Register a company in Illinois

Yes. The Articles of Organization go to the Secretary of State online and the confirmation comes back by email, so nobody has to travel. Illinois wants a registered agent who lives in the state or an entity authorised to transact business there, at a physical address in Illinois (a P.O. Box alone is not accepted); ours is included for the first year. The IRS issues the EIN by fax, generally within 4 business days, or by phone on its international line, without an SSN. Fintech accounts are applied for remotely; a traditional bank may want a US footprint first.

Formation starts from $2,400 all-in, including the Illinois filing fee ($150), the registered agent for the first year, the EIN and the operating agreement. With a fintech or bank account set up, from $4,400. Each year the LLC files the Illinois annual report, which can be done online; we confirm its fee and due date, and any other state charges, for your company before you file. If you want 24-hour service ($250 instead of $150) or a series LLC ($400), the difference is itemised in your quote.

An LLC suits founders who will take profit out rather than raise equity: for federal tax, a single-member LLC is disregarded and one with two or more members is a partnership, unless it elects otherwise. A C-Corp pays the flat federal 21% plus 9.5% in Illinois, and it is the usual choice when investors are coming. S-corp status is closed to you, because non-resident aliens cannot hold S-corp shares. If you will run several lines of business, ask us about the series LLC first, since that choice is made in the articles.

Federally, a C-Corp pays 21% and an LLC normally passes its profit to the owners. In Illinois a C-Corp pays a 7% income tax and a 2.5% personal property replacement tax on net income, 9.5% together. Partnerships, trusts and S corporations pay the replacement tax at 1.5%, and individuals pay a flat 4.95% income tax; how Illinois taxes your LLC and its non-US owner is confirmed for your case before you file. General merchandise carries the 6.25% state sales tax plus any local rate. Dividends a C-Corp pays to non-US shareholders carry 30% federal withholding unless a treaty lowers it.

The standard service takes 10 business days; 24-hour service costs $250 instead of $150. The confirmation arrives by email once the Department of Business Services has examined and approved the articles. By fax the EIN generally comes within 4 business days, by mail in about 4 weeks, and the bank application follows it. If you need an ITIN, allow about 7 weeks, or 9-11 weeks from overseas or in tax season.

Your US footprint sets the route. A company run from abroad usually starts with a fintech platform of the Mercury or Relay type, applied for online; a traditional bank becomes realistic once the business has a real presence in the US. We pick the route with you, assemble the application from the company papers and your KYC file, and connect ACH, wires and Stripe once the account is open. The decision is the bank's, and if your file has a weak spot, we tell you first.

It is an LLC whose articles allow it to establish series, filed for $400 (or $500 with 24-hour service) instead of $150. Each series then needs its own Certificate of Designation on form LLC-37.40. Founders look at it when they want to hold several ventures or assets in one structure. For a single business, a standard LLC is simpler and cheaper to file, and we say so on the first call; where a series fits, we confirm the designation fees for your case.

It depends on the activity. The state's 2026 start-up handbook says licensing is separate from registration and that registering a business does not automatically grant permission to operate; it describes no single general state licence. We check which licences your trade needs before you file, and before you sign a lease if premises are involved.

Treating the $150 filing as the end of the paperwork. Federally, an LLC wholly owned by one non-US person files Form 5472 with a pro forma 1120 by the 15th day of the fourth month after year-end. Money the owner puts in or takes out counts as a reportable transaction, so a year without sales can still need the form; it goes by fax or mail only, and missing it costs $25,000. In Illinois, every penalty incurred so far is paid with the annual report fee, and an LLC that has been administratively dissolved or revoked can no longer file online. We confirm the report's fee and due date for your company and calendar both filings.

Because of where the business runs. In US law a foreign LLC is one formed in another state, whoever owns it. A Delaware or Wyoming LLC that does business in Illinois goes through the Secretary of State's Application for Admission to Transact Business (form LLC-45.5), whose fee we confirm for your case, and files Illinois annual reports as well. So with staff or premises in Illinois, forming here saves keeping up two states; with no Illinois ties and a fundraising plan, Delaware is usually the better fit.