Selling on Amazon with your US LLC: guide for international sellers

600 billion dollars in gross sales in 2024. A US LLC gives you full access to the Amazon Seller ecosystem. Here is everything about FBA, FBM, Brand Registry and payment routing.

Amazon US moved more than 600 billion dollars in gross sales in its latest fiscal year, and 100% of those payouts run through a provider that asks for an EIN and a US bank account before sending you a single dollar.

Amazon is the world's largest marketplace. A US LLC gives you access to the full Amazon Seller ecosystem without geographic restrictions. Here's everything you need to know.

Why a US LLC for Amazon?

Selling on Amazon US (amazon.com) as an individual or foreign company creates unnecessary complications. With a US LLC:

Full platform access:

Amazon Seller Central account without country restrictions
Access to all Amazon advertising tools (Sponsored Products, Brands, Display)
Eligibility for Amazon Lending
Access to FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon) without issues
Brand Registry available for trademark holders

Payment simplicity:

Amazon pays directly to your Mercury account in USD
No currency conversion at Amazon's unfavorable rates
Payments every 14 days once account is established

Tax and compliance:

Clear business structure for sales tax collection
Professional invoicing for B2B sales
Better treatment for Amazon's verification processes

Getting started: the process

1. Form your LLC (handled by Exentax)

2. Open Mercury account (coordinated by Exentax)

3. Create Amazon Seller Central account:

Individual plan ($0/month, $0.99/item fee) or Professional plan ($39.99/month, no per-item fee)
Professional plan is required for FBA and most advertising features
Verification requires LLC documents and personal ID

4. Register for sales tax:

Use TaxJar or Avalara to manage sales tax collection
Connect to Amazon's automatic tax collection where available

5. List your products

FBA vs. FBM: which is right for you?

FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon):

Amazon stores your inventory in their warehouses
They pick, pack, and ship orders
Customer service handled by Amazon for shipping issues
Prime eligibility. huge conversion boost
Fees: storage + fulfillment per unit

FBM (Fulfilled by Merchant):

You handle warehousing and shipping
Lower fees but more work
Good for large, heavy items where FBA fees are prohibitive
Control over packaging and shipping experience

Sales tax on Amazon

Amazon collects and remits sales tax for most states automatically ("Marketplace Facilitator" laws). For states where Amazon doesn't handle this, you may have obligations. Services like TaxJar (monthly fee) integrate with Amazon and handle this automatically.

For digital product sellers: the MoR alternative

If you sell digital products (ebooks, courses, software) on Amazon or your own website, consider using DoDo Payments as a Merchant of Record for your own storefront. DoDo handles global VAT/GST/sales tax automatically, so you can sell directly to consumers without the Amazon marketplace fees (which can be 15-30% for some categories).

Beyond Amazon: multi-channel e-commerce

Your LLC enables selling on multiple platforms simultaneously:

Amazon: the biggest marketplace
Shopify with Stripe US. your own store, full control
Etsy: for handmade, vintage, and craft items
eBay: for general commerce
Walmart Marketplace: growing competitor to Amazon

Financial infrastructure for Amazon sellers

Inventory financing

As your Amazon business grows, you may need inventory financing. With a US LLC and established banking history on Mercury:

Amazon Lending becomes available (based on your selling history)
Various third-party inventory financing options become accessible
Your LLC's financial track record builds credibility with lenders

Amazon FBA: the complete LLC setup

If you're selling on Amazon through Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA), here's the specific setup:

Sales tax nexus: the critical consideration

When you use Amazon FBA, your inventory is stored in Amazon warehouses across multiple US states. This can create sales tax nexus: meaning you may be required to collect and remit sales tax in those states. This is different from income tax (which remains $0 at the federal level for non-residents).

Good news: Amazon collects and remits sales tax on behalf of sellers in most states under marketplace facilitator laws. But you should still track nexus and may need sales tax registrations in some states.

Shopify + LLC: the direct-to-consumer path

For DTC brands, the LLC + Shopify combination is powerful:

Shopify Payments → powered by Stripe US (2.9% + $0.30)
Revenue deposited → directly to Mercury
Supplier payments → via Mercury ($0 wires) or Wise (for international suppliers at mid-market rates)
Shipping → integrated with ShipStation or Shippo
Sales tax → managed through TaxJar or Avalara

Product sourcing through your LLC

When sourcing products internationally (from China, India, Vietnam), your LLC provides advantages:

Payment flow for e-commerce sourcing:

Revenue → Amazon/Shopify → Mercury checking
Supplier payments → Mercury wire (domestic) or Wise (international at mid-market rate)
Amazon fees → Deducted automatically by Amazon
Shipping costs → Wallester virtual card (automatic expense tracking)
Operating expenses → Mercury checking
Owner's Draw → Mercury → Wise → personal bank

E-commerce vs. services: key LLC differences

Amazon account types and LLC requirements

Dropshipping through your LLC

For dropshipping businesses, the LLC provides critical advantages:

Stripe/Shopify Payments: process cards from your own store
Mercury: manage supplier payments in USD ($0 domestic wires)
Wise: pay international suppliers (China, India) at real exchange rates
Wallester: virtual cards for each supplier platform (AliExpress, CJ Dropshipping)
Professional invoicing: legitimate US business entity for supplier negotiations

Before going further, put numbers on your case: the Exentax calculator compares, in under 2 minutes, your current tax bill with what you would carry running a US LLC properly declared in your country of residence.

