Register a company in Minnesota

Yes. The Articles go in through Business Filings Online, which needs an account but no visit; the Saint Paul counter works by appointment and is optional. The EIN is requested from abroad by fax, phone or mail, since the IRS online form needs an SSN or ITIN. Fintech accounts are applied for remotely. The traditional-bank route is for founders who already have a US footprint.

Formation starts from $2,400 all-in, including the Minnesota filing fee ($155 online), the registered agent for the first year, the EIN and the operating agreement. With a fintech or bank account set up, from $4,400. After that the state charges $0 for the LLC's Annual Renewal while the company is active and in good standing; our renewal service is from $600 a year.

That depends on the form. A C-Corp pays the federal 21% and, if it is located, present or earns gross income in Minnesota, the state's 9.8% franchise tax; dividends paid to you abroad carry 30% withholding unless a treaty lowers it. An LLC is a pass-through by default. A single-member LLC is disregarded, so its income is taxed on the owner's side where it is effectively connected with a US trade or business; a multi-member LLC is a partnership and withholds on foreign members' share of that income at 37%, or 21% for corporate members. How Minnesota taxes a foreign member's share we confirm for your case.

The state part is quick. Online filings are typically processed within 2-5 business days, mail filings are handled first come, first served, and the counter processes appointment filings while you wait. The EIN then sets the pace: generally within 4 business days by fax, about 4 weeks by mail. An ITIN, if you need one, takes the IRS 7 weeks, or 9-11 weeks from overseas or in tax season.

That is the second package. We weigh a fintech platform against a traditional bank with you, prepare the application file for a Mercury or Relay-class platform and set up the payment rails: ACH, wires and Stripe onboarding. A traditional bank comes into play where you have a US footprint. The provider decides on every account, so we prepare the file and do not promise an approval.

Minnesota requires a registered office: a street address in the state on the Articles, and a post office box by itself is not accepted. The agent is optional on the form. A founder abroad usually has no Minnesota street address, so we name our registered agent and its address; that is included for the first year.

The statute says failing to file it results in administrative termination, and the state only "may" send a reminder. It is due by December 31 every year, starting the year after formation, and costs nothing while the company is in good standing. Reinstatement means filing the current renewal and paying $85 online; an entity inactive for more than six years cannot be reinstated online.

Not as an owner: the Articles list organisers, not members or managers. The Annual Renewal names the person exercising the principal functions, so someone is named each year. The Articles form refers only to the federal beneficial-ownership rule, and under FinCEN's final rule, effective August 14, 2026, companies formed in the US file no BOI report. The IRS still learns who controls the company through the EIN application.

For a trading or service business with one or two owners, usually the LLC, a pass-through by default. A C-Corp fits when investors will buy shares; it pays 21% federally plus Minnesota's 9.8% where the franchise tax applies. S-corporation status is closed to non-resident alien shareholders. We settle the choice on the first call, before anything is filed.

Only if something ties you to it. Minnesota is cheap to keep on file, but once a company owes Minnesota tax the rates are near the top of the US range: 9.8% for C-Corps, where PwC puts state corporate rates generally between 1% and 10%, and 9.85% at the top personal bracket. With staff, premises or customers here, forming in Minnesota is the direct route; an LLC formed in another state that registers here pays $205 online for a Certificate of Authority. With no Minnesota link, look at Delaware, Wyoming or Nevada first.