US Company
US LLC Filings for Remote Services and Freelancers
If you write code, design, or advise from another country, the starting federal map is foreign-source services income. US clients do not automatically create US income tax. A US LLC still needs an EIN and, in the usual related-party year, Form 5472. We form the company and file the packet. We do not turn a Upwork profile into a tax holiday certificate.
Why founders still form the LLC
Clients want a US invoice and a US wire. Processors want a US person. Those are commercial reasons. They are not the same as “I owe US income tax.” Keep the two sentences apart.
When the starting map breaks
A US employee, a US office, a dependent agent who closes deals, or months of on-site work can change source. Tell the truth in the brief. We would rather decline a slogan than file a story.
Who this is for
Solo developer or designer
One member, US clients, home office abroad.
Small agency
Two or three members — that is often a partnership packet, not 5472 alone.
Creator who invoices brands
Services and digital goods can mix. We will split them in the books.
Nomad with no US days
Still a 5472 candidate if the LLC moved money with you.
What you get
Invoice identity
Legal name, EIN, and bank on the PDF.
Processor path
Guidance for Stripe or Wise, not a guaranteed account.
Correct federal form
5472 or 1065, depending on members.
No visa fiction
An LLC is not a work visa and not a green card.
How the process works
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1
Work memo
What you sell and where your body is when you sell it.
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2
Form and EIN
If the company does not exist yet.
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3
Bank and processor
Document pack and application guidance.
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4
Yearly packet
Information return and state report.
What we need from you
- Passport and a formation name list, if new.
- Whether anyone else owns a piece.
- Whether you travel to the US to deliver.
- A sample invoice if you already bill.
Read this before you start
- Home-country self-employment or corporate tax still exists.
- A US LLC does not hide you from the country that issued your passport.
- Marketplace platforms (Upwork, Fiverr) have their own tax forms. Bring them.
Common mistakes
Invoicing from the LLC and getting paid personally
Pick one story and keep the bank in that story.
Adding a US cousin as a nominee member
Nominee games are how filings become false. We will not draft that operating agreement.
Calling yourself a Delaware company because it “sounds funded”
Read Wyoming versus Delaware in the academy. Pay the extra tax only if you have a reason.
Skipping 5472 because “I only do services”
Owner cash in and out is still a related-party transaction.
FAQ
Scriplit LLC is a Wyoming company that helps non-residents form US LLCs and prepare US information and tax filings. We are not a CPA firm or a law firm. This page is general information, not advice for your facts. Home-country tax, treaties, and your actual activity can change the result.
Related
Next steps on Scriplit
Say where you sit when you do the work
If you fly to the US to deliver, say so. That week can matter more than the LLC state.