The step that stops most foreign founders.
Forming the company is the easy part. The EIN is where people stall - the IRS online application is closed to anyone without a US social security number, and the paper route is slow, fussy about detail, and unforgiving of a single wrong field. Without an EIN you cannot open a bank account, take Stripe payments, or file anything.
What's included
- Form SS-4 prepared and submitted for your company
- No SSN or ITIN required - the responsible party is recorded as foreign (these are not the same thing)
- Filed by phone or fax, the only routes open to foreign applicants
- Your EIN letter returned to you as a document you keep
- Expedited processing on the Tax & Compliance plan, up to two weeks faster
- Handled alongside the formation, so nothing waits on you chasing the IRS
What it costs
Bundled from the $297/year formation plan upward. Sold on its own by most providers; here it comes with the company.
Why it is harder than it looks
The online tool is closed to you
The IRS EIN assistant requires an SSN or ITIN. Foreign applicants must use phone, fax or mail, and the signature has to be handwritten - no e-signature is accepted. Line 7b, the field that trips people up.
Timelines vary wildly
Phone can be same-day if the call connects. Fax is commonly around eight business days. Mail can run four to twelve weeks. The phone line only operates in US Eastern hours. A realistic range by route.
One wrong field costs weeks
Line 7b in particular trips people up, and a rejected SS-4 does not come back quickly. Getting it right first time is most of the value.
Built to work with the platforms you already use
Especially relevant if you're in
Not a generic country list -- these are the specific markets where this service solves a real, documented problem.
Stripe is fully blocked for Nigerian founders -- the EIN is the actual unlock, not a formality.
Same story: total Stripe blockage, huge freelancer base, and an EIN process most guides describe wrong for non-US applicants.
Stripe blocked and PayPal shaky -- an EIN is what makes a real US bank and Stripe account possible at all.
Everything else your US company needs
Bookkeeping
Categorised transactions, connected bank feeds, invoices out the door, reports you can hand a lender.
Business taxes
Federal and state filings handled on time, with a licensed professional on a call when you need one.
Registered agent
Required in every state. Yours is included, and your mail is scanned to you.
E-commerce analytics
Shopify and Amazon sales, orders and ad spend in one dashboard, next to your books.
US company for e-commerce
The entity, EIN and address Amazon, Shopify Payments and Stripe expect before they verify a seller.
Sales tax & nexus
Economic nexus and marketplace facilitator rules, tracked and filed so a threshold crossed in a state you have never visited does not turn into a notice.
US LLC for Amazon FBA
Formed the way Seller Central actually verifies, with the right tax form from day one.
US LLC for Shopify
Built for the operational-presence check behind Shopify Payments, not just a certificate and an EIN.
US LLC for dropshipping
Wyoming-first, priced for a business with no US inventory and a real answer on nexus.
US LLC for TikTok Shop
The domestic-track entity, EIN and bank account TikTok Shop's cross-border track does not give you.
US LLC for content creators
The privacy, banking and liability separation an individual creator account does not have.
Form the company
LLC or C-Corp in any of the 50 states, with the EIN and registered agent included.
How this works. NameMarshal is not a law firm or an accountancy practice, and nothing on this page is legal or tax advice. EIN obtainment is delivered through NameMarshal's formation network. Foreign-owned US LLCs generally have to file Form 5472 with a pro-forma Form 1120 every year, even with no income, and the penalty for missing it is steep. Ask us and we will point you at someone licensed to handle it.