How to Set Up a US LLC from Italy (2026 Guide)
Setting up a US LLC from Italy is straightforward on the US side, but the real complexity lives back home with Italy's controlled foreign company rules and worldwide income reporting. Here is what actually matters at each step.
Why founders in Italy open a US LLC
Most Italian founders who form a US LLC are not trying to avoid Italian tax, they are trying to solve practical problems. A US LLC lets you invoice US clients in dollars, get approved by payment processors and platforms that prefer or require a US entity, open a US business bank account, and present a US address and EIN to customers, marketplaces, and vendors who are wary of dealing with a sole proprietorship registered abroad. For SaaS founders, agencies, consultants, and e-commerce sellers targeting the US market, an LLC is often simply the path of least resistance to look and operate like a local business.
None of this removes your Italian tax obligations. It just gives you a US structure to operate through. The two need to work together, which is why the Italian tax side deserves as much attention as the US paperwork.
Choosing a state: Wyoming, Delaware, or something else
For a non-resident founder with no US operations and no plans to raise venture capital, the state choice usually comes down to cost, privacy, and simplicity rather than legal prestige.
| State | Typical annual cost | Owner privacy | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wyoming | Low, flat annual report fee | Member names not published | Most solo non-US founders, freelancers, small SaaS and e-commerce |
| Delaware | Franchise tax plus annual report, usually higher | Member names not published | Founders planning to raise US VC funding |
| New Mexico | No annual report requirement in most cases | High | Very simple, low-maintenance setups |
Wyoming is the common default for a good reason: low ongoing costs, no state income tax, and a registered agent industry that is used to serving founders who will never set foot in the state. Delaware makes more sense if you expect to bring on US investors later, since it has the deepest body of corporate law and is what most US lawyers and VCs default to. Neither choice changes how Italy taxes you, so pick based on your business plan, not on tax hopes.
The setup steps, in order
1. Form the LLC
You file Articles of Organization with the state through a registered agent (required if you have no US address). This can be done entirely online and typically takes a few days to a couple of weeks depending on the state.
2. Get an EIN
The Employer Identification Number is what the IRS uses to identify your LLC. Non-residents without a Social Security Number apply using Form SS-4, submitted by fax or mail to the IRS, since the phone application route is generally only available to callers with a US taxpayer identity. This step is often the slowest part of the whole process because IRS processing times for international applicants can run several weeks.
3. Open a US business bank account
With your EIN and formation documents, you can apply remotely with providers built for this, such as Mercury, Wise Business, or Relay. None of these require you to be physically in the US, though verification standards and approval decisions vary and are entirely at each provider's discretion.
4. Get a US business card
Once your bank account is active, most of these providers offer a debit card, and some offer credit cards tied to your account balance or revenue rather than a US personal credit history, which matters since you will not have one.
5. Apply for an ITIN if you need one
An Individual Taxpayer Identification Number is issued by the IRS to people who need a US tax number but are not eligible for a Social Security Number. You do not need a US visa to get one. It is commonly required alongside your annual 5472 and pro-forma 1120 filing, or if you need to file a personal US tax return, and some banks or platforms ask for it too. It is applied for using Form W-7, usually attached to the relevant tax return.
Founders Credit handles this entire sequence, LLC formation, EIN, ITIN, and bank and card setup, as a done-for-you service for non-US founders, which is useful if you would rather not chase IRS fax lines yourself.
The part that actually matters: how Italy treats your LLC
This is where most guides stop and where most of the real risk sits. A US LLC is a US legal entity, but you are still an Italian tax resident, and Italy taxes its residents on worldwide income. Setting up the LLC does not move your tax residence or your income out of Italy's reach.
Transparent or opaque, and why it matters
The US treats a single-member LLC as a disregarded entity by default, meaning its income flows straight to you for US tax purposes. Italy does not automatically follow that classification. Depending on the LLC's structure, elections made, and how Italian tax authorities view the specific facts, a US LLC can be treated as fiscally transparent (its income taxed directly in your hands as it arises) or as an opaque entity (taxed more like a foreign corporation, with different timing and treatment). This classification question has been the subject of specific Italian tax guidance over the years and the answer is not a blanket rule, it depends on your situation. Get this wrong and you can end up with unexpected timing of tax, double taxation you did not plan for, or penalties for misreporting.
