Register a company in West Virginia

Yes. The Secretary of State takes formation filings online through the One Stop Business Portal, and we prepare and file the Articles of Organization for you. The EIN is free and needs no SSN. The IRS online application does ask for an SSN or ITIN, so a founder without one applies by fax, by mail or by phone on the IRS line for international applicants. The State Tax Department's business registration certificate follows the Secretary of State's approval. A fintech account can be applied for remotely; a traditional bank is realistic once you have some US footprint.

Formation starts from $2,400 all-in, including the West Virginia filing fee ($100), 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 $25 a year for the annual report, first due by 30 June of the year after formation; expedited handling, if you want it, is quoted on top.

The state side is quick. The Secretary of State says many online filings are processed immediately and the others take less than a few days. For an extra fee it offers 24-hour, 2-hour and 1-hour expedite, with the fee capped by statute at $500, and we quote it when it is worth paying. A faxed EIN application is generally answered within 4 business days, a mailed one in about 4 weeks. If you also need an ITIN, the IRS says to allow 7 weeks for news of the application, or 9-11 weeks when you apply from abroad or in tax season.

Not for an LLC. The LLC Act lets a company keep an agent for service of process in West Virginia without requiring one. If there is none, or the agent cannot be found, the Secretary of State is the company's agent for service. The fee statute even describes the $25 annual report fee as payment for its services as attorney-in-fact. An agent you do name must be a West Virginia resident or a corporation or LLC, and one formed in another state must be authorised to do business here. We name a West Virginia agent anyway, included for the first year.

Start with the date, because two statutes word it differently. The fee statute sets 11:59 pm on 30 June, and the Secretary of State also gives 30 June; the LLC Act, as amended in 2026, says between 1 January and 1 July. Treat 30 June as the deadline. A late report carries a $50 administrative late fee, and once it is more than 30 days late the Tax Commissioner can suspend, cancel or withhold the business registration certificate. The Secretary of State also warns of administrative dissolution or revocation. From July 2026 an LLC in good standing with five years of on-time reports can switch to a $50 report every two years. A late biennial report or a loss of good standing revokes that election.

A C-Corp pays 21% federal tax and 6.5% West Virginia corporation net income tax, with state estimated payments once its West Virginia taxable income is expected to exceed $10,000. An LLC taxed as a partnership federally is a partnership for West Virginia tax as well. It withholds 4.82% of each non-resident partner's West Virginia-source share, unless that partner has provided Form NRW-4. Single-member LLCs are the gap. The Tax Department's pass-through page does not mention them, so we confirm their state treatment for your case. Sales tax is 6%, with 1% more in some municipalities, and dividends paid abroad carry 30% federal withholding unless a treaty lowers it.

The LLC is the usual choice for a founder who takes the profit out personally; the C-Corp is the vehicle for outside investors, taxed at 21% federal plus 6.5% state. Non-resident aliens cannot hold S-corporation shares, so that option is closed. A single-member LLC owned by a non-US person files Form 5472 with a pro forma 1120, reporting transactions with the owner, including money put in and taken out. It cannot be filed electronically, and a missed filing costs $25,000. A multi-member LLC with members abroad withholds federal tax on their share of effectively connected income: 37%, or 21% for corporate members.

No. FinCEN's final rule, issued on 11 August 2026 and effective from 14 August 2026, exempts US companies from beneficial ownership reporting. An LLC or corporation formed in West Virginia is a US company, whoever owns it. Reports are now required only from entities formed under the law of a foreign country that register to do business in a US state, and they report only their non-US beneficial owners.

Banks and fintech platforms decide after their own checks, so nobody can promise you an account. The $4,400 package prepares the case: a banking strategy for your file, application files for Mercury or Relay-class platforms, and set-up for ACH, wires and Stripe. A traditional bank makes sense where you already have a US footprint. Applications go in after the EIN arrives and the articles are filed.

Possibly, if it will do business here; we check your activity first. In US law a 'foreign' LLC is simply one formed in another state, whoever owns it. It applies to the Secretary of State for a Certificate of Authority, $150 for an LLC or $100 for a corporation, with a certificate of good standing or existence from its home state. If its name is taken in West Virginia, it registers under another name, which the state calls a forced DBA. Our state qualification add-on starts from $700.