Opening a company in the United States.
A guide for Italian and European companies.

Before you start: can a foreigner open a U.S. company?

This is one of the first questions Italian and European entrepreneurs ask: “Can I open a company in the United States if I still live in Europe?” In many cases, yes. A person who is not a U.S. citizen or resident can own an interest in a U.S. business, and a foreign company can establish a U.S. presence. The IRS has specific rules for foreign persons and foreign corporations that own U.S. entities.

Owning a U.S. company is not the same thing as having the right to work in the United States.

What can a foreigner set up?

• A U.S. LLC. A Limited Liability Company is created under state law and can have foreign owners. Its federal tax treatment depends on the number of members and the elections made with the IRS.
• A U.S. corporation. A foreign entrepreneur or company can also form or own a U.S. corporation, with different governance and tax characteristics.
• A U.S. subsidiary of a European company. For an established company, a U.S. entity owned by the parent is a common route to hire employees, sign contracts, invoice customers, lease facilities and build a local organization.
• Operating through the foreign company. Some U.S. activities can be carried out without a new U.S. entity, but this can create different tax, registration and filing obligations.

Three different questions

If you still live in Europe, separate these questions: Can I own a U.S. company? Potentially, yes. Can I run a U.S. business from Europe? Potentially, yes, depending on the activity and on U.S. and European rules. Can I move to the U.S. and work for that company? That is a separate immigration question: see the U.S. government’s overview of working in the United States (USCIS).

LLC ≠ visa. Forming a U.S. company does not give you a U.S. work permit.

The real decision

Before asking “How do I open an LLC?”, ask “What exactly am I trying to build in the United States?” Testing the market, opening a first U.S. operation, setting up a plant, hiring a U.S. sales team, selling to U.S. customers from Europe or relocating: each answer leads to a different structure and different advisors.

01. Which U.S. structure is right for you?

There is no single answer. It depends on whether you are an individual entrepreneur, a company entering the U.S., a group setting up a subsidiary, a manufacturer establishing operations, or a company planning to hire or raise investment. The most common options:

• LLC: one or more owners, limited liability under state law, flexible federal tax treatment.
• C Corporation: a separate legal entity with its own corporate tax treatment, often relevant with outside investment or more complex ownership.
• U.S. subsidiary: a U.S. entity owned by the European parent, often the structure that matters most for an established company.
• Foreign company registered in a U.S. state: no new entity, but a very different tax and compliance profile.

02. LLC vs. U.S. subsidiary: don’t confuse the two

Scenario A. An individual entrepreneur wants to test a consulting business in the U.S. A single-member LLC may be one structure to evaluate.

Scenario B. An established manufacturer wants to sell directly to U.S. customers, hire salespeople, open a warehouse and eventually manufacture locally. The question is no longer “which LLC?” but the whole U.S. operating model: parent company → U.S. entity → U.S. employees → customers → suppliers → facilities. The legal structure should support the business model, not the other way around.

03. One state is not always one state

You may form your company in one state and later do business in others. The SBA explains that businesses may need to register in additional states where they operate, a process called foreign qualification (see SBA: Register your business). Formed in Kentucky, a sales employee in Ohio, a warehouse in Indiana: each can bring registration, tax, licensing or employment obligations. Choosing the formation state is not the end of the analysis.

04. The U.S. address question

“Do I need a U.S. address?” depends on what you mean by address: registered agent, principal business address, mailing address, physical operating address, bank address, tax correspondence address. They are not necessarily the same. A registered agent receives official legal documents and must be located in the state of registration. A virtual mailbox is not a substitute for every type of address.

05. The EIN is not your business license

The EIN identifies your business for federal tax purposes. It does not register you for every state tax, provide a business license, authorize every activity or register you as an employer in every state. Think in layers:

• Federal: IRS → EIN (IRS: Get an EIN).
• State: Secretary of State → entity registration; state tax authority → tax registration where applicable.
• Local: county and city → licenses and permits where applicable (SBA: Licenses and permits).
• Employment: state employment agencies, payroll, workers’ compensation and other requirements.

06. Foreign-owned LLCs: the part you should not guess

A foreign-owned LLC looks like any other LLC on the state website, but its federal reporting obligations can be different. For example, certain foreign-owned U.S. disregarded entities have Form 5472 reporting obligations (see the IRS instructions for Form 5472) and may need an EIN for that purpose, even without U.S. revenue. This is where generic online checklists stop being enough: a U.S. CPA or tax attorney should review your structure.

07. What about the parent company in Europe?

With a structure like Parent S.p.A. → U.S. Subsidiary, you have two companies in two countries. Who funds the U.S. entity? Who invoices customers? Who owns the intellectual property? Who employs the U.S. staff? Are there intercompany services and payments, and how are they documented? These are international business questions. The U.S. entity should be designed together with your home-country accountant, a U.S. tax advisor and legal counsel.

