Real Tax Questions, Expert Answers
Get answers to your foreign-owned LLC tax questions from ForeignLLCTax. Every answer includes IRS source citations and step-by-step guidance.
What is NCTI (formerly GILTI) and how is it calculated for tax year 2026?
I own 100% of a controlled foreign corporation (CFC). My prior-year workpapers refer to GILTI and Form 8992, but I have heard the 2026 rules use NCTI. My CFC earned about $300,000 in income and has ab...
F-1 OPT students with a U.S. LLC: tax rules
I am an international student on F-1 OPT working for a tech company. I also want to start a freelance web development business through a U.S. LLC. Can I operate an LLC while on OPT, and does the work ...
How are capital gains taxed when a foreign owner sells an LLC?
I am a foreign national who owns a US LLC, and I have received an offer to sell my entire interest in the business. I want to understand how capital gains from the sale will be taxed. Is the gain trea...
How should I plan succession for my foreign-owned U.S. LLC if I die unexpectedly?
I'm a non-resident alien from Mexico and I'm the sole owner of a U.S. LLC that runs an e-commerce business. If I die suddenly, my family won't know what to do with the LLC, the bank accounts, or the o...
My CPA mentioned IRC 7701(a)(30) — what does 'U.S. person' mean for my foreign-owned LLC?
I live in Germany and own a single-member LLC in Wyoming. My CPA keeps referencing IRC Section 7701(a)(30) when explaining why I file differently than a domestic owner. He says I'm not a 'U.S. person'...
I'm a foreign LLC owner hiring my first U.S. employee — what payroll taxes do I owe?
I own a single-member LLC registered in Delaware as a non-resident alien living in the UK. I just hired a full-time employee in Texas to handle customer support. This is my first hire and I have no id...
My foreign-owned LLC has remote employees in 4 states — how do I handle multi-state payroll?
I own a foreign LLC and my team is fully remote across the U.S. — I have employees in New York, Texas, Oregon, and Florida. Each state seems to have completely different payroll tax rules. Do I need t...
How do I send international wire transfers from my foreign LLC's U.S. bank account?
I have a Mercury account for my foreign-owned LLC and I need to send money to myself in my home country (Poland). What's the process for sending an international wire from Mercury? What information do...
C Corp vs S Corp — which one avoids double taxation and can a foreign owner use either?
I've been reading about corporations and I'm confused about the difference between C corps and S corps. Everyone says S corps avoid double taxation but I'm a foreign national (Indian citizen). Can I u...
Two years behind on Forms 3520 and 3520-A after immigrating — what order do I fix things in?
Classic mess: I funded a foreign trust before moving to the US, became a resident two years ago, and have filed regular income tax returns ever since — but never a 3520 or 3520-A. There have also been...
Why does my 1099-DA lump stablecoin and NFT sales together with no basis?
My LLC's activity on a US platform is mostly stablecoin conversions plus a handful of NFT sales. The platform's 1099-DA materials suggest these will show up aggregated — totals rather than transaction...
Why does one 'membership interest sale' have three possible US tax outcomes?
I'm negotiating to sell my stake in a US LLC, and every adviser answers my tax questions with 'it depends on the classification.' The contract is a standard membership-interest purchase agreement eith...
My LLC is the payroll employer now — does backup withholding also run through the LLC?
Founder in Vietnam with a US LLC that recently became an employer (we file Form 941 for one employee). Two related things came up the same week: a US marketplace we sell on asked us to re-certify our ...
Now that my LLC has an employee, does anything change about Form 5472 and the pro forma 1120?
Polish founder, foreign-owned single-member LLC, filing Form 5472 with the pro forma 1120 every year since formation. We hired our first US employee last month and suddenly there's a whole new univers...
Does putting my US property in an LLC make FIRPTA go away?
Before I buy US real estate as a foreign person, I want to set it up right. A lot of formation services imply that holding the property in a US LLC means no FIRPTA when I eventually sell, because the ...
