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Non-US citizen owning LLC in Delaware?

I am an owner of few online businesses offering web development and search engine optimization services and selling software products online. Most of my clients are US citizens and, because I am not, I decided to register LLC in US. I spent some time reading various information about forming an LLC in Delaware for a non-US citizen, living outside USA, but I still have some questions mostly about paying taxes. I talked with a registered agent and they said they can do the LLC registration for me but advised me to talk to someone else about reporting and paying taxes in my case - non-US citizen, having LLC in Delaware and serving US clients. Any help about what kind of taxes I will have to pay will be highly appreciated. Thanks to everyone.

Public Comments

  1. By default, a domestic LLC (such as a Delaware LLC) is considered fiscally transparent for United States federal income tax purposes. This is not true in all the states, though most follow the federal treatment. For federal income tax purposes, therefore, if you own 100% of the interest in the LLC, it will be completely disregarded, and you will be taxed (or not taxed) as if there were no LLC. If there is more than one owner, the LLC will be treated as a partnership. However, there still should be no federal income tax liability unless a business is carried on in the United States. If your services are actually performed outside the United States, you should not be considered as carrying on business within the United States, even though your customers are located here. As noted above, State tax treatment can vary, so it may be a good idea to consult with a tax practitioner in each State where you have a customer. Of course, the above advice is general in nature, and should not be relied upon but should be confirmed with a qualified advisor. Based on my experience, you may also need the help of a tax advisor in convincing your customers that they do not need to withhold US tax from payments they make to you.
  2. A LLC with only one member is considered a Disregarded entity for income tax purposes. You will need a Tax Identification number (Like a social Security Number) before you can complete the LLC application for a Federal Identifcation number. LLC's with non-resident aliens must withhold tax on the income distributed to the member. This forces you to file a USA income tax return to show what income you have earned in the USA and then claim a refund for the withheld tax. You will only have to file a state income tax return in Delaware, unless you have an office in another state, have employees working in another state or physically go into another state. Why you are doing this to begin with I do not know? If you have no connection to the USA, then you do not have to file or pay taxes here, so don't
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