# As a US citizen living in the EU, should I start an LLC in the US or the local equivalent here in the EU?



## Adamonos

Hey ya'll, this is sort of a follow-up post to one I made around a week ago.

Basically, I live in the EU (Austria) and am a dual citizen (of course Austrian and US).

I recently started a blog which is gaining some traction, which is why I am looking into forming a limited liability company to separate my personal finances and my business's, and for tax purposes.

The dilemma I am currently facing is that I am not sure whether I should form an LLC in the US, or if I should start the local equivalent of an LLC (GmbH here in Austria). I have family in both Maine and Texas who could potentially help.

Is it even possible to start an LLC in the US if I don't currently have a permanent residence there? Is it even viable?

Has anyone else had to tackle a similar problem? And if so, how did you solve it?

Any advice is appreciated!


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## Bevdeforges

I would be amazed if Austria recognizes a US LLC as a legal business form for an Austrian resident. You need to look into some Austrian business entity - perhaps not an GmbH (which is more like a corporation).


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## Adamonos

Bevdeforges said:


> I would be amazed if Austria recognizes a US LLC as a legal business form for an Austrian resident. You need to look into some Austrian business entity - perhaps not an GmbH (which is more like a corporation).


Well, to my knowledge a GmbH is the equivalent of an American LLC. Of course there are other entities such as Einzelunternehmen, however these do not provide any form of liability insurance. But yeah, I suppose starting an Austrian Business entity would be the better idea.


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## Moulard

Another factor to consider is where will your clients be based. If there will be US clients, you may want consider creation of an LLC that is wholey owned by the Austrian business entity you set up 
That LLC could then bill your your US clients in USD which would make it easier for them.. Your Austrian business could bill your clients in the EU.

While you could bill all clients in USD and have them pay into a US account, many companies (particularly those without foreign branches) tend to want to avoid the currency hedging and risks related to exchange rate flucutations.


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## concoddy

Bevdeforges said:


> I would be amazed if Austria recognizes a US LLC as a legal business form for an Austrian resident. You need to look into some Austrian business entity - perhaps not an GmbH (which is more like a corporation).


Yeah rather than GmbH, you should look into business entity


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