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.
I was not a resident last year, but I may meet substantial presence next year. Does the first-year choice let residency start earlier?
I live in Thailand and travel in and out of the United States for business. I will probably meet substantial presence next year, but not this year. What caught my attention in Publication 519 is the f...
A medical issue kept me in the U.S. longer than planned. Is Form 8843 how I protect those extra days?
I live in Pakistan and had a year where I intended to leave the United States earlier, but a medical issue delayed my departure. I am now worried that the extra days could matter for substantial prese...
My foreign adviser wants a U.S. residency certificate fast. Why would Form 8802 need a signed return copy marked 'COPY – do not process'?
I live in Germany and my adviser abroad wants a U.S. residency certificate quickly for treaty paperwork. I found the IRS Form 8802 process note saying that if the return has not posted yet, I may need...
My adviser says the treaty tie-breaker may keep me treated as Spanish resident. Is Form 8833 the part that makes that official?
I live in Spain and run a U.S. LLC, but my travel to the United States this year was high enough that my adviser started talking about treaty tie-breaker rules. I understand the broad idea that a trea...
I left the U.S. in August but came back for a short December visit. Can my residency still end in August?
I am based in Malta and had a year where I spent the first eight months mostly in the U.S. before leaving. In December I came back for a very short visit, which now has me second-guessing whether my U...
I met substantial presence, but my first few U.S. days were still tied to France. Can those days stay outside the residency start date?
I live in France and ended up meeting the substantial presence test this year after more travel than planned. The confusing part is that my first few U.S. days happened while my apartment, work setup,...
I moved from Thailand to Portugal mid-year. Can the closer-connection exception still work with two foreign countries?
I started the year living and working from Thailand, then moved to Portugal in the summer and stayed there for the rest of the year. I also spent a few months in the U.S. spread across those periods, ...
Are international wire transfers over $3,000 reported to the government automatically?
I send and receive international wire transfers regularly through my foreign-owned LLC. Someone told me that any international wire over $3,000 is automatically reported to FinCEN. Is this true? I tho...
My bank rejected my LLC account application citing 'PATRIOT Act verification failure' — what does this mean?
I am a Nigerian citizen who formed an LLC in New Mexico. I applied for a business bank account at a large national bank and was rejected. The letter says they could not complete 'customer identificati...
My foreign company was already registered in a U.S. state before the 2025 BOI rule changed. If we missed the one-time deadline, where do we even start?
I live in Israel and our main company is formed outside the U.S., but it has been registered to do business in one U.S. state for some time. We were so focused on the headlines about domestic companie...
Relay says my international application may need a U.S. operating presence. What kind of fact pattern are they looking for?
I live in Malaysia and my Delaware LLC is fully active online, but the founders are all abroad. Relay's support content says some international applicants may need to show a U.S. operating presence an...
Amazon wants proof that my payout account belongs to the LLC. Is a Wise account-details document usually better than screenshots?
I am based in Vietnam and use a Wise business account for my Delaware LLC. A marketplace asked me for proof that the payout account belongs to the business, and my first thought was to just send scree...
FBAR Filing: FinCEN Report 114 for Foreign Bank Accounts (Ep. 38)
I have income from outside the U.S. and need guidance on: FBAR Filing: FinCEN Report 114 for Foreign Bank Accounts. What are my reporting obligations and how do I stay compliant?
Relay says a registered agent address can be okay in some cases, but I still need a personal address. What is the real rule?
I live in the Philippines and my Wyoming LLC uses a registered agent for state filings. Relay's support docs seem more flexible than Mercury's because they say a registered agent address may sometimes...
Form 6252 Introduction: Installment Sale Reporting (Ep. 34)
I'm considering an installment sale: Form 6252 Introduction: Installment Sale Reporting. How does Form 6252 work and how do I calculate the taxable gain?
My broker reported some foreign-source income separately and not everything showed up on the 1042-S. Is that normal?
