If you’ve ever browsed Amazon or scrolled through a product page on TikTok Shop and thought, “How are so many international sellers shipping to U.S. buyers so effortlessly?” The answer isn’t sheer luck; it’s structure.
If you’re getting started, you can easily set up a compliant structure using our U.S. company formation service, designed specifically for global founders.
The U.S. market isn’t just big. It’s predictable, well-regulated, and built to welcome global entrepreneurs who set things up correctly. You don’t, really, don’t need to live in the U.S. to sell there. You do not, I repeat, you do NOT need a U.S. passport, a U.S. visa, or even a U.S. phone number. But you do need a business setup that looks legitimate to payment gateways, banks, and marketplaces.
This blog explores the fundamentals in a practical, beginner-friendly way — ideal for global founders who want to sell in the world’s most powerful e-commerce economy.
Why the U.S. Market Still Matters
The U.S. still feels like the center of gravity for online shopping. Think about it—Americans clicked their way through more than $1.34 trillion in online purchases in 2024. That’s not just a big number; it’s almost a fifth of everything sold nationwide. Hard to wrap your head around, but that’s the scale we’re talking about. And the number is still rising.
Official 2025 quarterly data shows e-commerce sales crossing $304 billion in Q2 alone, with digital sales holding a steady 16–17% share of the entire retail industry.
The buyer base is equally compelling. More than 273 million Americans shop online, and this number is expected to climb past 288 million within the next year.
What does this mean for you as a non-resident founder?
- You’re entering a market where online buying is deeply normalized.
- Customers have the spending power to support serious business growth.
- Platforms, payment gateways, and logistics systems are already mature.
- You don’t have to “create” demand; it already exists.
In simple terms, the U.S. market responds to people who show up prepared. When you have your structure in place, your credibility clear, and your processes clean, the doors open a lot wider — and the results feel almost effortless.
The Most Common Barriers Non-Residents Face
Most new founders don’t struggle because of weak products. They struggle because of weak documentation.
Some of the most common roadblocks include:
- Picking the wrong state (leading to unnecessary tax or compliance issues)
- Delays in getting resale certificates or sales tax permits
- Marketplace rejections due to mismatched documents
- Incorrect EIN or ITIN submissions
- Payment gateway freezes
- Difficulty opening a U.S. business bank account
- Missing annual reports or franchise taxes
- Launching before the structure is stable
To avoid most of these issues, non-resident sellers often begin by applying for an ITIN, which helps with PayPal verification and tax filings.
Choosing the Right State (Without Overthinking It)
There’s no magic “best state.” There are only states that fit different goals.
Here are the most reliable choices for global e-commerce founders:
- Florida: Fast resale certificates, smooth onboarding for suppliers
- Texas: No franchise tax if revenue stays under $2.47M
- Delaware: No state sales tax, widely trusted by banks and processors
- Wyoming: Low ongoing fees, privacy protections, simple maintenance
- California: Free seller’s permit and the biggest buyer market in the U.S.
Instead of Googling endlessly, use this simple logic:
- Need instant permits → Florida
- Want minimal taxes → Texas
- Want maximum credibility → Delaware
- Want the cheapest maintenance → Wyoming
- Targeting West Coast buyers → California
Your business model determines the state, not random advice from the internet.
Your U.S. E-commerce Starter Pack
Before applying anywhere—Amazon, Walmart, Shopify, eBay, or payment gateways—global sellers need a clean operational setup.
Here’s your essentials list:
- U.S. company (LLC or C-Corp)
- EIN for tax and banking
- ITIN (highly recommended if you’ll use PayPal)
- U.S. business bank account
- Payment gateways (Stripe, PayPal, Shopify Payments)
- Resale certificate or sales tax permit
- Business address + consistent documentation
- Marketplace-ready documents (Articles, EIN letter, bank details)
Once these documents are ready, you’ll also need a reliable international fintech bank account to receive payments smoothly from Stripe and PayPal.
Once these line up, U.S. platforms treat you like a domestic business; which is exactly what you want.
Choosing Where to Sell
Not all marketplaces work the same.
Pick the one that aligns with your style of selling.
- Amazon
- Millions of daily buyers
- Strict document checks
- Best for volume-driven products
- Walmart Marketplace
- Strong U.S. buyer base
- Lower competition
- More selective approvals
- Shopify
- Full ownership of your brand
- Requires marketing effort
- Great for long-term growth
- eBay
- Easiest entry
- Supports new and refurbished items
- Lower brand authority than Amazon or Shopify
Smart start: choose one platform, stabilize operations, then gradually add more.
f your business model is fully online, consider starting with a proper U.S. eCommerce business registration to ensure marketplace compliance from day one.
Getting Stripe & PayPal Approved as a Non-Resident
This is the part entrepreneurs worry about the most — and understandably. Stripe and PayPal can feel strict, but they’re actually predictable when your business structure is clean.
Stripe Requirements for Approval
Stripe checks for alignment across your documents:
- U.S. LLC
- EIN
- U.S. bank account
- Matching name, address, and details everywhere
- Functional website with policies, product pages, and contact info
What triggers Stripe reviews?
- Mismatched business/address details
- Suspicious website (no policies, no company info)
- Dropshipping-style disputes
- Abrupt spikes in sales with no history
If your documentation speaks one clear, consistent story, Stripe becomes smooth.
