn't tied to a US business.
Your own country still taxes you
The US answer is only half of it. Your country of residence taxes you by its own rules.
I live in Panama, which taxes only income produced in Panama. The territorial tax map shows how every country treats income from abroad.
How to use the US LLC checker
Your answers stay in this browser.
Who is the US LLC checker for?
It's for anyone outside the US who owns or plans a US LLC, and each of them has a next step:
- 183-day rule calculator – anyone who spends time in the US and wants to know if they've become a US tax resident
- Territorial tax map – anyone checking how their own country taxes income from abroad
- Tax rates by country – anyone comparing income tax, corporate tax and VAT
- Tax breaks for new residents – anyone planning a move to a country with a special regime
- Business bank account finder – LLC owners abroad looking at US accounts like Mercury and Relay
- What is a global citizen? – anyone building a life across borders, in my own words
More money tools are on the free finance tools page. Or browse all my free tools.
US LLC for Non-Residents FAQs
Questions about a US LLC when you live abroad? Here's what to know.
Usually not, when you're the only owner and all the work happens outside the US. Nonresidents pay US income tax only on income from US sources and income tied to a US business.
Work done in the US, or a US office, staff or stock, can change that.
It's the form a US LLC owned by one foreign person files each year, attached to a pro forma Form 1120, to report its dealings with its owner.
It goes by fax or mail, and missing it costs a $25,000 penalty.
By the 15th day of the 4th month after the LLC's tax year ends, which is April 15 for a calendar year.
You can get more time with Form 7004, faxed or mailed by the same date.
No. Under FinCEN's final rule, companies formed in the US don't file beneficial ownership (BOI) reports.
Of the states I've checked, the yearly cost runs from no franchise tax in Texas below its $2,650,000 revenue threshold to California's $800.
The tool shows each state's own fees and deadlines.
No. It's how the IRS, FinCEN and each state's own pages describe the rules, linked to those pages.
Check your own case with a licensed advisor.
I did. I'm Navid Moazzez, and the US LLC checker is one of my free tools on navid.me.
Read about me, or see my creator profile.
Navid Moazzez
AI business strategist & AI OS builder
Navid Moazzez helps creators and founders master AI and build their own AI Operating System (AI OS) to automate their business and life.
Navid.me is reader-supported. When you buy through links on this site, I may earn an affiliate commission. Learn more.
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