Wyoming LLC Taxes for Non-US Residents: No State Income Tax, the $60 License Tax, and the Federal Form 5472 Filing You Still Owe

2026-10-09 · RKube Services

Wyoming LLC taxes for non-US residents: no state income tax, the $60 minimum annual license tax and how it is calculated, and the federal Form 5472 with a pro forma 1120 that foreign-owned single-member LLCs still owe each year.

Wyoming sells itself well to founders abroad. There's no personal income tax, no corporate income tax, a $100 filing fee to form an LLC, and a long list of registered agents in Cheyenne, Casper and Sheridan who will set one up for you in a day. For a non-US owner who wants a US bank account, a Stripe or Amazon seller account, or a holding company for a global business, it's often the first state that comes up.

The part the marketing pages skip is what happens every year after formation. A Wyoming LLC owned by someone outside the US has two sets of obligations. One is small and runs through the Wyoming Secretary of State. The other runs through the IRS, and it's the one that carries a $25,000 penalty.

This guide walks through both, in the order you'll meet them, with a worked example of the Wyoming license tax and a sample calendar for a single-member LLC.

The short answer

If you're a non-US resident with a single-member Wyoming LLC and no US employees, a typical year looks like this:

• Wyoming: one annual report with a license tax of at least $60, due on the first day of the month your LLC was formed. You also keep a registered agent in Wyoming all year.
• IRS: Form 5472 attached to a pro forma Form 1120, due April 15 for a calendar-year LLC, even if the LLC made no money. If the LLC has US business income, there may also be a federal income tax return for you as the owner.
• No Wyoming income tax return. Wyoming doesn't have one to file.

Everything below is detail on those three lines.

What Wyoming asks for each year

The annual report and license tax

Every Wyoming LLC files an annual report with the Secretary of State. It's due on the first day of the anniversary month of formation. An LLC formed on March 18, 2025 has a report due March 1, 2026, then March 1 every year after that. You can file it online through the Secretary of State's business portal, and the state's business FAQ explains the timing.

The report comes with a license tax. The amount is the greater of:

• $60, or
• $0.0002 per dollar of assets located and employed in Wyoming.

You report those assets on the asset worksheet that goes with the annual report (Appendix 1 worksheet). The worksheet isn't a public record, so the figures you enter don't show up on the state's business search.

Working out the license tax: three examples

The $0.0002 rate means $2 of tax for every $10,000 of WY assets. The break-even point is $300,000. At or below that, you pay the $60 minimum.

For most non-resident owners, the first row is the realistic one. A bank account at a US bank, a Stripe balance, or inventory sitting in an Amazon warehouse in another state isn't property located and employed in Wyoming. The worksheet rules set out what counts, so read them if your LLC owns anything physical in the state.

What happens if you miss it

The timeline is short:

1. The report is due on the first day of your anniversary month.
2. It's delinquent on the second day of the following month.
3. If it still isn't filed within 60 days, the state can administratively dissolve the LLC.
4. A dissolved LLC can be reinstated within two years. After two years, reinstatement isn't available, and you'd be forming a new entity.

A dissolved LLC can cause problems that cost far more than $60: a bank may freeze the account when a business search shows "inactive," and a payment processor may pause payouts. Put the due date in your calendar the day you form, and confirm your registered agent will send you a reminder.

The registered agent

Wyoming requires every LLC to keep a registered agent with a physical address in the state. For owners outside the US, that agent is usually a commercial service in Cheyenne, Sheridan or Casper. The agent receives legal papers and state notices for you. If you stop paying the agent and it resigns, the LLC can fall out of good standing, so treat the agent fee as part of the annual cost, along with the license tax.

Sales tax and payroll, only if they apply

Most foreign-owned Wyoming LLCs sell services or digital products to customers around the world and never deal with Wyoming sales tax. If you sell taxable goods to Wyoming customers, you'd register with the Wyoming Department of Revenue. If you hire someone who works in Wyoming, you'd set up payroll accounts there. Neither applies just because the LLC was formed in the state.

What the IRS asks for each year

This is where non-resident owners get caught. Wyoming having no income tax doesn't change anything at the federal level.

Form 5472 with a pro forma Form 1120

A single-member LLC owned by a non-US person is normally a disregarded entity for US income tax. For one purpose, though, the IRS treats it as a corporation: reporting transactions between the LLC and its foreign owner. That report is Form 5472, filed with a pro forma Form 1120 that carries little more than the LLC's name, address and EIN.

It's due April 15 for a calendar-year LLC. Form 7004 extends it to October 15.

A Form 5472 is required in any year with a reportable transaction, and for a new LLC there almost always is one. The money you send to open the bank account, the formation fees you paid personally, a transfer from the LLC's account to yours: each is a transaction between the LLC and its owner.

