The India
Country Launch Playbook — 2026

If you plan to raise US venture capital, form a Delaware C-Corp — it is the only structure top US VCs, Y Combinator, and IPO paths accept, and it unlocks the QSBS capital gains exclusion on exit. If you are bootstrapping, consulting, or running a services business from India, form a Wyoming LLC — no state income tax, only $60/year in fees, and the best Mercury approval rate. If you are on H-1B, the entity choice is also an immigration question — consult an attorney before forming, since actively managing a US business on H-1B status can put your visa at risk.

Call IRS International at +1-267-941-1099 (Mon–Fri, 6am–11pm Eastern Time). Tell the agent you are a "Foreign person," enter "N/A" for SSN, and provide your Indian residential address, Indian Passport number, and formation documents. EIN is delivered verbally at the end of a successful call — same day. If you cannot phone, fax IRS Form SS-4 to 855-641-6935 — turnaround is 2–4 weeks. Save the CP 575 confirmation letter; Mercury, Stripe, and FinCEN BOI all require it. H-1B holders who already have an SSN/ITIN can apply for EIN online in minutes.

Mercury is the default. It accepts EIN-only applications, supports Indian residential addresses, and has the highest approval rate we see for Indian founders — apply with EIN letter, Articles of Org or Incorporation, Indian Passport, and ideally a live website. Pair Mercury with Wise Business if you need USD-to-INR payouts at low FX. Brex is the better choice if you are running a VC-backed C-Corp with more than $50K in revenue — Brex rejects LLCs by default so do not apply with an LLC. Skip Chase/BofA as a remote Indian founder; they expect an in-person visit and SSN/ITIN.

Yes — if you have a financial interest in or signature authority over foreign accounts whose aggregate value exceeded $10,000 at any point in the calendar year, you must file FinCEN Form 114 electronically via the BSA E-Filing System. The annual deadline is April 15 with an automatic extension to October 15. Non-willful penalties run around $16,117 per violation (the 2026 inflation-adjusted figure) and willful penalties start at the greater of $100,000 or 50% of the account balance. Indian founders almost always also have to mirror the disclosure under Schedule FA of the Indian ITR — FBAR and Schedule FA are two separate filings covering overlapping accounts.

The DTAA reduces your US tax bill the moment your US C-Corp pays a dividend, royalty, or interest to your Indian-resident self or to an Indian entity you control. Dividend withholding drops from 30% to 15%, royalties and interest to 10–15%. This is primarily a C-Corp benefit — LLC distributions are not dividends and do not qualify. To actually claim the lower rate, your Indian recipient must furnish Form W-8BEN-E to the withholding agent and the structure must satisfy limitation-of-benefits and beneficial-ownership tests. A US-India cross-border CPA sets up the election; without the proper paperwork, the 30% default still applies by default.

E-2 is restricted to nationals of countries with a bilateral E-2 treaty with the United States. India does not have one. There is no investment amount that unlocks E-2 for Indian nationals — eligibility is purely nationality-based. The usable alternatives if you want to actively manage the US business from inside the US are: L-1 intracompany transfer from an Indian parent, O-1A on merit (no lottery, no annual cap), and EB-5 for a direct green card path. Many Indian founders instead operate the US entity fully remotely from India on a B-1/B-2 visiting pattern and pursue L-1 or O-1A later, after their US business has built up measurable traction.