Delaware LLC for non-US residents: step by step

Founders who typically consider a Delaware LLC; the decision is yours.

• SaaS and technology ventures planning investor conversations or a multi-owner structure.
• Founders whose counterparties (investors, enterprise customers, legal counsel) find Delaware familiar.
• Teams starting with several founders and a detailed ownership agreement.
• Founders who prefer budgeting a fixed annual franchise tax (the state’s flat annual tax on LLCs); the state publishes the amount.
• Agency owners and freelancers invoicing clients abroad through a US entity.

To see the states side by side, read the Wyoming and Delaware difference; if you build an app or SaaS, read a US company for software start-ups.

To prepare for investor conversations, read Delaware for founders planning to raise.

Five steps, five named owners. Timing follows the published processing times of the state and the IRS and may change; the dashboard always shows who acts next.

1. 01
   You

   Answer the questions

   You enter the company name and a fallback, founder details, the business activity and whether you want a no-SSN EIN. Anything missing shows on your dashboard; we never ask the same thing twice.

2. 02
   LaunchUS

   Reviews, shows the quote and hands the file over

   Our team checks your information. The quote shows one LaunchUS service fee and the separately shown Delaware state fee; after your approval and payment we hand the file to the LaunchUS Registered Agent team. No official filing starts from the payment screen.

3. 03
   LaunchUS Registered Agent

   Files the formation with Delaware

   The Certificate of Formation is submitted to the Delaware Division of Corporations through the LaunchUS Registered Agent service, which provides the registered agent address and, if requested, prepares Form SS-4 (the no-SSN EIN application). Registered agent service comes with the formation order.

4. 04
   State

   Reviews and approves the formation

   The Delaware Division of Corporations reviews the filing and, if approved, issues the formation document. Timing follows the state’s published processing times and may change. LaunchUS adds the approved document to your vault and notifies you.

5. 05
   IRS

   Issues the EIN

   We obtain your EIN; the IRS issues the number. For a no-SSN application you sign Form SS-4 with a wet signature and scan it (the IRS does not accept a photo); the LaunchUS Registered Agent team submits it to the IRS. Timing follows the IRS’s published processing times and may change; LaunchUS adds the EIN letter to your vault when it arrives.

The Delaware Division of Corporations asks every LLC to name a registered agent with a physical Delaware address in its Certificate of Formation. Service of process and the state’s official letters go to that address.

LaunchUS Registered Agent provides that address, and the first year comes with the formation order. The address is for official service only; it is not used for bank, payment provider or marketplace verification.

Read how the address works and how incoming letters reach your vault on Delaware registered agent.

Official source: Delaware Division of Corporations (corp.delaware.gov). Accessed 12 October 2026.

In the first year you see two main lines: the LaunchUS service fee and Delaware’s formation fee. In later years the state’s flat annual LLC tax and the registered agent renewal follow.

To estimate the annual state fee from your assets: Estimate the Delaware annual tax.

You see the amount on the quote screen; first-year registered agent service comes with the formation order.

Official sources: Delaware Division of Corporations (corp.delaware.gov), Delaware LLC annual tax payments (corp.delaware.gov). Accessed 12 October 2026.

How much does a Delaware LLC cost per year?

The formation fee is paid once. Every year after that: the flat LLC tax due on 1 June ($400), LaunchUS Registered Agent renewal from the second year ($199) and an address service if you chose one.

The drawbacks of each state, in the comparison

Delaware LLCs pay the state a flat tax every year. Under the state’s published rule it is due by June 1; Delaware LLCs do not file an annual report.

The amount in the table above is the figure the state publishes and the state may change it. The date sits in your panel’s obligations calendar and we remind you as it approaches. This is no substitute for tax advice; ask your accountant about your tax position.

Official source: Delaware LLC annual tax payments (corp.delaware.gov). Accessed 12 October 2026.

Delaware’s Court of Chancery hears company disputes and its decisions have been published for a long time. Many investors and lawyers are used to that framework, which is why Delaware comes up so often.

Treat this as context; decide the entity type and structure with your investor and your lawyer. A C-Corp is not something we offer in the panel, so we take those requests by e-mail.

For details, see C-Corp requests.

Once formation is approved, the SSN-free EIN application goes to the IRS on Form SS-4. The LaunchUS Registered Agent team prepares it, you sign it by hand. We obtain your EIN; the IRS issues the number. The letter is added to your vault.

See how the application is prepared and who signs it on EIN without an SSN, step by step.

Official sources: IRS: Employer Identification Number (EIN) (www.irs.gov), IRS: About Form SS-4 (www.irs.gov). Accessed 12 October 2026.

Typical ranges from your payment, for a complete order with a verified passport: Delaware state approval 3–19 business days; a no-SSN EIN 4–18 weeks. These are estimates, not promised dates: formation approval follows the Delaware Division of Corporations’ and the EIN follows the IRS’s published processing times, which may change. Your dashboard shows each step’s estimated dates, status and next owner.