I recommend not going with Stripe Atlas to open an entity 'cause it's more expensive and less flexible than if you do it with different services.
You need to open a registered agent. I used thisservice. They also provide a cheaper phone number service (it's necessary to operate, $9/month). They will incorporate your company almost for free. Mainly, you pay for their registered agent service, but they handle everything.
Then, you need to get an EIN number to open a bank account (and a Stripe account later). Here is information on how to do it. It's easy. You only need to fill up the form SS-4. You can use ChatGPT to help you out.
2a. To send this application to the IRS, you can use this fax service. You need the fax only for 1-2 months max to send an application and receive the EIN number back. So don't forget to cancel the fax subscription after you receive a response.
It will take up to 1 month to receive an EIN number.
Once you have an EIN number, you're free to open a bank account and a Stripe account to receive payments. I recommend Wise for businesses. Mercury is also fine. If you want to use Brex, you should have a bank account with a few K$ on it.
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In total, you will pay less than Stripe Atlas (around 300$ together vs 500$ of Stripe), and you will probably receive an EIN number even faster than Stripe.
@613jono To be honest, I felt more struggle with Stripe Atlas than with those guys. Plus, it was never a problem to communicate with the IRS. So, I assume there might be some benefits by Stripe, yet I have yet to face any issues with the described flow.
@jhonkim Stripe Atlas has no support so when you run into any problems you are stuck. They don’t tell you that you (international founder) need an ITIN before you file for an 83(b) election and you need to file the election within 28 days of issuing stock. And the ITIN takes months. It’s a messed up process and not clear at all. Also, I needed to change the address on the 83(b) election and I never heard back from them for several weeks which was past the deadline.
I regret having chosen Stripe Atlas. I would go for Firstbase.io or Doola instead.
The only benefit from using Stripe Atlas was that I was able to get the EIN, open a mercury bank account and the Stripe account seamlessly.
@hawgwyld I'm grateful for you sharing this information. I hope that more international entrepreneurs become aware of this. Right from the start, it seemed for me like Stripe Atlas was primarily about effective marketing and capitalizing on their audience, not much about great service.
@signatureunique What is better about Doola vs Stripe Atlas besides customer service? Why else do you prefer them? I am confused between both, I simply want to setup my company in Delaware so I don't require the states that Doola provides.
It is the fact that, they have a good customer service, so if you are stucked, and you reach out, they'll get back to you asap....Stripe Atlas on the other hand, not so good on their customer service (from what I've heard from founders)
And yes, with Doola, you can setup your company in Delaware, I incorporated my startup to in Delaware w/Doola.
@signatureunique Got it, thanks. I just registered my business through an LLC registered agent, but I would prefer Stripe because I want all my payment processing in one place for convenience.
@jhonkim You can sign up for Microsoft start-up founders hub and even at the base tier (for which you need to fill a form and have a legitimate LinkedIn account) you get 50 percent off the stripe atlas service. So 250 bucks.