08. Beneficial ownership (BOI) reporting: don’t follow old guides

Many online articles on BOI reporting are outdated. In August 2026 FinCEN issued a final rule, effective August 14, 2026, that permanently exempts companies created in the United States from BOI reporting. Foreign companies registered to do business in a U.S. state can still be required to report. Always check the current rules on the official FinCEN website.

09. What happens after the company is created?

This is where many guides stop, and where the business actually starts. You need:

• Financial infrastructure: bank account, accounting, invoicing, expense management, tax processes.
• Operational infrastructure: contracts, suppliers, customers, insurance, facilities, technology.
• People infrastructure: organizational structure, hiring, payroll, compensation, benefits, policies, onboarding.

The third category is the one European companies most often underestimate.

10. Your first U.S. hire is a business decision

You open the U.S. entity and post a job for a Regional Sales Manager. Then you discover that the salary you had in mind is too low, candidates expect a bonus, health insurance, PTO and a 401(k), and they ask where they will work, who leads the U.S. company, what their territory is and how they can grow. The question is no longer “how do we hire?” but “what kind of U.S. employment proposition are we building?”

11. U.S. compensation is not European pay converted into dollars

A Sales Manager earning €70,000 plus bonus in Italy tells you nothing about what the same role pays in the U.S. Pay varies with geography, industry, company size, specialization, experience, demand, variable pay and benefits. You need to benchmark the actual U.S. market for that role and location.

12. Benefits are part of the offer

Depending on the market and the role, candidates weigh health insurance, dental and vision, 401(k), paid time off, bonuses and commissions, life and disability insurance, flexible work and parental benefits. The question is not “what do we offer in Europe?” but “what does a competitive U.S. employer in our market offer?”

13. Employee or independent contractor?

“It’s only one person, let’s make them a contractor” is a common shortcut. Worker classification is not a label the company chooses: it depends on federal and state tests and on the actual working relationship. Misclassification can create tax, wage and employment-law exposure. Have the relationship reviewed before it starts (see IRS: Worker classification 101).

14. The employee handbook

A handbook sets how your U.S. organization operates: conduct, equal employment opportunity, anti-harassment, attendance, remote work, paid time off, confidentiality, technology and social media, safety, expenses and disciplinary processes. A European handbook should not simply be translated into English: the U.S. handbook should be designed for the U.S. workforce and the states where you operate.

15. When should you add HR support?

Not every company needs a full-time HR manager from day one, but HR cannot be ignored. One employee in one state is very different from 50 employees in five states, and a manufacturing operation is very different from a small sales office. The question is when your U.S. operation becomes complex enough to need dedicated HR support. For many companies, the answer comes earlier than expected.

16. The first 90 days: a better way to think about U.S. entry

Opening a U.S. company is not the same as entering the U.S. market.

A legal entity can be created, a bank account opened, a website launched, and you can still have no real U.S. operation. Strategy, structure, operations and people have to work together. That is the difference between having a U.S. entity and building a U.S. business.

17. Where Amerigo fits

Amerigo HR Consulting works on the part of the process many providers overlook: what happens once a company decides to build in the U.S. and people become part of the equation. We support Italian and European companies with:

• Map: talent and compensation mapping, to understand the U.S. market before you hire or set pay.
• Hire: executive search and recruiting for the people who will build your U.S. operation.
• Build: the HR foundations of your U.S. entity: workforce planning, offer design, employee handbook, onboarding and U.S. HR practices.
• Grow: talent development, performance management and rewards to keep the people you hired.

The next step is not an LLC. It is a plan.

Start with three questions: What do we want our U.S. operation to accomplish? Where and how will we operate? What people will we need to make it happen? Once those answers are clear, the legal structure becomes part of the solution rather than the whole strategy.

Book a 30-minute call →

Official resources

• SelectUSA: the U.S. government program that helps foreign companies invest in the United States.
• SBA: Register your business: state registration and doing business in more than one state.
• IRS: Get an employer identification number (EIN).
• SBA: Apply for licenses and permits.
• IRS: Instructions for Form 5472 (foreign-owned U.S. companies).
• FinCEN: Beneficial ownership information.
• IRS: Employee or independent contractor?
• USCIS: Working in the United States (visas and work authorization).
• Kentucky Secretary of State: Business filings (each state has its own office).

Disclaimer. This guide is provided for general information only. It does not constitute legal, tax, accounting, immigration, employment or financial advice. U.S. requirements vary by state, entity structure, ownership, industry and business activity, and they can change. Consult qualified legal, tax and other professional advisors about your specific situation, and always verify current requirements with the relevant federal, state and local authorities before acting.