Selling on Amazon FBA from outside the US is easier with a US LLC behind your Seller Central account. This guide walks through verification, the EIN, the bank, the tax interview, and how sales tax and nexus actually work once inventory sits in US warehouses.
Why a US LLC helps
Amazon's Seller Central verification asks for a legal business name, a registered address, and identity documents. If you register as an individual outside the US, you can still sell, but banking, tax paperwork, and buyer trust often get harder. A US LLC gives you a US legal entity, a US address, and a US bank option, which makes verification smoother and keeps your tax filings predictable.
PowerLaunch forms the LLC, gets your EIN, and gives you a registered agent and a virtual business address you can use on the Seller Central application. Everything then runs on the MyCG.AI platform so your bookkeeping and tax filings stay in one place.
What you need before you start verification
Amazon typically wants these before it approves your account:
- A formed LLC with a certificate of formation from the state
- An EIN letter from the IRS
- A US business address (a registered agent address or virtual mailing address works)
- A bank account or supported payment method
- Identity documents for the beneficial owner
You do not need to be a US resident or hold a US visa to own the LLC. You do need the EIN before Amazon will release your payouts to a US bank.
Forming the LLC and getting the EIN
PowerLaunch handles the state filing, the EIN application with the IRS, and the operating agreement. Formation itself is fast, usually one to three business days in Wyoming, Kentucky, or Colorado, and one to two weeks in most other states.
The EIN is the part that takes patience if you do not have an SSN. Expect two to four weeks for the IRS to process a non-resident EIN application. If your Amazon launch date is close, the expedited EIN add-on cuts that down to a few days, and it is available on both the Launch and Run plans for $295.
Opening a business bank account
Once you have the EIN, PowerLaunch can introduce you to Mercury, Wise Business, or Relay. Each bank makes its own approval decision, so PowerLaunch cannot guarantee acceptance, but having the LLC documents and EIN letter ready is what most banks ask for first. A US bank account lets Amazon deposit your payouts directly instead of routing through a currency conversion service, which usually saves on fees.
The tax interview: W-8BEN-E vs W-9
Amazon runs every seller through a tax interview before it releases payouts. This is where non-US owners sometimes get confused, so here is the difference.
| W-9 | W-8BEN-E | |
|---|---|---|
| Who files it | US persons and US entities | Foreign entities, including a foreign-owned US LLC in some cases |
| What it declares | You are a US taxpayer, here is your EIN | You are claiming foreign status, or reporting your US LLC's status for withholding purposes |
| Effect on withholding | No withholding based on foreign status | May reduce or set withholding depending on treaty and entity type |
A US LLC owned by a non-US person is a US entity, but the tax interview will still ask about the beneficial owner's residency. This is where a lot of sellers pick the wrong form. If you are not sure which one applies to your ownership structure, a quick check with a tax professional avoids a wrong withholding rate or a rejected form. This is one of the reasons the Run and Scale plans include a licensed tax professional consultation, so you get a straight answer instead of guessing on Amazon's interview screen.
Sales tax and Amazon's marketplace facilitator collection
In almost every state that has a sales tax, Amazon now collects and remits sales tax on your behalf as the marketplace facilitator. That means you usually do not need to register for a sales tax permit in every state just to sell on Amazon. This has simplified things a lot compared to a few years ago.
That said, marketplace facilitator rules and thresholds vary by state, and a few states still have exceptions or extra registration steps for certain sellers. Always check the specific state's tax site if you are unsure whether Amazon's collection fully covers your situation, especially if you sell outside Amazon too, for example through your own store or another channel.
Inventory, nexus, and state filings
Nexus is the legal connection that makes a state say you owe tax or need to register there. For FBA sellers, storing inventory in a state's Amazon warehouse can create nexus in that state, separate from Amazon's sales tax collection. Nexus rules differ by state and change over time, so this is another spot where checking the state's site or asking a tax professional is worth the ten minutes.
Where your LLC is formed matters less for nexus than where your inventory physically sits. A Wyoming LLC with inventory in a California fulfillment center can still have California nexus. Your annual state report filing, included in the Run and Scale plans, keeps your home state registration current, but it does not replace nexus tracking in the states where your inventory is stored.
Annual federal filings for foreign-owned LLCs
If your LLC is a single-member LLC owned by a non-US person, the IRS treats it as a disregarded entity for tax purposes, but it still has an information reporting duty. You need to file Form 5472 along with a pro forma 1120 by April 15 each year. Missing this filing carries real penalties, so it is worth building into your yearly routine rather than leaving it for the last week.
On beneficial ownership reporting, US-formed companies are currently exempt under the 2026 interim FinCEN rule. Rules like this can shift, so it is worth a periodic check rather than assuming the exemption is permanent.
What to do next
If you are getting ready for Seller Central verification, start with the Launch plan to get your LLC, EIN, and business address in place, and add the expedited EIN if your launch date is close. If you want the tax interview, sales tax questions, and your annual 5472 filing handled by a licensed tax professional, the Run plan covers all of that plus your transaction tracking and bank connections.
Head to powerlaunch.solutions/signup to get started, or book a free 20-minute consultation at powerlaunch.solutions/book if you want to talk through your specific FBA setup first.