There's no court case directly on Amazon FBA, so how confident can I be about the US tax answer?
Everything I read says there's no published court case that decides whether Amazon FBA creates a US trade or business. So how am I, a foreign LLC owner, supposed to make a decision? Is the 'FBA invent...
I tracked crypto basis in one big pool across wallets — what is the Rev Proc 2024-28 fix?
For years I tracked the LLC's crypto cost basis 'universally' — one spreadsheet pool across three self-custody wallets and two exchange accounts. Now I am reading that broker basis reporting is accoun...
Is my foreign employer pension really a foreign trust that needs Form 3520? I just moved to the US
I relocated to the US this year for my startup. Back home I have an employer-sponsored retirement plan and a government-encouraged savings account, both built up over a decade of salary deferrals. My ...
The W-8 hasn't arrived yet but I need to pay my foreign payee now — should I just over-withhold at 30%?
I have a US-source payment due to a foreign payee, but the valid W-8 still hasn't come back. I don't want to hold up the payment, and I'm tempted to just withhold the full 30% now and let them sort ou...
LLC sold, final returns filed — how do I actually close the EIN and stop the state filings?
The sale is done and I've filed (or scheduled) the final federal returns for my foreign-owned LLC. Now I want a clean break: no IRS account lingering, no surprise state franchise-tax bills two years f...
Which forms do the buyer file for FIRPTA, and what's the deadline I should be watching?
I'm the foreign seller and I want to know what the buyer (or the closing agent) is actually supposed to file for the FIRPTA withholding and by when. People mention Form 8288 and Form 8288-A but I don'...
Beyond the platform withholding, what does my foreign-owned creator LLC actually have to file with the IRS?
I think I understand the withholding side now. But what does my foreign-owned US single-member LLC actually file each year? I keep seeing Form 5472, pro forma 1120, and 1040-NR mentioned and I'm not s...
Amazon spread my FBA inventory across several states without telling me — am I now exposed in all of them?
I started FBA expecting my stock to sit in one or two warehouses, but Amazon distributed it across many states for faster shipping, and I only found out from a report. Does that mean I now have tax ex...
I already file Form 5472 with a pro forma 1120 every year — doesn't that cover any withholding reporting too?
My foreign-owned single-member LLC files the Form 5472 plus pro forma 1120 package annually like clockwork. I made a US-source payment to a foreign person this year. Since I'm already reporting relate...
I never filed Form 3520 for old trust transfers — hasn't the three-year audit window closed by now?
Years ago, after I had already become a US person, I contributed to a foreign trust and never filed Form 3520 — honestly, I didn't know the form existed. Those tax years are now more than three years ...
LLC formed in Wyoming, employee working from Ohio — which state gets the payroll registrations?
My LLC is registered in Wyoming (I'm based in South Korea, no US office). Our first employee is fully remote and works from her home in Ohio. Wyoming has no income tax, which is partly why I formed th...
I funded my new LLC by sending it Bitcoin — does that go on Form 5472?
Instead of wiring cash, I capitalized my single-member US LLC by transferring BTC and a little ETH from my personal wallet to the company wallet. No sale happened — just moving coins I already owned i...
My US LLC does routine production for my foreign company — is cost-plus or CPM the right method?
Flip side of the importer question: here my US LLC actually makes/assembles goods for my foreign affiliate on a routine basis. It's contract-manufacturing style work, not designing or owning anything ...
Two-member foreign-owned LLC sold its assets and is winding down — what goes in the final Form 1065 package?
Our US LLC is taxed as a partnership with two foreign members. We sold the business assets this year and are closing everything down. I know a final Form 1065 is due, but I keep seeing references to f...
I paid an LLC expense from my personal foreign account, then the LLC reimbursed me — what records does section 6038A want?
This happens a lot: I, the foreign owner, pay a vendor or a subscription from my personal account abroad because it's easier, and later the LLC reimburses me (or doesn't). There's no formal agreement....
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