CFC rules
Italy has controlled foreign company (CFC) legislation aimed at Italian residents who control an entity based in a jurisdiction considered low-tax relative to Italy. A US LLC with no entity-level federal tax (which is the normal situation for a foreign-owned disregarded LLC with no US-source or effectively connected income) can potentially fall into this territory depending on how the rules are applied to your facts. Where CFC rules apply, the LLC's income can be attributed to you and taxed in Italy on a current basis, regardless of whether you actually distributed the cash to yourself.
Reporting foreign assets
Italian residents generally have an obligation to disclose foreign financial assets and holdings, including foreign bank accounts and interests in foreign entities, through the annual tax return's foreign assets section (quadro RW), separate from any income tax due on the underlying earnings. Missing this is a common and avoidable mistake among founders who assume that if the LLC is not distributing money, there is nothing to report.
The US-Italy tax treaty
The United States and Italy have a double taxation treaty designed to prevent the same income being taxed twice without relief. It can allow for credits or exemptions depending on how income is characterized and where it is taxed first. Treaty relief is not automatic, it needs to be claimed correctly and depends on the classification questions above, which is exactly why this is not a do-it-yourself area.
A US LLC can be the right structure for an Italian founder selling into the US. Whether it is the right structure for your personal tax position depends on facts that only an Italian commercialista familiar with cross-border US entities can properly assess.
Annual US compliance to keep on the calendar
- Form 5472 plus a pro-forma Form 1120, required annually for a foreign-owned single-member LLC even if the LLC had zero income or activity during the year. This is an information return, it does not calculate or pay tax by itself, but the penalty for not filing it starts at 25,000 dollars per omission.
- State annual report and franchise or renewal fees, due on a schedule set by your state of formation.
- Registered agent renewal, usually annual.
- Beneficial ownership reporting rules for US entities have changed more than once in recent years, so check the current FinCEN requirement for your specific entity rather than relying on older information.
None of these US filings replace your Italian filings. They run in parallel, and both sides need to be handled every year.
A sensible order of operations
Form the LLC, get the EIN, open the bank account, start operating, and get an Italian commercialista involved before your first full tax year closes, not after. Retrofitting the correct classification and reporting after a year of undocumented activity is far more painful than setting it up correctly from the start. Founders Credit can get the US side (LLC, EIN, ITIN, bank account, and cards) done remotely and quickly. Pair that with proper Italian tax advice from day one and a US LLC becomes a genuinely useful tool rather than a compliance headache.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to travel to the US to open an LLC and bank account?
No. LLC formation, the EIN application, and business bank account onboarding with providers like Mercury, Wise, or Relay can all be completed remotely from Italy. Approval decisions are still made by each provider individually.
Will I be taxed twice, once in the US and once in Italy?
Not if things are set up and reported correctly. A foreign-owned LLC with no US-source or effectively connected income generally owes no US federal income tax, but Italy taxes its residents on worldwide income, so the profits still need to be reported and taxed in Italy. The US-Italy tax treaty exists to prevent genuine double taxation, but claiming that relief correctly depends on how your LLC is classified for Italian purposes.
What are Italy's CFC rules and do they apply to my LLC?
Italy's controlled foreign company rules can attribute the income of a foreign entity controlled by an Italian resident back to that resident for tax purposes, particularly where the entity is in a low-tax jurisdiction. Whether this applies to a specific US LLC depends on the entity's classification and your personal facts, which is why this needs a qualified Italian commercialista, not a general rule of thumb.
Do I need an ITIN if I already have an EIN for my LLC?
An EIN identifies the LLC to the IRS and is generally required. An ITIN identifies you personally and is typically needed alongside your annual 5472 and pro-forma 1120 filing, for any personal US tax return, and sometimes for banking or platform verification. Many founders end up needing both.
What does Founders Credit actually set up for me?
Founders Credit handles the US LLC formation, EIN application, ITIN application, and remote setup of a US business bank account and business cards as a single done-for-you process, so you are not individually chasing IRS fax lines and bank onboarding forms.
Want this done for you?
Founders Credit sets up your US LLC, ITIN, banking and credit cards end to end, 100% remote. Skip the guesswork.
Book a free strategy call →