Questions about forming a US company

Yes. The United States requires no citizenship, no residency and no visa to own an LLC or a C-Corp, and you can own the company outright — 100%, with no American partner. Three things are actually required: a valid passport, a registered agent and address inside the state you file in, and an EIN from the IRS. Aurages provides all three.

No. Formation, signing and document delivery are entirely electronic from anywhere in the world, and your physical presence is not required at any stage. The one possible exception is banking: some banks ask for a short video interview before opening the account.

Aurages forms your US company, then keeps it compliant year after year, and incubates it as it grows. It covers the whole journey — form, operate, grow — where most formation platforms end their relationship with you the moment the documents issue.

The platform and support are available in both English and Arabic. Official documents issue in English, as US authorities require. Your company name and business purpose are filed in Latin script because state registries cannot record any other alphabet.

Choose an LLC if you work alone or with one or two partners in e-commerce, services or consulting: simpler to run, cheaper to maintain, and profits pass through to the owner without tax at the company level. Choose a C-Corp if you plan to raise venture capital, issue equity to a team, or join an accelerator — it is the only structure venture investors can practically invest in.

There is no best state for everyone. Wyoming and New Mexico cost the least to maintain and suit solo operators and e-commerce. Delaware is the standard for companies raising venture money, thanks to the maturity of its corporate law. Florida and Texas suit founders with real activity or customers there. And if you have an office or employees in one particular state, form there — otherwise you will end up registering as a foreign entity in it anyway.

Two parts. A government fee paid to the state directly, which differs by state, and the plan subscription covering formation, the registered agent, the address and the follow-through. On top of that come recurring annual costs: the state annual report, the franchise tax, and the registered agent renewal. Every state's fees, annual tax and turnaround are shown before you pay, and there are no hidden charges.

Formation documents usually issue within a few business days, varying by state and by whether you choose expedited filing — some states turn around in a single business day for an extra fee. The EIN takes additional time that depends entirely on the IRS, and no provider can shorten it.

An Employer Identification Number is your company's identifier with the IRS — its tax registration, in effect. You need it to open a bank account, to sign up with payment platforms like Stripe and PayPal, and to file tax returns. We obtain it on your behalf through the route reserved for non-residents, even if you have no Social Security Number.

Yes. The fast online route at the IRS does require an SSN, but a separate route exists for non-residents in which Form SS-4 is submitted directly. That is the one we handle for you, and we follow it through until the number and its official confirmation letter issue.

A registered agent is an address and a responsible party inside your state of formation who receives official and legal correspondence for your company. It is mandatory in every state without exception, and an address outside the United States cannot be used instead. It is included in every Aurages plan.

In most cases, yes. We help you apply to banks and financial providers that accept non-resident-owned companies and work remotely, and we prepare the file compliance desks expect — certificate of formation, EIN, proof of identity and address, and a clear statement of what the business does. The decision remains the bank's and is subject to KYC; nobody can guarantee it.

Yes. Once the company is formed and you have an EIN and a bank account, you can activate Stripe, PayPal and similar platforms in the company's name and receive payments in multiple currencies from customers in any country. For most founders this is the whole reason to form a US entity.

It depends on the entity type, where the income comes from, and whether the business has real activity inside the United States. Many non-resident-owned LLCs with no US presence and no US-source effectively connected income owe no federal income tax — but the obligation to file remains, and the penalties attach to not filing rather than to not paying. We review your position and set out what applies. This is general information and does not replace advice from a licensed CPA on your own facts.

Usually four: the state annual report, the annual or franchise tax, the federal tax return, and the foreign-owner return (Form 5472 filed with a pro-forma 1120) where it applies. The federal beneficial ownership (BOI) report no longer applies to companies formed inside the United States — FinCEN removed that requirement in March 2025 — though several states have since started registers of their own. Whatever applies to you appears in the compliance calendar inside your dashboard, with reminders ahead of each deadline.

You incur a financial penalty, and if it goes far enough the state administratively dissolves the company and you lose the name. The penalty for failing to file the foreign-owner form alone starts at $25,000. That is why we send reminders in advance and, on the higher plans, file on your behalf.

Not for companies formed inside the United States. FinCEN issued an interim final rule in March 2025 exempting US-formed entities and US persons from filing beneficial ownership information federally, and it remains in force. The obligation still applies to companies formed outside the US that register to do business in a state. The exemption is federal only, though: several states have started their own beneficial-ownership registers, filed with the state rather than with FinCEN, and we track whichever applies to yours. A lot of published guidance still says the federal filing is required — check the date on anything you read about this.

Yes. We categorise and reconcile bank transactions against their documentation, produce financial statements, close accounting periods, and issue multi-currency invoices to your customers — depending on your plan.

You pay an annual plan subscription, plus the state government fee — which is paid to the state directly and differs by state — plus any add-ons you choose. Every plan and what it covers is set out in full on the pricing page before you begin.

Yes. You can move between plans at any time, and you can buy individual add-ons — an ITIN, trademark registration, a resale certificate — without changing your plan.

No. State fees and add-ons are shown separately and clearly before payment, and government fees appear at the amount the state itself publishes. The recurring annual costs are published from day one.

Most platforms are finished with you the moment the documents issue. Aurages continues: managing the legal and tax obligations year after year, then an incubation program with defined stages, advisors, sessions and a resource library to follow your company as it grows — all inside a single dashboard.

A track divided into stages with measurable goals, sessions with specialist advisors, progress tracking inside the dashboard, and a library of practical resources and templates.

The incubation program is available to Aurages clients depending on their plan, and it starts once you have a US entity in place. See the services page for the detail, or get in touch.