🇬🇧 For founders in United Kingdom
Form a US company from United Kingdom
British founders incorporate in America for reach, not escape. A Delaware C-Corp or a US LLC gives you an American business identity that global customers, marketplaces, App Store and Play Store payouts, and enterprise buyers stateside recognise instantly, often smoother than invoicing the same clients from a UK limited company. If you plan to raise from American or international investors, a Delaware C-Corp is the structure they expect and the one that supports SAFEs and priced rounds without friction.
The UK is one of the easiest places in the world to run such an entity from. There are no exchange controls, sterling is fully convertible, and you can move money in and out freely. You do not need to set foot in the United States or hold a visa to own or manage a US LLC or C-Corp. Ownership and management are open to non-residents. You will get an EIN from the IRS and can open a US business account through our licensed partner remotely.
The catch is that incorporating abroad does not make you an American taxpayer by default, and it does not remove your UK obligations. As a UK-resident individual you are taxed on your worldwide income, so profits and pay you draw from the entity have to be reported to HMRC. The good news: a comprehensive US-UK income tax treaty exists to stop the same income being taxed twice. StableCorp helps with the piece founders most often get stuck on: settling USD earnings from the company to a US business account through our licensed partner, which you can then bring into the UK and convert to sterling through your own bank.
General information about forming a US company. Not legal, tax, or investment advice. Rules and figures cited are current as of July 2026 and change frequently. Consult qualified local and US advisers before acting.
The process, end to end
Form the entity
Pick a Wyoming LLC (solo/bootstrapped) or a Delaware C-Corp (VC-track) and file the formation remotely, with no US visit needed.
Read the guideGet an EIN
Apply for the company's federal tax ID. You can get an EIN without an SSN, and you need it to open a US business account.
Read the guideOpen a US business account
Open a US business account remotely with the EIN and formation documents. No US address or SSN required. Banking is provided through our licensed partner; StableCorp is not a bank.
Read the guideGet paid
Invoice US and global clients as a US entity and settle in USD, EUR, or INR, or in USDC on supported chains. Local-currency payout is available in select markets through StableCorp's licensed regional partners on compliant rails.
Read the guideUnited Kingdom-specific considerations
A US company doesn't cut your UK tax cord
As a UK tax resident you are taxed on worldwide income, so profits, salary or dividends from your US LLC or C-Corp go on your Self Assessment return. Worse, HMRC's 'central management and control' test can make a US-incorporated company UK-resident for corporation tax if you actually run it from your kitchen table in London. Get advice on where key decisions are made before assuming your Delaware C-Corp is taxed only in the US.
LLC vs C-Corp is a UK tax question too
HMRC often treats a US LLC as opaque (a company) rather than transparent (the issue litigated in Anson v HMRC), while the IRS may treat a single-member LLC as a disregarded pass-through entity. This mismatch can cause double taxation or block treaty foreign-tax-credit relief on the same income. For UK residents raising investment or wanting predictable treaty treatment, a Delaware C-Corp is usually preferable to an LLC; take advice before defaulting to an LLC.
Claim treaty benefits properly
The US-UK treaty only helps if you invoke it. File the right W-8BEN / W-8BEN-E to reduce US withholding on US-source payments, keep evidence of US tax paid to claim Foreign Tax Credit Relief against your UK bill, and report in sterling at an accepted exchange rate on the SA106 foreign pages. Undeclared foreign income can be assessed by HMRC going back many years with heavy penalties.
Crypto is treated as property and reported
StableCorp settles in USD, EUR or INR rather than delivering crypto, but if stablecoins are ever in your mix it is worth knowing the UK rules: HMRC treats cryptoassets as property, taxes them on receipt at their sterling value, and, from 1 January 2026, collects platform data through CARF reporting. If you receive crypto from a third party, keep a clean ledger of every conversion so any disposal back to GBP is a formality, not a surprise at year end.
