How to Set Up a US LLC from Greece (2026 Guide)

Setting up a US LLC from Greece is straightforward once you know the order of operations, but the Greek tax treatment of the entity is where most founders need real guidance. Here is the full path, done properly.

Why founders in Greece open a US LLC

Most Greek founders forming a US LLC are not trying to move their tax life to America. They are trying to sell to US customers, use Stripe or a US payment processor without friction, invoice in dollars, look credible to US clients and investors, or hold a US bank account that platforms like Amazon, Shopify or ad networks trust by default. A US LLC gives you a US legal entity, a US EIN, and access to US banking rails, all without relocating or needing a visa.

It is not a tax shelter. If you live in Greece and are tax resident there, Greece still has a claim on your worldwide income, including income earned through a US LLC. The LLC is a tool for operations and banking, not a way to avoid Greek tax. Get that mindset right first and the rest of this is simple.

The exact steps, in order

Here is the sequence that actually works, and the order matters because each step depends on the one before it.

• Form the LLC. File Articles of Organization with a US state. This can be done fully remotely with a registered agent, no US visit needed.
• Get an EIN. The IRS issues your Employer Identification Number using Form SS-4. As a non-resident with no SSN or ITIN, you file this by fax or mail (there is no online EIN application for founders without an SSN or ITIN), which is slower than the instant online tool but works reliably.
• Decide if you need an ITIN. An ITIN (Individual Taxpayer Identification Number) is for people who are not eligible for a Social Security Number, and it does not require a US visa or US residency. You do not strictly need one to get an EIN or to run the LLC. You typically need one if you must file a personal US tax return, claim tax treaty benefits, or if a specific bank or platform requires it.
• Open a US business bank account. With the LLC documents and EIN in hand, providers like Mercury, Wise Business and Relay allow remote onboarding for non-resident founders, without a US trip.
• Apply for US business cards. Once the bank account and some transaction history exist, you can layer in a US business credit or charge card, useful for ad spend, SaaS tools and building a US business credit profile.

This is the entire process Founders Credit runs done-for-you for European founders: LLC formation, EIN, ITIN where needed, bank account and cards, all handled remotely so you are not learning IRS forms while trying to run a company.

Which US state should a Greek founder pick

For most non-resident, non-US-facing businesses, the state choice is about cost, privacy and simplicity, not tax, because a foreign-owned single-member LLC is normally treated as a disregarded entity for US federal tax purposes regardless of state.

For a Greek founder running a services, SaaS, ecommerce or agency business without US venture ambitions, Wyoming is usually the practical choice.

The Greek tax angle, which is where most guides go wrong

This is the part that matters most and the part generic US-focused guides skip entirely.

A US LLC with one owner is, by default, a disregarded entity for US federal tax purposes. That means the LLC itself pays no US federal income tax, its profits pass through and are attributed to you, the owner. If none of that income is effectively connected to a US trade or business, there may be no US federal income tax due at all. That is a US-side fact, not a Greek one.

Greece taxes its tax residents on worldwide income. If you are Greek tax resident, the profits generated through the LLC are, in substance, your income, and Greece will generally want to tax them as such, regardless of what the LLC did or did not pay in the US. How exactly this gets reported (as business income, as foreign-source income, through a specific schedule) depends on your personal situation and how a Greek tax advisor characterizes the US LLC for Greek purposes. Some jurisdictions treat a US LLC as transparent (like the US does), others treat it as an opaque corporate entity for local purposes. Greece's Controlled Foreign Company (CFC) rules can also become relevant if the entity is considered low-taxed and passive, which is another reason not to assume the US LLC sits outside Greek tax scope.

Greece and the US do have an income tax treaty, and treaty provisions and foreign tax credit mechanisms exist to prevent the same income being taxed twice. But claiming those benefits correctly, and reporting the LLC's activity properly on your Greek return, is not something to guess at from a blog post.

Before you form the LLC, or shortly after, talk to a Greek tax advisor (a Greek accountant or lorographos) about how they will treat the entity, whether CFC rules could apply, and how to report LLC income on your Greek return. This one conversation prevents almost every real problem founders run into later.

Ongoing US compliance you cannot skip

A foreign-owned single-member LLC must file Form 5472 along with a pro-forma Form 1120 every year, even if the LLC had zero revenue and zero activity. This is an information return, it does not calculate or create a tax bill by itself, but failing to file it, or filing late, carries a penalty of 25,000 dollars per instance. There is also an annual state filing (an annual report and fee) to keep the LLC in good standing, and separately a federal Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) filing requirement to be aware of, since rules here have shifted and are worth confirming current status on each year.

Quick glossary

• LLC: a US limited liability company, a legal entity that separates your personal assets from business liabilities.
• EIN: Employer Identification Number, the tax ID the IRS issues to your LLC, required for banking and tax filings.
• ITIN: Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, issued to individuals not eligible for a Social Security Number, used for personal US tax filings.
• Disregarded entity: a single-member LLC that is ignored for US federal tax purposes, its income and expenses are reported as the owner's.
• Form 5472: the annual information return a foreign-owned disregarded LLC must file with a pro-forma 1120, even with no activity.
• CFC rules: Controlled Foreign Company rules some countries, including Greece, use to tax residents on income earned through foreign entities they control.

Putting it together

The US side of this is well-trodden ground: form the LLC, get the EIN, decide on an ITIN, open the bank account, add cards. What separates a clean setup from a future headache is the Greek side, getting clear, in writing, from a Greek tax advisor, on how the LLC's income will be reported and taxed at home before you start invoicing through it. Founders Credit handles the US formation, EIN, ITIN and banking end to end so you are not stuck filling out IRS forms alone, but the Greek tax conversation is one you should still have locally, early, and in writing.

Frequently asked questions