PayPal Requirements for Approval
PayPal is globally recognized but tougher on non-residents. To operate a reliable U.S. PayPal Business account, you’ll generally need:
- U.S. LLC
- EIN
- U.S. bank account
- ITIN for identity verification
- Consistent business details across all documents
Why Stripe and PayPal Freeze Funds
If you’ve ever heard horror stories of accounts suddenly holding thousands of dollars, this is usually why:
- Identity mismatches
- Unverified tax information
- Address inconsistencies
- High refund ratios
- Sudden revenue jumps
- Suspicious supplier behavior
Better strategy:
Use both Stripe and PayPal.
If one requires a review, the other keeps your store functioning.
Understanding U.S. Taxes & Compliance
Tax compliance sounds intimidating until you break it down.
Here’s what global founders should expect:
- Federal Tax Return: filed every year, regardless of profit
- State Compliance: annual reports, franchise taxes (varies by state)
- Sales Tax: activated when you hit economic nexus thresholds
- Deductible Expenses: ads, software, contractors, shipping, tools
Good bookkeeping early on prevents:
- Amazon/Walmart account issues
- Stripe/PayPal hold-ups
- IRS penaltiesThe ITIN isn’t optional for long-term stability. It increases transaction limits, prevents unnecessary freezes, and signals tax compliance.
- Franchise tax fines
You don’t need to like taxes; you just need to stay on the safe side of them.
Mistakes That Slow Down New Sellers
Most non-resident e-commerce businesses get delayed before their first sale.
Here are the most preventable errors:
- Picking the wrong state for their model
- Skipping the resale certificate
- Incorrect or inconsistent EIN/ITIN submissions
- Marketplace documents not matching bank or company records
- Missing a U.S. address or failing address verification
- Expecting guaranteed approvals
- Ignoring annual filings
- Launching a store before banking and payments are fully set up
Most of these problems snowball. A document mismatch today becomes a payout freeze tomorrow.
A Smarter Way to Enter the U.S. Market
Entering the U.S. e-commerce ecosystem doesn’t require complexity. It requires correctness.
Here’s your simple, safe sequence:
- Choose a state intentionally
- Form your company properly
- Get EIN + ITIN
- Open a U.S. business bank account
- Set up Stripe and PayPal
- Keep documents 100% consistent everywhere
- Start with one marketplace
- Maintain yearly compliance
This sequence avoids 95% of the problems non-resident entrepreneurs face.
A solid setup isn’t extra; it’s strategic.
Expert Tips for Non-Resident Entrepreneurs
Before you rush into the fun parts of selling, here’s one small thing most global founders learn the hard way:
- Sort out your payment gateways before you go live: Launching a store without a way to get paid feels a bit like opening a restaurant with no cash counter—everything’s ready, but the money has nowhere to land.
- Keep every document identical: the same address, spelling, and formatting across LLC, EIN, bank, Stripe, PayPal, and marketplaces prevents 90% of rejections.
- Open a U.S. bank account as early as possible: payment processors trust you more when banking aligns with your registered state.
- Avoid states that don’t match your model: low fees mean nothing if your resale certificate takes weeks and suppliers won’t accept it.
- Use a real business address, not a mailbox-style service: marketplaces check this more than founders realize.
- Don’t scale ads before your payment accounts mature: fast revenue spikes are the top trigger for holds and manual reviews.
- Choose reliable, traceable suppliers: payment processors flag businesses with inconsistent or dispute-heavy supply chains.
- Keep a second gateway ready: Stripe + PayPal redundancy ensures cash flow even during inevitable reviews.
- Document every expense from day one: clean bookkeeping makes tax season painless and increases your legitimacy everywhere.
- Start with one marketplace, not three: stability on one platform teaches you the patterns you need before expanding.
A Quick Note If You Want a Done-For-You Setup
If you’d rather skip the paperwork marathon and have someone set everything up the right way from day one, Business Globalizer is genuinely one of the few providers that handles the entire journey end-to-end. No shortcuts, no guesswork.
They set up U.S. companies, UK companies, and UAE companies, handle all yearly compliance, manage tax filings, secure bank accounts, assist with Stripe/PayPal, support high-risk merchant accounts, issue tax IDs (EIN, ITIN, VAT, TRN), help with U.S. e-commerce readiness, register trademarks, obtain resale certificates, and more.
But if you’re reading this as a non-resident entrepreneur planning to sell in the U.S., two of their services matter the most:
- U.S. Company Formation — fast, compliant, and aligned with marketplace and payment-gateway requirements.
- U.S. e-Commerce Setup — the full starter pack: company, tax IDs, banking, payment gateways, and marketplace-ready documents.
It’s the kind of support that lets you focus on your product, while they handle everything that happens behind the curtain.
Closing Up
Selling in the U.S. as a non-resident founder is no longer unusual. The infrastructure is ready, the buyers are active, and the opportunity is real. The part that separates stable sellers from struggling sellers is how well they prepare their foundation.
When your company, documents, payment systems, and compliance line up, everything else follows, Stripe becomes predictable, PayPal becomes steady, and marketplaces welcome you instead of blocking you.
A clean setup isn’t paperwork.
It’s your entrance ticket to the world’s most powerful e-commerce market.