The penalty for a missed or incomplete Form 5472 is $25,000 per form, per year. We cover the full filing, the list of reportable transactions and how the return is sent in our guide to foreign-owned US LLCs, the EIN and Form 5472. If you read only one other page, read that one.

The EIN comes first

You can't file a Form 5472 without an employer identification number. Owners without a US Social Security number or ITIN can't use the IRS online application, so the EIN is requested on Form SS-4 by fax or mail, or by phone from outside the US. Banks and payment processors usually ask for the EIN letter as well, so most owners get it in the first weeks after formation.

If the LLC has US business income

Form 5472 is an information return. It doesn't calculate any tax. Whether you owe US income tax is a separate question: it depends on whether the LLC is engaged in a US trade or business and has income connected with it.

A designer in Manila who works from home for clients in Europe, using a Wyoming LLC for invoicing, is in a very different position from a seller with a US employee or a US warehouse they control. If the activity crosses into a US trade or business, the owner may need to file a federal return (Form 1040-NR for an individual) and pay tax on that income, whatever state the LLC was formed in. Treaties can change the answer too. This is the question to settle with a tax preparer in year one, not after three years of filings.

Multi-member LLCs are different

If the Wyoming LLC has two or more owners, the IRS treats it as a partnership by default. The LLC files Form 1065 each year and issues each owner a Schedule K-1. If any partner is foreign and the partnership has income connected with a US business, there are withholding rules for that partner's share. The single-member Form 5472 route described above doesn't apply in the same way, so confirm your LLC's tax classification before you plan the year.

Beneficial ownership reporting (BOI)

Many Wyoming formation sites still mention the FinCEN beneficial ownership report. Under FinCEN's March 21, 2025 interim final rule, companies formed in the US, Wyoming LLCs included, are exempt from BOI reporting. The requirement now applies to companies formed outside the US that register to do business in a US state. Check FinCEN's site before relying on this, since the rule could still be revised.

A sample year for a non-resident Wyoming LLC

Here's a calendar for a single-member LLC formed on March 18, 2025, owned by an individual in Canada with no US employees and no Wyoming property, books kept on a calendar year:

Two filings, a registered agent bill and a set of books. That's the whole routine when the business is simple.

Mistakes we see with foreign-owned Wyoming LLCs

Treating "no state income tax" as "no taxes." The state side really is light. The federal side isn't, and it doesn't care which state you formed in.

Skipping Form 5472 because there was no income. No income doesn't mean no reportable transactions. Capital you put in and money you took out both count.

Mixing personal and LLC money. If you pay personal bills from the LLC account, every one of those payments becomes an owner transaction you'll have to reconstruct at filing time. Separate accounts and a simple monthly reconciliation make the Form 5472 a quick job.

Letting the registered agent lapse. The agent's notices are how you learn about problems. If the agent resigns, those notices stop arriving.

Forgetting the anniversary month. Founders remember April 15. The Wyoming due date moves with your formation date, so it's easy to miss in year two.

Frequently asked questions

Does a Wyoming LLC owned by a non-US resident pay Wyoming income tax?

No. Wyoming has no personal or corporate income tax. The state charges an annual license tax with the annual report: $60 or $0.0002 per dollar of Wyoming assets, whichever is greater.

How much is the Wyoming annual report fee for an LLC with no assets in the state?

$60. The asset-based calculation only exceeds $60 once WY assets pass $300,000.

When is the Wyoming annual report due?

On the first day of the anniversary month of formation. It's delinquent the second day of the next month, and the LLC can be dissolved if it's not filed within 60 days.

Do I file Form 5472 if my Wyoming LLC made no money?

Usually yes. The filing is triggered by reportable transactions between the LLC and its foreign owner, such as contributions and distributions, not by profit.

Can I e-file the pro forma 1120 and Form 5472?

Most tax software doesn't support it. The instructions have directed foreign-owned disregarded entities to fax or mail it to the IRS. Check the current year's instructions before you send it.

Does my Wyoming LLC need to file a BOI report?

Not under FinCEN's March 2025 interim final rule, which exempts companies formed in the US. Check FinCEN for any later change.

Where RKube fits

We keep the books and prepare the federal filings for non-US owners of US LLCs, including Wyoming LLCs: monthly bookkeeping with owner transactions tracked as they happen, the Form 5472 and pro forma 1120 each spring, and a reminder before your Wyoming anniversary month. We also serve clients in Canada. If you'd like a second look at your setup, start with a free scoping call and our 30-day bookkeeping trial. Call (984) 234-7030 or visit rkubeservices.com.

General information, not tax or legal advice. Rules and amounts are current as of October 2026; check the official sources linked above before you file.