Markets
Start an online business in the United States
The steps the government of the United States sets for a new business that sells online, each linked to the official page that runs it, then the steps to open your store. Read from the official sources on October 14, 2026.
Set up your business in the United States
The steps in the order most new sellers take them. Each is read from the official page linked under it.
1. Choose a legal form
SBA names the sole proprietorship, partnership, limited liability company (LLC) and corporation.
2. Register the business
SBA states most states require registration with the Secretary of State's office, a Business Bureau or a Business Agency, and a sole proprietor trading under their legal name need not register.
3. Get your tax number
The IRS assigns a nine digit Employer Identification Number (EIN) free of charge.
4. Check when you must register for sales tax
There is no federal VAT; SBA states sales tax is set per state and can vary by state, county and city, so obligations are checked with each state.
5. Follow the rules for selling online
The FTC's Mail, Internet, or Telephone Order Merchandise Rule requires shipping within the stated time or, if none, within 30 days.
Open your store in the United States
What Tanqory sets up for a store based in the United States. You change any of it in Settings.
- Tax
Your store starts with a tax entry for the United States, collecting off, until you confirm the rate or connect a tax service.
Sales tax in the United States- Card payments
Through your own Stripe account, which Stripe opens for businesses in the United States. Tanqory adds no transaction fee; Stripe charges its own rate.
- Shipping labels
DHL Express, Easyship, and UPS, bought in your admin, with the customs declaration sent with each label for parcels that cross a border.
What stays with you
- Registering the business and choosing its legal form. Tanqory does not register a business for you.
- Registering for sales tax, filing returns and paying the tax authority.
- Licences or permits your products need in the United States.
- Legal or tax advice. This page points to the official sources; an adviser in the United States can apply them to your business.
Questions about starting a business in the United States
Which legal form should I choose in the United States?
The official page in step 1 lists the forms a business in the United States can take. Your choice decides how you register, how you are taxed and whether your own money is kept apart from the business, so an adviser in the United States is worth asking before you decide.
What does Tanqory set up for a store in the United States?
A tax entry for the United States with collecting off, card payments through your own Stripe account, and DHL Express, Easyship, and UPS labels you buy in your admin. You change any of it in Settings.
Does Tanqory file my sales tax return?
No. Your store works out and charges sales tax at checkout and keeps a record of every order. You register, file and pay the tax authority yourself, or through your accountant.
What do I have to tell buyers when I sell online in the United States?
The official page in step 5 lists the information and rights a buyer in the United States must get before and after they order. Put that information on your store before your first sale.
How current are these steps?
Each was read from its official page on October 14, 2026. Rules change; the official page is the authority, so open it before you act.
How we checked
Each step on this page was read from its official page on October 14, 2026. The store facts come from Tanqory's tax settings, payments and shipping setup.
- Tanqory's tax settings, payments and shipping setup
- www.sba.gov
- www.sba.gov
- www.irs.gov
- www.sba.gov
- www.ftc.gov
Open your store in the United States today
Build your store while you set up your business, and switch on tax collecting when your registration is in place.