Form a Texas LLC from Hong Kong: Complete 2026 Guide

What makes Texas worth a look for someone in Hong Kong: the state fee is $300 on paper ($300 online), and after that the state-level upkeep is $0 franchise tax for LLCs with revenue below the no-tax-due threshold ($2.65 million for the 2026-27 report years), but a Public Information Report (PIR) must still be filed every year by May 15 regardless of revenue — a full franchise tax return is only required above the threshold. The state levies no personal or corporate state income tax. Texas requires a public information report but does not always require individual member names to be listed depending on management structure. None of this changes your Hong Kong tax position, which sits on top of the US picture, but it does mean Texas itself adds little friction. Among the five states we cover, Texas is the state with the highest upfront fee but a generous no-tax-due threshold.

Choose Texas when you expect meaningful revenue and want a state with no personal or corporate income tax and a straightforward no-tax-due threshold, and you don't mind a higher upfront filing fee. If your priorities lean another way, compare the other four states first, because moving a Texas LLC to another state later means dissolving it and forming a new one.

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 Texas annual obligation ($0 franchise tax below the $2.65 million no-tax-due threshold, plus a Public Information Report every May 15 regardless of revenue) 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.

Forming from Hong Kong is a five-step job. One: choose and check the name. Two: appoint a registered agent with a physical Texas address. Three: file the Texas 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 Hong Kong founder expecting large US revenue may prefer Texas: no state income tax and no franchise tax below $2.65 million. The Public Information Report is due every May 15 even when no tax is owed.

Over five years, the state-level cost of a Texas LLC is a $300 filing fee and nothing recurring, so $300 in total, before the registered agent. That makes Texas the second cheapest of the five states on this measure. The same arithmetic across the five states runs from $50 to $2,110. For a Hong Kong owner, the main question is where the LLC's profit is sourced, so budget for a Hong Kong adviser's view alongside the US costs.

Here is the first-year budget for a Texas LLC owned from Hong Kong. State filing: $300 ($300 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: $0 franchise tax for LLCs with revenue below the no-tax-due threshold ($2.65 million for the 2026-27 report years), but a Public Information Report (PIR) must still be filed every year by May 15 regardless of revenue — a full franchise tax return is only required above the threshold. Most founders land well under $500 all-in for year one.

Hong Kong is not on Mercury's prohibited-countries list, which is based on country of residence, and it is not on Relay's list, which looks at the citizenship and residency of the owners. Both banks run their own reviews, so approval is never guaranteed. Neither bank's published rules restrict international wires involving Hong Kong. Because the Hong Kong dollar is linked to the US dollar, conversion costs on funding are usually small, but compare the rate and any fee at your Hong Kong bank. Hong Kong takes part in the Common Reporting Standard, so its banks exchange account information automatically.

As a Hong Kong owner, your recurring dates look like this. State: the Texas Public Information Report is due every May 15, even when no franchise tax is owed. 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 p.m. to 11 a.m. Hong Kong time in US daylight time (7 p.m. to noon in US standard 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.

Hong Kong's government has said its foreign-sourced income exemption regime upholds the territorial source principle of taxation and that the regime applies only to multinational enterprise entities carrying on business in Hong Kong. Its 2022 announcement states that individuals and local companies will not be affected. That means the regime does not reach an individual who owns a US LLC. It does not decide whether the LLC's profit counts as Hong Kong-sourced, which turns on the facts of where the profit-producing work is done. Ask a Hong Kong adviser for a written view if you work from Hong Kong. The remaining compliance is American: the LLC files Form 5472 with a pro forma Form 1120 every year, with a $25,000 minimum penalty for a missed or incomplete filing.

Hong Kong does not appear among the places with a US income tax treaty. In this case the gap matters little: because Hong Kong taxes only Hong Kong-sourced profit, there is usually no second tax for a treaty to relieve on the LLC's foreign business income. The rules that decide your outcome are the US rules for the LLC and for any US-source income.

Hong Kong keeps its territorial source principle, so what matters is whether profit arises in or is derived from Hong Kong. A founder who performs the work from Hong Kong, signs the contracts there and serves clients abroad should ask a Hong Kong adviser how the source of the LLC's profit is analysed, and keep records that show where the services are performed. Do not assume that having US clients settles the question.

Hong Kong introduced its foreign-sourced income exemption regime to meet international standards on the treatment of passive income received by multinational group members. The government's announcement states that it applies to multinational enterprise entities carrying on a trade, profession or business in Hong Kong, and that individuals and local companies will not be affected. A sole founder with a US LLC is therefore outside it. If you later place the LLC under a Hong Kong company that belongs to a larger group, ask whether the regime applies.