Getting your money home to United Kingdom
The UK abolished exchange controls in 1979, so there is no central-bank approval, no remittance cap and no repatriation licence to bring USD earnings home. Sterling and foreign currency move freely; the Bank of England does not gate personal or business inflows. In practice you draw money from your US entity to yourself in one of the usual ways (salary, contractor invoice, dividends or an owner's draw) and receive it into a UK bank account or a multi-currency account. The friction is commercial, not regulatory: your bank's FX spread and wire fees, and keeping clean records that tie each inflow to the US company. Because the UK taxes residents on worldwide income, HMRC expects these earnings on your Self Assessment return regardless of whether the money physically lands in a UK account or stays in a US one; from April 2025 the arising basis and the new Foreign Income and Gains (FIG) regime apply, and foreign income is reported on the SA106 pages in sterling using an accepted exchange rate. Making Tax Digital for Income Tax begins phasing in from April 2026 for many sole traders and landlords over the income threshold, meaning digital records and quarterly updates.
For most founders getting money home is straightforward: StableCorp settles your earnings in USD (or EUR or INR) to a US business account through our licensed partner, and you wire that to an ordinary UK or multi-currency bank account and convert to sterling at your bank's rate. Stablecoins such as USDC are one way some businesses move dollars, and the UK is bringing them into its regulated financial framework, but StableCorp settles in USD, EUR or INR rather than delivering stablecoins to UK individuals. On the tax side it is still worth knowing how HMRC views them: cryptoassets are treated as property, not currency, so if you ever receive crypto as payment from a third party it is taxable as income at its sterling value on receipt, and any later conversion is a disposal that must be recorded. From 1 January 2026 the UK applies the OECD Cryptoasset Reporting Framework (CARF): UK crypto platforms collect your name, address and tax ID and report activity to HMRC, with the first reports due by 31 May 2027. Whatever form your inflows take, the practical takeaway is the same: keep clean documentation tying each one to your US company, so your accountant has a clear trail.
United Kingdom & US taxes
Yes. A comprehensive US-UK income tax treaty is in force and appears on the IRS 'United States Income Tax Treaties A to Z' list. The current convention was signed in 2001, amended by a 2002 protocol, and has applied since 2003; it covers US federal income tax and UK income tax, corporation tax and capital gains tax. For a founder this matters in two ways. First, it provides the mechanism to avoid double taxation: where the US taxes income at source, the UK gives credit for it (and vice versa), so you are not taxed twice on the same profit. Second, its reduced withholding rates and permanent-establishment rules govern things like dividends and whether your US company creates a US tax presence. To claim treaty benefits and reduced US withholding on US-source payments, you (or your entity) typically file IRS Form W-8BEN / W-8BEN-E with a US taxpayer or foreign tax ID. Note the treaty reduces but does not eliminate US filing: a US LLC with a foreign owner and a C-Corp still have their own IRS obligations regardless of the treaty.
StableCorp helps founders in United Kingdom form a US company, get an EIN and a US business account, and get paid on compliant rails, both sides.
Get startedFrequently asked questions
Do I need to visit the US or have a visa to open a US LLC or C-Corp from the UK?
No. Non-residents can own and manage a US LLC or C-Corp without a US visit or visa. You appoint a registered agent, file formation documents, obtain an EIN from the IRS (as a foreign owner you can apply without an SSN), and open a US business account through our licensed partner remotely. Being British is not a barrier to any of these steps.
Will I be taxed twice, once in the US and once in the UK?
Generally no, because of the comprehensive US-UK income tax treaty. Where income is taxed in the US, the UK gives credit for that tax against your UK liability (and the treaty allocates taxing rights and caps withholding). You still have to file in both places and actively claim relief. The treaty prevents double taxation, it does not remove your filing duties. Get advice on LLC-vs-corp treatment, which can complicate credits.
How do I get my US dollars back to the UK, and are there limits?
There are no UK exchange controls or repatriation limits: the UK removed them in 1979. You move USD from your US entity to yourself as salary, a contractor invoice, dividends or an owner's draw, into a UK or multi-currency account. The only costs are FX spread and wire fees. You must still report the income to HMRC in sterling on your Self Assessment, even if the money stays in a US account.
Can I get paid in USDC or another stablecoin?
StableCorp settles your earnings in USD, EUR or INR to a US business account through our licensed partner. It does not deliver stablecoins to UK individuals. Holding or using stablecoins such as USDC is legal in the UK, and the country is regulating them into mainstream finance, but if you receive crypto from a third party HMRC treats it as property: it is taxed as income at its sterling value on receipt, and converting it to GBP is a disposal to record. From 1 January 2026, UK platforms report crypto activity to HMRC under CARF, so keep clean records.