How To Create a US Stripe Account – International Founder Guide

What is Stripe?

Stripe is a versatile payment processing gateway used by companies around the world, like Deliveroo, Lush, Missguided, and Made.com

Using Stripe is great because their set-up process is incredibly easy, and they have a great pricing structure. Furthermore, Stripe can be integrated with your “Create store”, which lets you accept various currencies, as well as credit cards and debit cards

To open a Stripe account, you’ll need:

• An EIN Number (Which doola Can Provide!)
• A physical location in the country of your EIN (Which doola Can Provide!)
• A phone number in the US (through doola partners with a special discount)
• A Government ID from any country

Are you sure these are the requirements?

Yes! Here are transcripts from our conversation with Stripe to directly confirm the requirements!:

doola: Hello! I was wondering what are the exact requirements to open a Stripe Business Account?

Stripe: Hi doola, thanks for reaching out. I see you would like to know the requirements for opening a Stripe account, is that correct?

doola: Correct!

Stripe: Nice to meet you! In order to open a Stripe account, you’ll need to have the following, in any country Stripe currently supports:

A bank account in that country denominated in a supported transfer currency for that country. For supported transfer currencies by country, see:

https://stripe.com/docs/payouts#supported-accounts-and-settlement-currencies

A tax ID in that country

A physical location in that country at which you are able to receive mail (Cannot be a P.O. box)

A phone number in that country

A government-issued ID, such as a passport or driver’s license, from any country

A working website that shows what your business sells or what services you provide –

https://support.stripe.com/questions/do-i-need-a-website-to-use-stripe

You can see the countries Stripe currently supports here:

https://stripe.com/global

doola: Do you need a US SSN? And to confirm, do you need to be a resident of one of these countries?

https://stripe.com/global

Or if you have a US company you are able to use Stripe connected to your US company?

Stripe: If you are opening a US account you will need a US tax ID

doola: Got it so an EIN will work for this? (Employer Identification Number)

Stripe: Yes it i will

doola: Great! And to confirm, do you need to be a resident of one of these countries?

https://stripe.com/global

Or if you have a US company you are able to use Stripe connected to your US company?

Stripe: You can absolutely open a US Stripe account even if you are not a resident. The requirements I previously provided if for any supported countries. So if you have a US company you can open a US Stripe account.

How long does it take for Stripe to process payments?

Stripe payments can take anywhere from 2 business days to one week depending on your company’s location as long as it is not a high risk business. You can follow this link to find out more about your countries specific pay out date!

What currencies are supported by Stripe?

Stripe supports over 135 currencies from every corner of the globe, a wide variety in comparison to other online financial service companies. You can follow this link to find out which currencies are supported!

In conclusion:

Unlike other payment gateways like PayPal, Stripe is optimized as an international payment gateway. doola is the perfect service to get you set up with Stripe!

With doola’s packages, you can get your:

• U.S. LLC (No matter where in the world you live!)
• An EIN Number (Which you can use for Stripe, but other gateways like PayPal only accept U.S. SSN’s or ITIN’s)
• A Bank Account (Which lets you open from anywhere in the world!)

While PayPal may be a good option for U.S. Citizens, Stripe by far-and-away our most highly recommended payment gateway because its geared for international use!