> Free consultation, no strings attached

To keep going on this thread, IBAN, SWIFT and routing numbers: understanding international banking codes and How to scale your digital business with a US LLC fill in nuances this guide only touched on.

A balanced banking stack: Mercury, Relay, Slash and Wise

There is no perfect account for an LLC. There is the right stack, where each tool plays a role:

Mercury (operated as a fintech with partner banks (Choice Financial Group and Evolve Bank & Trust primarily; Column N.A. on legacy accounts), FDIC via sweep network up to the current limit). Main operating account for non-residents with strong UX, ACH and wires. Still one of the most proven options to open from outside the US.
Relay (backed by Thread Bank, FDIC). Excellent backup account and for envelope-style budgeting: up to 20 sub-accounts and 50 debit cards, deep QuickBooks and Xero integration. If Mercury blocks or asks for KYC review, Relay keeps your operations running.
Slash (backed by Column N.A. (federally chartered, FDIC)). Banking built for online operators: instant virtual cards by vendor, granular spend controls, cashback on digital advertising. The natural complement when you manage Meta Ads, Google Ads or SaaS subscriptions.
Wise Business (multi-currency EMI, not a bank). To collect and pay in EUR, GBP, USD and other currencies with local bank details and mid-market FX. Does not replace a real US account but is unbeatable for international treasury.
Wallester / Revolut Business. Wallester provides corporate cards on a dedicated BIN for high volume. Revolut Business works as a European complement, not as the LLC's main account.

The realistic recommendation: Mercury + Relay as backup + Slash for ad operations + Wise for FX treasury. This setup minimizes block risk and reduces real cost. At Exentax we open and configure this stack as part of incorporation.

Next steps

Now that you have the full context, the natural next step is to map it against your own situation: what fits, what doesn't, and where the nuances depend on your residency, your activity and your volume. A quick review of your specific case usually saves a lot of noise before taking any structural decision.

What actually keeps a serious ecommerce running behind the LLC

An LLC is the legal tool; a real ecommerce business stands on four legs you should map out before listing the first product. We see this every week when a seller already invoicing discovers the structure does not scale.

Marketplace and Merchant of Record. Selling on Amazon US through your LLC does not exempt you from EU VAT: FBA in European warehouses or crossing OSS/IOSS thresholds may make you - or the platform - the VAT-liable party under article 14a of Directive 2006/112. Settle the role before you start, not after the first letter.
Payment rails in cascade. Stripe US is the natural entry, but you want Paddle (Merchant of Record) or DoDo Payments as backup if Stripe restricts the account due to reserves, chargebacks or category. A single live gateway is a single point of failure.
Fulfillment and nexus. FBA in the US triggers sales tax nexus in every state where Amazon warehouses your inventory. Twenty-four states have marketplace facilitator laws that collect for you, but some still require your own registration.
Bookkeeping traceability from day one. Reconciling Amazon settlements, Stripe fees and refunds needs a system (A2X, Synder or similar) wired into your accounting. Without it, year-end becomes archaeology.

What we are asked the most

Do I need an ITIN if I only sell on Amazon US through my LLC? Not to run the seller account, but yes if you want to recover Amazon KDP or royalty withholdings, or if your home country requires it to support the income attribution. We handle it in parallel to incorporation when needed.

How do I avoid Stripe closing my account? Consistency between formation state, LLC address, business description and MCC category; documentation ready for the first extended KYC; and strict separation between personal and LLC accounts. Most closures are not risk-driven - they are document-inconsistency-driven.

At Exentax we set that structure end to end and hand the seller the operating playbook, the open accounts and a closed tax calendar before the first shipment.

