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Adrian B

Adrian B
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@notesaboutstartups

I enjoy writing about stories behind startup life, diving into both the challenges and victories that come with entrepreneurship.
Joined January 2025

I have been using Replit AI Agent, pretty cool actually. You basically have an AI agent doing the coding for you.

Another point I forgot to make, as a non-us resident I noticed that foreigners are required to submit more and more paperwork (accountants usually charge 200-500 USD per form) to submit to the authorities. In essence more bureaucracy for foreigners which usually leads to more costs.

That’s interesting. I guess the market makes it so.

I already pay thousands for my US tax prep (CFC, FEIE and such), so it doesn’t shock me 😅

That’s interesting. I guess the market makes it so.

I already pay thousands for my US tax prep (CFC, FEIE and such),j so it doesn’t shock me 😅

Hi Dmitry. The decision really depends on individual circumstances, but if I were to do it again, I’d consider setting up a C-Corp or LLC only if I had at least $3,000 in annual revenue just to cover the recurring admin and tax compliance costs. Also C-Corp makes only sense if you intend to have multiple shareholders and/or plan on raising venture capital. If it's just you it might be an overkill at the beginning and an expensive prestige project.
Regards to other jurisdictions I am not sure.

Thanks for the input, makes total sense!

FYI, a corporation in Estonia is about $1000-1500 annual full accounting and compliance support. Not sure how much is it in Singapore or Dubai.

Another point I forgot to make, as a non-us resident I noticed that foreigners are required to submit more and more paperwork (accountants usually charge 200-500 USD per form) to submit to the authorities. In essence more bureaucracy for foreigners which usually leads to more costs.

That’s interesting. I guess the market makes it so.

I already pay thousands for my US tax prep (CFC, FEIE and such), so it doesn’t shock me 😅

That’s interesting. I guess the market makes it so.

I already pay thousands for my US tax prep (CFC, FEIE and such),j so it doesn’t shock me 😅

Hi Pedro.
I have experience dealing with Delaware C-Corps, but the process is similar for LLCs. Setting up an entity is super fast and easy, but it can become very expensive quickly and comes with many hidden costs later on.

  1. You have to declare state and federal taxes (even if you don't have any revenue), and franchise tax.
  2. You need a reliable tax accountant who understands your structure etc. but this leads to higher costs.
  3. As a non-us resident the fines from the IRS are very high, so if you miss a deadline, they will fine you.
  4. If you decide to shut down your entity/company in the future that will also lead to costs.

I was super excited when I started a new entity in Delaware, but as soon as revenue goes down, you might find yourself stuck with an expensive entity in the future with high admin costs. I wrote about my personal experience on my blog, maybe useful to you? notesaboutstartups.com/blog/r…

Good luck.

Great points, Adrian! What’s your ballpark revenue threshold to go with US a) pass through b) corp vs other jurisdictions?

Hi Dmitry. The decision really depends on individual circumstances, but if I were to do it again, I’d consider setting up a C-Corp or LLC only if I had at least $3,000 in annual revenue just to cover the recurring admin and tax compliance costs. Also C-Corp makes only sense if you intend to have multiple shareholders and/or plan on raising venture capital. If it's just you it might be an overkill at the beginning and an expensive prestige project.
Regards to other jurisdictions I am not sure.

Thanks for the input, makes total sense!

FYI, a corporation in Estonia is about $1000-1500 annual full accounting and compliance support. Not sure how much is it in Singapore or Dubai.

Another point I forgot to make, as a non-us resident I noticed that foreigners are required to submit more and more paperwork (accountants usually charge 200-500 USD per form) to submit to the authorities. In essence more bureaucracy for foreigners which usually leads to more costs.

That’s interesting. I guess the market makes it so.

I already pay thousands for my US tax prep (CFC, FEIE and such), so it doesn’t shock me 😅

That’s interesting. I guess the market makes it so.

I already pay thousands for my US tax prep (CFC, FEIE and such),j so it doesn’t shock me 😅