A US LLC for e-commerce sellers on Amazon, Etsy and Shopify

• Brands and makers who want an Amazon US seller account in a company’s name.
• Designers selling handmade goods on Etsy who want payouts collected in one company account.
• Founders running their own Shopify store and selling to US customers in dollars.

All three verify the person who opens the account and the company behind it: the legal name, the formation document, the EIN, an address and the account that receives payouts. The lists differ by platform and change over time, so read each platform’s own page before you apply. The platform decides.

The platforms’ own pages: sell.amazon.com/sell · www.etsy.com/sell · help.shopify.com/en/manual/payments/shopify-payments/supported-countries

For platform details, read selling on Amazon US with a US company and selling on Etsy and Shopify.

Marketplaces usually send sales proceeds to a bank account set up in the seller account, and most expect that account to carry the seller’s name. That is why a company bank account often comes before the marketplace application. The bank makes that decision; LaunchUS does not apply for or decide on accounts.

What banks ask for is in US bank account for a non-resident LLC; card payments in your own store are covered in a US company for Stripe, and Stripe’s questions in the Stripe documents checklist.

In the US, each state sets its own sales tax rules, and they differ from state to state. Many states require a marketplace to collect the tax on sales it facilitates. Sales in your own web store follow the rules of the states you sell into. Review your position with a US tax professional.

The state and IRS filings the company makes each year are on the yearly obligations checklist.

Marketplaces accept LLCs from either state, so the choice usually comes down to the yearly state task, the budget and any plan to raise money. A Wyoming LLC files an annual report with a license tax each year; a Delaware LLC pays an annual LLC tax. We set the criteria side by side; you decide.

The criteria are on Wyoming vs Delaware; state details are in the Wyoming LLC and Delaware LLC guides.

The difference between the business address platforms ask for and the registered agent address is in registered agent address vs business address.

You

Enters the details, signs the SS-4 and applies to the marketplace, the bank and payment providers.

LaunchUS

Checks the details, shows the process in the panel and adds documents to your vault.

LaunchUS Registered Agent

Files the formation with the state, prepares the SS-4 and sends it to the IRS.

State

Reviews the formation and issues the formation document.

IRS

Issues the EIN.

Marketplace

Amazon, Etsy or Shopify reviews the seller account and decides.

On the LaunchUS side you pay the service fee; the state fee is shown as a separate line. Marketplaces and payment providers publish their own selling and transaction fees on their pages.

All plans and annual services: Pricing and annual state fees.

• We make no promise that a marketplace, bank or payment account will be opened; the platform and the bank decide.
• We do not register you for sales tax or prepare tax returns.
• We give no tax, customs or accounting advice.