I am in New Zealand and have a foreign-owned LLC with a U.S. broker account that holds both U.S. and non-U.S. securities. At year-end, not every line I expected showed up on the 1042-S, which made me ...
My account gets U.S. dividends and some bond interest. Why does one line get hit harder than the other?
I live in Thailand and hold both dividend-paying U.S. stocks and some debt instruments through my foreign-owned LLC. I am trying to understand why the withholding treatment is clearly different across...
My broker withheld 30% on U.S. dividends even though I thought the treaty rate should be lower. Is that usually a paperwork problem?
I live in Germany and use a foreign-owned LLC for a U.S. brokerage account. The account receives some U.S. dividends, and I expected the withholding to reflect the treaty logic tied to the foreign sta...
I am a nonresident and spent only 40 days in the U.S. this year. Are my stock gains usually outside U.S. tax?
I live in Portugal and trade through a U.S. LLC with a normal brokerage account. I was only in the United States for about 40 days this year, and I did not run a U.S. office or anything like that. I k...
What are the current IRS crypto reporting requirements for foreign owners of U.S. LLCs?
I keep hearing about new IRS rules for cryptocurrency reporting, and I'm overwhelmed trying to figure out what applies to me specifically as a non-U.S. person who owns a single-member LLC. I know abo...
My broker opened the account but now wants a W-8BEN-E from the LLC. What exactly are they trying to establish?
I live in Hong Kong and use a Delaware LLC for a trading account with U.S. securities. The broker let me move through most of onboarding, but now compliance is asking for a W-8BEN-E and additional ent...
EB-5 Immigrant Investor and LLC structuring
I am pursuing an EB-5 immigrant investor visa and plan to invest through a regional center. My attorney mentioned structuring the investment through an LLC. How does the LLC structure work for EB-5 in...
Our restaurant adds an automatic service charge. Can payroll treat that the same as customer tips?
I live in the UK and own a U.S. restaurant through an LLC. We recently started adding an automatic service charge for larger tables, and internally some people keep talking about that money as if it w...
My U.S. restaurant only has one location, but we usually have 12 staff on a normal day. Is Form 8027 already part of the picture?
I live in Canada and own a single U.S. restaurant through an LLC. We are still small from an ownership perspective, but the staff count on a normal day is usually around 12 people once the kitchen and...
CBP says my importer record could not verify the EIN even though the IRS already issued it. What is usually missing?
I am in India and my LLC has an EIN from the IRS, but my customs broker says CBP could not verify the importer record cleanly. I sent state formation records and the SS-4 copy, but apparently that may...
My affiliate newsletter also sells consulting calls. At what point does the business stop looking passive?
I live in Canada and use one U.S. LLC for an affiliate newsletter that reviews software tools. Over the last six months, readers also started paying for short consulting calls and custom implementatio...
Amazon sends one tax form, but my other affiliate programs just pay out normally. How do I keep one LLC record clean across all of them?
I live in the Philippines and my U.S. LLC now gets affiliate income from Amazon Associates, a software affiliate program, and a small newsletter sponsorship network. Amazon is the only one that gives ...
Amazon says my tax info is still pending after I completed the interview. Should I panic if commissions keep accruing?
I am in Japan and completed the Amazon Associates tax interview for my U.S. LLC, but the status still shows pending. The account is earning commissions, so I am nervous that money will build up while ...
I promote Amazon.com links from Germany. Is that alone enough to make the income U.S.-source?
I live in Germany and run review content through a U.S. LLC. The audience is international, but a lot of the links point to Amazon.com because that is where the program is strongest. I have never trav...
Do I absolutely need an EIN before opening a U.S. bank account for my foreign LLC?
I just formed my LLC in Delaware but I'm still waiting for my EIN. The IRS fax application has been pending for three weeks now. Meanwhile, I have a client who wants to pay me via ACH and I need a U.S...
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