Single Member LLC Taxes: What a Non-US Owner Actually Files
Written by: Parker Benner
Single member LLC taxes for a non-US owner of a Wyoming LLC are mostly paperwork, not a tax bill: the LLC is a disregarded entity by default, and Wyoming has no state income tax. What single member LLC taxes still demand every year is a pro forma Form 1120 with Form 5472 attached by April 15, plus a Wyoming annual report that costs at least $60.
Whether you also owe US income tax depends on you, and I'll flag where a tax professional comes in. Here is a full year of single member LLC taxes on one card, built from the IRS Form 5472 instructions and the Wyoming fee schedule effective July 1, 2026.
| What gets filed | With whom | When | What it costs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pro forma Form 1120 + Form 5472 | IRS, by fax or mail (no e-file) | By the 1120 due date: April 15 for a calendar year | Your time or a preparer's fee; $25,000 penalty if it's missing |
| Form 7004 (only if you need more time) | IRS, by fax or mail | By April 15 | Moves the deadline, not the duty |
| Wyoming annual report | Wyoming Secretary of State | First day of your anniversary month | $60, or $.0002 per dollar of Wyoming assets if that's greater |
| EIN (needed before any of the above) | IRS, by phone, fax or mail if the online form won't take you | Once (file only one Form SS-4) | $0 |
Still deciding where to form? I'd price CORPBOLT first: it's built for non-US founders, and every plan includes the registered agent plus the yearly Wyoming annual report with the state fee paid. Compare CORPBOLT's Wyoming LLC plans.
(Referral link: I may earn a commission if you sign up through it.)
Single-member LLC tax basics: how the IRS sees your company
By default the IRS doesn't treat a single-member LLC as a separate taxpayer. Under the classification rules in Regulations 301.7701-2 and -3 it's a "disregarded entity." Form 8832 lets you elect corporate treatment instead, but that changes everything below, so don't file it without a tax professional.
Wyoming adds no income tax on top. The state's own site puts it in one line: "Unlike other states, Wyoming does not possess an individual or corporate income tax" (wyo.gov). So on the state side, single member LLC taxes mean a yearly fee, not a return.
This post is for owners who are not US persons. US citizens and residents follow different rules and should talk to a tax pro.
The single-member LLC tax filing a foreign owner can't skip
A disregarded LLC wholly owned by a foreign person is what the IRS calls a "foreign-owned U.S. DE." The IRS Form 5472 instructions say it has no income tax return requirement, yet it must file a pro forma Form 1120 with Form 5472 attached by the due date of that 1120, including extensions. For a calendar-year company, that's April 15, the key federal date in single member LLC taxes for a foreign owner.
The 1120 here is a carrier, not a tax computation. You write "Foreign-owned U.S. DE" across the top, and the Form 5472 behind it does the real reporting.
Form 5472 lists "reportable transactions" with related parties, and you, the owner, are the main one. In plain terms:
- money you put into the LLC, for example to pay its first bills
- money you take out of the LLC
- amounts paid in connection with forming the LLC
There's no e-file route: the filing goes by fax to 855-887-7737 or by mail to the IRS in Ogden, Utah. The extension, Form 7004, also goes by fax or mail.
I keep single member LLC taxes in two buckets: the filing duty, which is certain, and the tax bill, which depends on you. This section is the certain bucket.
Taxes for a single member LLC owned from abroad: filing isn't owing
Filing a pro forma 1120 doesn't settle whether you owe US tax. Three questions do:
- Effectively connected income. Does the business earn income the US treats as connected to a US trade or business?
- Treaties. Does a tax treaty between your country and the US change the result?
- Home-country tax. Where are you tax resident, and how does that country treat profit from a disregarded US LLC?
I won't guess at any of these. This is where single member LLC taxes stop being a checklist and become personal. This post is general information, not tax or legal advice; hire a tax professional who works with non-US owners of US LLCs.
When a US bank, platform or payer asks for tax forms, the IRS W-8BEN-E instructions say a foreign single owner of a disregarded entity provides Form W-8BEN or Form W-8BEN-E, as appropriate. Ask your accountant which form fits you.
Wyoming's yearly bill is a license tax, not an income tax
The only recurring state charge in single member LLC taxes for a Wyoming company is the annual report license tax. The Wyoming Secretary of State fee schedule, effective July 1, 2026, sets it at $60 or two-tenths of one mill on the dollar ($.0002), whichever is greater, based on assets located and employed in Wyoming.
Run the math: $.0002 times $300,000 is $60, so the $60 minimum applies until your Wyoming assets pass $300,000.
The date matters more than the amount:
- It's due on the first day of your anniversary month. Formed on May 15? It's due May 1 every year.
- You can file up to 120 days early, and the state sends courtesy emails 60, 30 and 10 days before the due date.
- On the second day of the following month, the LLC is delinquent.
- If it isn't filed within 60 days after the due date, the LLC is administratively dissolved.
- Reinstatement within two years means filing each missed report, paying each missed fee, and adding a $100 reinstatement fee.
This clock has nothing to do with April 15. The IRS date follows your tax year; the Wyoming date follows your formation date. Set two reminders.
Mistakes that cost $25,000
The Form 5472 penalty is $25,000 for failing to file, plus another $25,000 if the failure continues more than 90 days after the IRS notifies you. These are the edge cases where single member LLC taxes get expensive:
- "No income, so nothing to file." Income isn't the trigger; reportable transactions are. Paying formation costs and funding the account usually create them in year one.
- Treating your own money as invisible. Wiring personal funds in to pay a software bill, or moving profit out to yourself, is a transaction with a related party. It belongs on the 5472.
- Waiting for an e-file option. There isn't one. If the fax fails or the envelope never leaves your desk, nothing was filed.
- Assuming an extension happens on its own. No Form 7004 by April 15 means April 15 is the deadline.
- Forgetting the "Foreign-owned U.S. DE" label. The IRS instructions ask for it across the top of the 1120, and across the top of Form 7004 if you extend.
Three quick questions
Do single member LLC taxes apply if my LLC had zero revenue?
The filing part does. If there were reportable transactions, such as paying formation costs or putting money in, the pro forma 1120 and Form 5472 are still due by April 15.
What does an EIN cost, and how do I get one without an SSN?
It's free. The IRS says, "You never have to pay a fee for an EIN." The online application needs an SSN or ITIN and can't be used when the principal place of business is outside the US. So non-US owners apply by phone, fax or mail. The international line is 267-941-1099 (not toll-free), 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Eastern, Monday to Friday, and the caller must be authorized to receive the EIN.
Is the Wyoming annual report a tax on my profit?
No. It's a license tax based on Wyoming assets, with a $60 floor. Profit doesn't enter the formula.
If you're forming now, here's how I'd keep single member LLC taxes simple from the start. CORPBOLT offers Wyoming LLC formation from $349, or $599 with your EIN included, and the $100 state filing fee is part of every plan. On Launch the EIN goes through standard IRS processing, which takes 6-8 weeks on average; Rush EIN gets it done within 5 business days and is available as an add-on, and it's included on Concierge. For the yearly federal filing covered above, CORPBOLT has Form 5472 + 1120 filing available, included on Concierge. See current plans and prices at corpbolt.com (referral link).
Sources used, checked October 20, 2026: IRS Form 5472 instructions, IRS EIN page, IRS Form SS-4 and W-8BEN-E instructions, Wyoming Secretary of State fee schedule and annual report FAQ, wyo.gov.
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