नमस्ते — भारत के संस्थापकों के लिए
अमेरिकी LLC के लिए IRS Form 5472 अनुपालन
You formed a U.S. LLC from India and now you're staring down a $25,000 IRS penalty risk. Here's exactly what you need to file, how the U.S.-India tax treaty applies, and how to do it yourself.
You file. We never touch your IRS submission. Read in Hindi →
The U.S.-India Income Tax Treaty (1989, with multiple protocols) reduces certain withholding rates on payments from U.S. payors to Indian tax residents. It does NOT exempt a U.S. LLC from filing Form 5472 — the treaty governs withholding on payments, not the LLC's own information-reporting obligations.
| Payment type | Withholding | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Dividends from U.S. company to Indian-resident shareholder | 15-25% | Article 10 — depends on ownership %. |
| Interest paid to Indian-resident lender | 10-15% | Article 11 — generally 15%, 10% for certain banks/financial institutions. |
| Royalties (incl. software, copyright, IP) | 10-15% | Article 12 — 15% on general royalties, 10% on copyright. Form W-8BEN required to claim treaty rate. |
| Fees for included services / technical services | 10-15% | Article 12 — narrow scope; many IT services do NOT qualify under U.S.-India interpretation. |
Read the full treaty on IRS.gov: India tax treaty documents.
Withholding-rate planning is separate from Form 5472. Form 5472 is an information return on the LLC; withholding is on payments from U.S. payors. Both can apply.
10-character alphanumeric, format AAAAA9999A (5 letters, 4 digits, 1 letter)
Form 5472 line 1c (foreign taxpayer ID number) takes your PAN. If the LLC owner doesn't have a PAN, enter the home-country tax ID equivalent or 'N/A' if none exists. The IRS does not validate the PAN format on Form 5472 — but enter your real PAN to keep your records consistent.
Mercury and Wise are the most common path. Mercury tightened approvals in 2025 for non-resident applicants — submitting Indian bank statements + a clear ICP description helps. Wise is the most-approved fallback; not FDIC-insured (it's an EMI, not a bank) so don't park large balances. Relay is the third option but most selective.
Approves many Indian founders but more scrutiny in 2025-26. Bring a clean ICP (e.g. 'SaaS for U.S. SMBs'), evidence of revenue, and an Indian bank statement. Mercury now wants a U.S. address — registered-agent addresses no longer accepted as of 2025.
Highest approval rate for Indian founders. Note: EMI, not a bank — no FDIC insurance, can't park large balances. Good for invoicing + day-to-day flow.
$3M FDIC sweep via Thread Bank — appealing if you'll hold meaningful balances. More selective approval than Wise.
Brex has tightened to revenue-stage U.S.-based startups; rarely approves new India-resident founders without prior funding.
We do not have a paid partnership with any U.S. business banking provider listed here; status reflects approval patterns reported by founders we've interacted with, current as of May 2026. Verify before relying.
You incorporated through Stripe Atlas, your LLC bills U.S. SMBs $X/mo on Stripe, you fund the LLC from your Indian bank, and you take occasional distributions back to India.
What you do: Form 5472 required every April 15. Reportable transactions = capital contributions you wire in + distributions you take out + formation costs. Use our guided wizard at /filer — typical filing takes 15 minutes.
Shopify store on a U.S. LLC, you source from Indian or Chinese suppliers, deliver to U.S. customers, occasionally move profit back to India.
What you do: Form 5472 + likely U.S. sales tax nexus once you cross state thresholds ($100K/state typical). Form 5472 captures capital + distributions; sales tax is a separate state-level obligation — use our /tools/sales-tax-nexus calculator.
You bill U.S. enterprises through your U.S. LLC, fund the LLC for operating costs, and take regular distributions.
What you do: Same Form 5472 obligation. If you ever spend significant time physically in the U.S. (>183 days, or a U.S. office), ECI rules can kick in — see /tools/eci-assessment.
AdSense / Patreon / Substack revenue lands in the U.S. LLC bank account; you periodically distribute to your Indian account.
What you do: Form 5472 required. Note: AdSense from Google U.S. is U.S.-source — depending on activity level you may also have ECI. Check /tools/eci-assessment.
The Form 5472 wizard takes about 15 minutes. You sign and submit yourself.