Ramp for Non-US Founders: Requirements and Alternatives

Ramp is one of the most requested corporate cards among startup founders, but its underwriting was built with US-resident, funded businesses in mind. Here is what actually matters if you are running a US LLC from Europe.

What Ramp is and why founders want it

Ramp is a US corporate charge card and spend management platform. It is popular because it does not rely on a personal credit score or a personal guarantee from the founder. Instead, Ramp underwrites based on the cash sitting in your linked US business bank account, plus signals like revenue and, for some applicants, venture funding. That model is attractive to non-US founders because a European founder usually has no US credit history at all, so a card that ignores personal credit history is far easier to qualify for than a traditional US business credit card.

The catch is that Ramp still requires a genuine US business behind the application. You cannot apply as an individual, and you cannot apply with only a foreign entity. You need a US LLC or corporation, a US EIN, and a US business bank account, before Ramp will even look at cash balances.

Can a non-US resident actually get approved

Yes, non-residents can be approved for Ramp, but approval depends far more on your entity setup and cash position than on your passport. Ramp does not require a US visa, a Social Security Number, or US residency to open a business. What it does require is proof that your business is real, properly registered, and holding enough cash in a connected US account to support the credit line you are requesting.

In practice, founders who struggle with Ramp are usually stuck on one of two things: they do not yet have a real US business bank account with meaningful activity, or they cannot complete Ramp's identity verification step because they have no SSN and no ITIN.

Ramp's core requirements, in plain terms

• A registered US LLC or C-corp, in good standing, with a US-based registered agent
• An EIN (Employer Identification Number) issued by the IRS for that entity
• A US business bank account, ideally with an operating history and a cash balance, not just a freshly opened account with zero activity
• Identity verification for the person applying, typically an SSN or ITIN, though some non-resident founders complete this step with a passport and additional documentation
• Basic business details: website, business model, and sometimes proof of revenue or funding

The EIN-only question

A lot of founders search for an EIN-only path because they assume they need a Social Security Number to get one. You do not. The IRS lets a foreign owner apply for an EIN using Form SS-4 by fax or mail, listing 'foreign' in the SSN field for the responsible party. No visa, no SSN, and no ITIN are needed to get the EIN itself.

Where this gets confused with Ramp is that having an EIN alone does not mean Ramp's own know-your-customer (KYC) checks are satisfied. Ramp, like any US financial platform, has to verify the identity of the human behind the business, separate from verifying the business itself. For a resident founder that is usually an SSN. For a non-resident founder, that is typically an ITIN, or in some cases a passport plus supporting documents. An ITIN is the IRS-issued number for people who need a US taxpayer identification number but are not eligible for an SSN, and it does not require a visa to obtain.

What about cash minimums

Ramp does not publish a fixed minimum cash balance, and it has changed its underwriting approach over time as it has expanded from venture-backed startups to a broader small business audience. What has stayed consistent is the underlying logic: the credit line Ramp offers tends to track the cash actually sitting in your linked account, plus other signals like revenue and funding history. A brand-new LLC with a bank account that was opened last week and holds a token deposit is unlikely to get a useful credit line, regardless of how the founder's home country is treated. A business with real operating cash and a few months of transaction history is in a much stronger position.

If Ramp is not workable yet, that is not the end of the road. Building a track record with a US business bank account for a few months, then reapplying, is a completely normal path for non-resident founders.

Alternatives worth considering

For most early-stage non-US founders, the realistic sequence is a debit card through Mercury, Wise, or Relay first, while cash builds up and banking history is established, then an application to Ramp or Brex once the business has a track record worth underwriting against.

Where Founders Credit fits in

Getting to the point where Ramp is even an option requires the groundwork to be right: a properly formed US LLC, an EIN obtained correctly for a foreign owner, an ITIN if you need one for identity verification, and a US business bank account that actually functions for day-to-day spend. Founders Credit handles this whole sequence for non-US founders, remotely, so that by the time you approach Ramp, Brex, or any other US financial platform, your paperwork and banking history already look the way underwriters expect.

Key terms, quickly explained

EIN: the Employer Identification Number issued by the IRS to identify a business for tax purposes. Non-residents can get one without an SSN by filing Form SS-4.

ITIN: an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number issued by the IRS to people who need a US tax ID but are not eligible for an SSN. No visa is required to obtain one.

Charge card: a card with no preset spending limit that must be paid in full each cycle, underwritten on cash and revenue rather than personal credit, as with Ramp and Brex.

Registered agent: a person or company with a physical address in your LLC's state of formation who receives legal and state mail on the business's behalf.

Form 5472: an information return that a foreign-owned single-member LLC must file annually along with a pro-forma 1120, even with no income. It does not calculate tax owed on its own, but missing it can trigger a penalty of $25,000.

Frequently asked questions