Guides
One question, answered from the data
A guide here answers one specific question, in its first sixty words, using figures pulled from the same dataset as the comparison tables. That is deliberate: a guide whose numbers are typed in separately drifts from the table within a month, and a reader has no way to tell which one is current.
Formation
How do I form a US LLC as a non-resident?
File articles of organization in one state through a registered agent; Wyoming asks nothing about where you live, and year one costs from $150 with the state fee. Get an EIN on Form SS-4 by phone, fax or mail; applying online needs an SSN or ITIN. Every year, file Form 5472 with a pro forma 1120, plus the annual report.
Revised Sep 2026 · figures rechecked at least every 90 days
Formation
Do I need a registered agent for a US LLC?
Yes. Wyoming requires every business entity to name a registered agent at a physical Wyoming address to accept legal papers. Living abroad, you cannot be your own, so a formation service supplies one. Most include the first year; renewals run from $25 a year at Wyoming Registered Agent Services to $299 at Firstbase. Checked September 2026.
Revised Sep 2026 · figures rechecked at least every 90 days
Formation
Stripe Atlas or Northwest Registered Agent: which should a non-resident use?
Northwest, unless you are building a startup that will raise money. Northwest forms a Wyoming LLC for $239 in year one and $185 a year after. Atlas forms in Delaware only: $500 up front, then $500 a year, $100 for its agent and $400 to Delaware, but it bundles the equity paperwork and 83(b) election investors expect.
Revised Sep 2026 · figures rechecked at least every 90 days
Neobanks
What is the cheapest card to spend abroad from the UK?
Any of the 4 free accounts that add no fee to the card network's rate: Monzo, Starling Bank, Chase UK and Kroo Bank. On £1,500 of foreign spending in a month they cost nothing; Wise costs £3.60 and Revolut £5.00. The difference is what else the account holds, and what cash costs. Checked September 2026.
Revised Sep 2026 · figures rechecked at least every 30 days
Contractor Payments
Deel or Remote: which is cheaper for paying contractors?
Remote, at $29 a contractor a month against $49 — $1,200 a year cheaper for a team of 5. The order reverses if you also employ someone: Deel's employer-of-record fee is $599 a month to Remote's $699. Checked September 2026.
Revised Sep 2026 · figures rechecked at least every 90 days
Business FX
What is the cheapest way for a UK business to pay a US supplier?
On a £10,000 payment, Wise Business and Revolut Business Grow tie at £35.00 for the month by opposite routes: Wise charges 0.35% with no plan fee, Revolut Grow's plan fee covers the payment. Starling costs £45.50; the dearest, £332.50. Checked September 2026.
Revised Sep 2026 · figures rechecked at least every 90 days
Expat Tax
What is the cheapest way to file US taxes from abroad?
Expatfile, at $119 for the federal return, if you file the FBAR yourself — FinCEN's system for it is free. MyExpatTaxes is $175 with the FBAR included. A professionally prepared return with the FBAR starts at $358, at H&R Block. Checked September 2026.
Revised Sep 2026 · figures rechecked at least every 12 months
Business Address
What is the cheapest US business address for an LLC run from abroad?
Traveling Mailbox, at $15 a month with letters opened and scanned. Anytime Mailbox averages $9.99 but advises against using its address as your official business address; iPostal1 starts at $14.99 but charges to scan letters. Northwest Registered Agent, at $20, says its address works for state filings. Checked September 2026.
Revised Sep 2026 · figures rechecked at least every 90 days
Expat Tax
FBAR or Form 8938: which do I file as an American abroad?
Often both. The FBAR is owed once your foreign accounts together pass $10,000 at any point in the year. Form 8938, for someone living abroad, starts above $200,000 at year-end or $300,000 during the year, double for joint filers. Filing one never replaces the other, and they go to different places.
Revised Sep 2026 · figures rechecked at least every 12 months
Expat Tax
How do I catch up on US taxes from abroad, and what does it cost?
Through the IRS Streamlined Foreign Offshore Procedures, if the lapse was non-willful: file the last 3 years of returns and 6 years of FBARs with Form 14653, and pay any tax owed with interest; the usual penalties do not apply. Published packages run from $699 at Expatfile to $1,860 at Bright!Tax, a starting price. Checked September 2026.
Revised Sep 2026 · figures rechecked at least every 12 months
Transfers
What is the cheapest way to send £100,000 from the UK to Europe?
Atlantic Money, at £3: the live rate with no margin and a flat fee. Wise costs £249.52. Revolut's paid plans charge only their plan fee but do not publish what their rate is measured against. Lloyds Bank, the one high-street bank that publishes its margin, costs £2,100. Checked October 2026.
Revised Oct 2026 · figures rechecked at least every 90 days
Transfers
How do I know if a currency broker's quote is a good rate?
Compare its rate with the mid-market rate at the same moment. The gap, times the amount, is the price: 1% on £100,000 is £1,000. Then set it against providers that publish their price: on £100,000 into euros, Atlantic Money costs £3 and Wise £249.52, about 0.25%. Checked October 2026.
Revised Oct 2026 · figures rechecked at least every 90 days
Formation
What are the cheaper alternatives to doola for forming a US LLC from abroad?
4 of the 9 other formation services in the comparison cost less than doola over five years. The cheapest that also gets the EIN for you is Northwest Registered Agent: $239 in year one and $185 a year after, against $397 and $357.
Revised Oct 2026 · figures rechecked at least every 90 days
Formation
What are the cheaper alternatives to Stripe Atlas for forming a US LLC from abroad?
All 9 other formation services in the comparison cost less than Stripe Atlas over five years. The cheapest that also gets the EIN for you is Northwest Registered Agent: $239 in year one and $185 a year after, against $500 and $500.
Revised Oct 2026 · figures rechecked at least every 90 days
Formation
What are the cheaper alternatives to Firstbase for forming a US LLC from abroad?
6 of the 9 other formation services in the comparison cost less than Firstbase over five years. The cheapest that also gets the EIN for you is Northwest Registered Agent: $239 in year one and $185 a year after, against $498 and $359.
Revised Oct 2026 · figures rechecked at least every 90 days