Banking and tax facts worth clarifying

Fintech and CRS information evolves; here is the current state:

Notes by provider

Mercury operates with several federally chartered partner banks and FDIC coverage via sweep network: mainly Choice Financial Group and Evolve Bank & Trust, with Column N.A. still in some legacy accounts. Mercury is not itself a bank; it is a fintech platform backed by those partner banks. If Mercury closes an account, the balance is typically returned by paper check mailed to the account holder's registered address, which can be a serious operational problem for non-residents; keep a secondary account (Relay, Wise Business, etc.) as contingency.
Wise ships two clearly different products: Wise Personal and Wise Business. For an LLC you must open Wise Business, not the personal account. Important CRS nuance: a Wise Business held by a US LLC sits outside CRS because the account holder is a US entity and the US is not a CRS participant; the USD side operates via Wise US Inc. (FATCA perimeter, not CRS). In contrast, a Wise Personal opened by an individual tax-resident in Spain or another CRS jurisdiction does trigger CRS reporting via Wise Europe SA (Belgium) on that individual. Opening Wise for your LLC does not bring you into CRS through the LLC; a separate Wise Personal in your own name as a CRS-resident individual does report.
Wallester (Estonia) is a European financial entity with an EMI/issuing-bank licence. Its European IBAN accounts are within the Common Reporting Standard (CRS) and therefore trigger automatic reporting to the tax administration of the holder's country of residence.
Payoneer operates through European entities (Payoneer Europe Ltd, Ireland) that are also in scope for CRS for clients resident in participating jurisdictions.
Revolut Business: when paired with a US LLC, it operates under Revolut Technologies Inc. with Lead Bank as its US banking partner. The account delivered is a US account (routing + account number); no European IBAN is issued to a US LLC. The European IBANs (Lithuanian, Belgian) belong to Revolut Bank UAB and are issued to European clients of the group. If you are offered a European IBAN tied to your LLC, confirm exactly which legal entity holds that account and which regime it reports under.
Zero tax: no LLC structure delivers "zero tax" if you live in a country with CFC/tax transparency or income attribution rules. What you achieve is no double taxation and correct reporting at residence, not elimination.

On the same topic

What if HMRC, the IRS or my local tax authority asks about my LLC?

It's the question every client raises in the first consultation, and the short answer is: your LLC isn't opaque, and a properly declared structure closes any inquiry in standard forms. Your tax authority can request the state Certificate of Formation (Wyoming, Delaware or New Mexico), the EIN issued by the IRS, the signed Operating Agreement, the Mercury or Wise statements for the year, the Form 5472 plus pro-forma 1120 you filed, and the bookkeeping that reconciles income, expenses and movements. If all of that exists and is delivered in order, the inquiry doesn't escalate.

What tax authorities do pursue, and rightly, is sham ownership (nominees, paper residency) and undeclared foreign accounts. A well-structured LLC is the opposite: you appear as beneficial owner in the BOI Report when applicable (verifiable at fincen.gov/boi), you sign the bank accounts and you declare the income where you actually live. The structure is registered with the state Secretary of State, with the IRS and, when European banks are involved, inside the CRS perimeter of the OECD standard.

The mistake that really sinks an inquiry isn't having an LLC; it's not attributing the income correctly in your domestic return, not declaring foreign accounts when the year-end balance exceeds the local threshold (€50,000 in Spain via Modelo 720; the equivalent FBAR / Form 8938 in the US for residents; T1135 in Canada), and not documenting related-party transactions between the member and the LLC. Those three fronts are worth closing before any request arrives, not after.

## What an LLC does NOT do

- It does not exempt you from tax in your country of residence. If you live in Spain, France, Germany or Portugal, you are taxed there on worldwide income. The LLC organises your US side (zero federal tax for non-resident SMLLC pass-through, absent Effectively Connected Income); it does not switch off your domestic taxation. The income tax is computed on the attributed profit, not on the dividends actually paid.

- It is not an offshore vehicle or a BEPS scheme. It is a US entity recognised by the IRS, registered in a specific state with physical address, registered agent and annual informational filings. Classic offshore jurisdictions (BVI, Belize, Seychelles) leave no public trace; an LLC leaves a trace in five different places.

- It does not protect you if you commingle funds. The pierce the corporate veil doctrine kicks in as soon as a judge sees the LLC and the member behaving as the same wallet: mixed accounts, personal expenses paid from the LLC, no signed Operating Agreement, no bookkeeping. Three suspicious transactions are enough.

- It does not save you social security contributions at home. If you are self-employed in Spain, France or Germany, your monthly social contribution remains identical. The LLC handles the trading side with international clients; your personal contribution is independent.

- It does not exempt you from declaring foreign accounts. Spain residents file Modelo 720 / 721; UK residents, the SA106; Portugal residents, the Anexo J of Modelo 3 IRS; Germany residents, the Anlage AUS. Those obligations belong to the individual, not to the LLC.

At Exentax we cover those five fronts every year alongside the US federal calendar (Form 5472, pro-forma 1120, FBAR, state Annual Report and BOI Report when applicable). The goal is that no inquiry finds a loose end and that the structure withstands a 5-to-7-year retroactive review.

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For state-specific details, see our Wyoming LLC service page with closed costs and timelines.

If your priority is the ITIN, see Get your ITIN with Exentax and we'll handle it in parallel.

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