You have decided a U.S. LLC fits your business. The next question is simple: what happens after you press checkout?
You want to know what to prepare, which steps need your input, when the state forms the LLC, and when the setup is finished. You do not want to spend time learning state portals or chasing updates.
This guide explains the process for a non-U.S. solo founder setting up a foreign-owned single-member U.S. LLC in Wyoming or Florida with US LLC Light. It assumes the business is operated from abroad, has no physical presence in the United States, and serves mostly non-U.S. customers.
The sections below follow the process from checkout through state formation, the federal tax setup, and first-year onboarding.
What to prepare before checkout
You do not need to study the forms before you start. You do need a few documents and decisions ready.
For an LLC owned by you personally, prepare:
- Identity document: A clear photo or scan of your passport.
- Residential details: Your home address, mobile number, and a utility bill or bank statement as proof of address.
- Company name: One preferred name, one fallback name, and your choice of the designator “LLC” or “L.L.C.”
- Business activity: One plain-English sentence of no more than 120 characters.
- Principal business address: Provide your own address if you select the shared business address. Dedicated and Pro include a business address provided through the service.
If a non-U.S. company will be the LLC’s single member, you will need some additional information and documents:
- the company’s legal name and entity type,
- its registry number and registered address,
- its incorporation certificate,
- a current registry extract, and
- proof of address dated within the previous three months.
Preparing these items now avoids the most common delay: finishing checkout, then realizing that an important document is not readily available.
What happens after checkout
At checkout, you select Wyoming or Florida, choose your package and address option, confirm that your situation fits the supported non-U.S. founder profile, create your account, and pay through Stripe.
After payment is confirmed, we create your formation workflow and LLC record, send your order confirmation, and direct you to the identity check. You provide the company information in the steps that follow.
Complete the identity check
The identity check asks for:
- your personal details,
- your residential address,
- your phone number,
- your passport, and
- your proof of address.
Submitting this information opens the formation view in your dashboard. Our team then reviews the documents. Approval, rather than submission alone, allows the filing work to begin.
Provide the company details
Next, you enter the company information you prepared earlier:
- your preferred and fallback company names,
- your selected LLC designator,
- your short business activity description, and
- your principal business address, where required by your package.
We check the proposed names against the state registry, review the activity description, and arrange the registered agent service and consent letter. Once the required information is approved, the case is ready for state filing.
Follow the process in your dashboard
After you submit the identity check, the formation view becomes available in your dashboard. It shows the current stage, completed steps, and the next action requiring attention.
The tracker also indicates whether the next step belongs to you, US LLC Light, the state, or the tax authorities.
After state formation, the dashboard expands into your company record. Filing details and documents are added as they become available, followed by the EIN and its confirmation letter after the federal stage is complete. The Compliance and Mailroom sections become available when the full setup is complete.
State filing forms the LLC
A team member reviews the case, prepares the articles of organization, and submits the filing directly to the state.
When the state accepts the filing, we record the filing ID and formation date and upload the state-stamped articles to your document library. The LLC now legally exists.
State acceptance is the first major milestone, although the operating agreement and Employer Identification Number (or EIN) steps may still be in progress.
- Formed means the state has accepted the LLC filing.
- Complete means the operating agreement and EIN stages are finished, the company record is organized, and the first-year tasks have been added.
Operating agreement and federal tax setup
After the state forms the LLC, the platform generates the operating agreement from counsel-prepared templates for the relevant state and member type.
You review and download the operating agreement. US LLC Light does not collect an electronic signature for this document, so any signature or permitted customization takes place outside the platform.
The federal tax setup follows: the required paperwork is prepared and reviewed from the details you provided during onboarding.
The prepared document is then released to you for electronic signature. It is the only document you e-sign during the formation process.
After you sign, the process continues on the federal side and its status stays visible in your dashboard. You do not need to send anything yourself or follow up directly.
When the EIN confirmation letter arrives, it is recorded and stored in your document library.
How long the process usually takes
As of July 2026, our public planning estimates are:
- Identity-check review: Approximately one business day.
- Registered agent confirmation: Usually directly after the confirmed identity check.
- Wyoming state formation: Same day as registered agent confirmation.
- Florida state formation: Usually a few business days after submission.
- EIN processing for non-resident applicants: Approximately two to four weeks.
- Complete guided setup: Approximately two to five weeks.
These are planning estimates, not guaranteed deadlines. The relevant state office controls the formation approval, while the tax authorities control EIN issuance and processing times.
The EIN stage may take considerably longer than the signature itself. Its status stays tracked in your dashboard until the confirmation arrives.
What happens when your guided setup is complete
After the operating agreement and EIN stages are finished, we organize the completed company record, add the first-year compliance tasks to your calendar, mark the guided setup as complete, and send the completion email.
The first-year compliance workflow is included in your first-cycle payment, so there is no additional payment step immediately after setup.
The calendar begins with tasks covering:
- registered agent renewal,
- the annual report for the supported state,
- the annual client questionnaire, and
- preparation of the federal information-return package using Form 5472 and a pro forma Form 1120.
Reminder emails are scheduled for 30 days, seven days, and on the due date of each task. Your answers may also trigger additional screening steps when a situation requires closer review.
A task on the calendar represents an organized workflow. It does not mean that every filing happens automatically or without your involvement.
You provide the information for the year and review or sign documents as needed. We prepare and track the supported work. If your answers show a more complicated legal, tax, or accounting case, we flag it early so you can bring in a qualified professional.
After the included first year, annual support can be renewed each year. Renewal payments are not processed automatically.
What you do at each stage
| Stage | What you do | What happens next |
|---|---|---|
| Checkout | Choose Wyoming or Florida, select your package and address option, confirm that your situation fits the supported scope, create your account, and pay. | After payment is confirmed, US LLC Light creates your formation workflow and LLC record and sends your order confirmation. |
| Identity check | Provide your personal details and upload your passport and proof of address. | Your formation dashboard opens after submission. US LLC Light reviews the information, and filing work can begin after approval. |
| Company details | Provide your preferred and fallback company names, LLC designator, business activity, and principal business address where required. | US LLC Light checks the proposed names and business activity and arranges the registered agent service. |
| Registered agent | No separate filing action is required from you. | US LLC Light orders the registered agent service and obtains the required consent letter. |
| State filing | No state-portal work is required from you. | US LLC Light prepares and submits the articles of organization and tracks the filing. After state acceptance, the filing ID, formation date, and state-stamped articles are added to your company record. The LLC is now formed. |
| Operating agreement | Review the operating agreement, confirm the information, and download the completed document. | US LLC Light generates the agreement from the applicable counsel-prepared template and adds it to your company documents. |
| Federal tax setup | Review and electronically sign the federal setup document. | US LLC Light prepares the paperwork from your details and tracks the process. When the EIN is issued, the number and confirmation letter are added to your company record. |
| Completion | No additional setup action is normally required. | After the operating agreement and EIN stages are finished, US LLC Light organizes the completed company record, adds the first-year compliance tasks to your calendar, marks the guided setup as complete, and sends your completion email. |
