Form a Delaware LLC from Peru: Complete 2026 Guide

What makes Delaware worth a look for someone in Peru: the state fee is $110 on paper ($110 online), and after that the state-level upkeep is $400 flat annual franchise tax (raised from $300 under Delaware House Bill 400, signed May 21 2026, effective retroactively for the 2026 tax year; first billed with payments due June 1, 2027), no separate annual report required. The state levies no tax on LLC income earned outside the state, though the flat annual tax applies regardless of activity. Delaware does not require member names on the public formation certificate. None of this changes your Peru tax position, which sits on top of the US picture, but it does mean Delaware itself adds little friction. Among the five states we cover, Delaware is the state most recognised by US investors and lawyers.

Peruvian freelancers, developers, consultants and online sellers form US LLCs to invoice international clients in dollars, hold a US business bank account and present a domestic US vendor to American customers. A founder in Peru funds the LLC from soles converted to dollars. Peru taxes residents on foreign-source income and has controlled-foreign-company rules that can reach individuals, so the Peruvian tax analysis is the main task.

Checklist once the EIN letter arrives: (1) Operating Agreement signed and stored; (2) bank account application submitted; (3) Stripe and/or PayPal applications, subject to their own review; (4) your Delaware annual obligation ($400 flat annual franchise tax (House Bill 400, raised from $300), first billed with payments due June 1, 2027) in your calendar; (5) Form 5472 with a pro forma 1120 on the federal calendar. Federal Beneficial Ownership Information reporting is not something you need to do: FinCEN's rule in force since August 14, 2026 permanently exempts all US-formed LLCs.

Choose Delaware when you're planning to raise US venture capital or want the state most investors and legal counsel are already familiar with, and you're comfortable with the flat $400 annual tax (raised from $300 by 2026's House Bill 400) regardless of your LLC's size. If your priorities lean another way, compare the other four states first, because moving a Delaware LLC to another state later means dissolving it and forming a new one.

Forming from Peru is a five-step job. One: choose and check the name. Two: appoint a registered agent with a physical Delaware address. Three: file the Delaware formation documents. Four: obtain the EIN, entering "Foreign" or "N/A" where Form SS-4 asks for an SSN or ITIN; by phone on 267-941-1099 it takes about 45-60 minutes, by fax or mail 4-6 weeks. Five: open the business bank account online. No US trip is needed at any point.

A Peruvian founder planning to raise US capital or sell to a US acquirer may choose Delaware despite the $400 annual tax, because investors know the law. The $400 is a fixed amount for a Peruvian budget.

Here is the first-year budget for a Delaware LLC owned from Peru. State filing: $110 ($110 online). Registered agent: typically $100-150 a year, or included in EasyBrise Global Launch at $295 for year one ($149 a year after that). EIN: free if you apply to the IRS yourself. Bank account: usually free at Mercury or Relay. Recurring state requirement: $400 flat annual franchise tax (raised from $300 under Delaware House Bill 400, signed May 21 2026, effective retroactively for the 2026 tax year; first billed with payments due June 1, 2027), no separate annual report required. Most founders land well under $500 all-in for year one.

Over five years, the state-level cost of a Delaware LLC is a $110 filing fee plus $400 a year for five years, so $2,110 in total, before the registered agent. That makes Delaware the most expensive of the five states on this measure. The same arithmetic across the five states runs from $50 to $2,110. For a Peruvian owner, the controlled-foreign-company test and its passive-income focus decide the home-country result, so budget for a Peruvian adviser's written view alongside the US costs.

As a Peruvian owner, your recurring dates look like this. State: Delaware's $400 annual tax is first billed with payments due June 1, 2027, and there is no separate annual report. Federal: Form 5472 with the pro forma Form 1120 is due on the return due date, April 15 for a calendar-year LLC, extendable with Form 7004. For the one-off EIN call, the IRS line (6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Eastern) is open 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Peruvian time in US standard time (5 a.m. to 10 p.m. in US daylight time). Put the state date and the federal date in your calendar when the EIN arrives, because a missed Form 5472 carries a $25,000 minimum penalty.

Peru does not appear on the lists of US income tax treaty partners we checked. For a typical founder, the gap matters on the Peruvian side more than the US side: with no treaty, relief for foreign tax depends on Peru's domestic rules, and the LLC's US result is governed by US rules for the LLC and for any US-source income. Ask your adviser how any US tax paid is credited.

Peruvian tax residents are taxed on foreign-source dividends, interest and capital gains at progressive rates of 8, 14, 17, 20 and 30 percent according to the bracket, and individual business income is taxed at 29.5 percent on net income with a 5 percent dividend tax on distributions. The guide also warns that the tax authority can recharacterise arrangements under the general anti-avoidance rule, Rule XVI of the Tax Code, if economic substance cannot be shown. Keep the LLC's operations real and documented.

According to the 2026 Chambers practice guide, a Peruvian resident individual may be taxed on the passive income of a non-resident entity when three conditions are met together: a direct or indirect participation of more than 50 percent in the entity's results, incorporation in a low-tax, zero-tax or non-cooperative jurisdiction or a rate on the passive income at or below 75 percent of the applicable Peruvian rate, and a legal person or other entity separate from the taxpayer. The income covered is dividends, interest, royalties, capital gains and leases, and tax can apply whether or not profit is distributed. The guide also says individual business income is taxed like corporate income at 29.5 percent. Ask a Peruvian adviser how an operating LLC is treated under these tests.

The Peruvian rules as described cover passive income: dividends, interest, royalties, capital gains and leases. Tax can apply even where no profit is distributed. An LLC whose revenue is fees for services or product sales is a different case from an LLC that holds investments or licenses intellectual property, and the answer for your own LLC depends on how its income is classified. Keep records that show what each stream of revenue is.