How To Open A Stripe Account In Nigeria In 2023 (A Comprehensive Guide)
Many of us know Stripe acquired Paystack in 2020, but up till now, there is no stripe in Nigeria.
The question some people have asked is “Can I use Stripe in Nigeria?” The answer is yes. In this post, you will learn how to open a stripe account in Nigeria.
Although the main focus title of this post is how to open a stripe account in Nigeria, this guide is applicable to other non-supported countries.
If Stripe is not supported in your country, you can use this guide to set up a verified stripe account in Nigeria and start receiving payments online.
This method is legal and accepted by stripe. You will have no issues if you follow all the steps you find in this post.
When mentioning top payment gateways in the world, Stripe will always be number one.
Whether you are a freelancer, dropshipper, web designer/developer, or digital/information marketer, Stripe will make it easier to receive payment from international clients.
Stripe charges 2.9% 0.30 cents per card charge made by your clients/customers, that is, for every successful transaction. Not bad! Every payment gateway charges a transaction fee. 2Checkout, PayPal, Flutterwave, and the rest do that.
Why You Should Get A Stripe Account In Nigeria
A lot of people are scared of punching their card digits online especially when the payment gateway is unknown and redirects them from the main website to another site. With stripe, this fear can be eliminated from customers.
Here are other reasons why you should set up a verified Stripe account in Nigeria
- Set up is instant and easy.
- A recurring payment is so easy to set up. This means that you can automatically bill your customers weekly, monthly, or yearly for services or products.
- Stripe has trial periods with delay payments which allows your customers to use your service for a few days before they are billed.
- It allows you to set up subscription payments; this enables you to receive subscription payments from your customers.
- Stripe payment gateway enables you to give discounts and coupon codes to customers.
- Unlike some payment gateways, Stripe has no refund fees.
- Increases conversion through their seamless checkout experience.
These are just but a few reasons why you have a stripe business account.
Requirements To Open A Stripe Account In Nigeria
The requirements to open a stripe account in Nigeria legally without any issue or restrictions are as follow:
- Form a Limited Liability Company (LLC) in the US
- EIN (Employer Identification Number) or Tax ID
- A Personal US physical address
- A US phone number
- A US bank Account
At this point, you might want to close this page and go back to Google, Yahoo, or Bing to find other simple ways how to open a stripe account in Nigeria.
This is the cheapest and best method as of now and has other advantages aside from using it to open a stripe account in Nigeria.
There is no Nigeria stripe, and if they tell you there is a Nigeria stripe, they got it through this method.
Back to the requirements for setting up a verified stripe account, forming an LLC business in the US is not hard. Getting a US personal address, phone number, and bank account is not a big deal.
You will be able to see how you can get them as you continue further reading.
What Is LLC?
LLC is the abbreviated form for Limited Liability Company. It is a legal entity or a business structured in the US and allowed by state statute.
LLC formation purpose is not tied to creating a stripe account. You can use it to operate different businesses in the US under the registered company.
What Is EIN?
EIN is an employer identification number that can also be a federal tax identification number. EIN is just like SSN (social security number) for a business. EIN has unique 9 digits and is for the IRS (internal revenue service) to identify businesses for tax reporting.
Don’t be scared, you are not going to pay a heavy tax for forming your LLC in the US if you choose the right state. Some states in the US charge high state filing (US company formation) and as well as annual business tax.
Don’t worry, for you will be shown the affordable states to form your LLC.
The Cheapest States To Form An LLC
The state fee is the cost of filing your formation with the state.
- Kentucky
Filing fee: $40
Annual tax fee: $15 - Mississippi
Filing fee: $50
Annual tax fee: $0 - Missouri
Filing fee: $50
Annual tax fee: $0 - New Mexico
Filing fee: $50
Annual tax fee: $0 - Colorado
Filing fee: $50
Annual tax fee: $10 - Hawaii
Filing fee: $50
Annual tax fee: $15 - Michigan
Filing fee: $50
Annual tax fee: $25
At the time of writing this post, these are the cheapest state for LLC formation. Now that you know the cheapest state to form an LLC, it is time to proceed to form your US company.
A lot of people will recommend registering your business in Kentucky or Colorado, but we won’t decide for you which state is preferable.
Kentucky has the cheapest filing fee of $40 but a $15 annual tax fee, while some other states have a $50 filing fee and a $0 annual tax fee.
If you don’t want to be paying an annual tax fee, you can choose Missouri or New Mexico but you will pay $50 for the state fee, just a $10 difference from Kentucky.
For the purpose of this article, we will go with Kentucky to cut costs.
The next thing you should know is how to form your LLC so that you can use it to open a stripe account in Nigeria.
How To Form An LLC In The US
To form an LLC, you will need the services of a legal professional and it doesn’t come cheap. They could charge close to $1000 or more.
Since you are not in the US, you might not be able to do this by yourself. There are reliable and cheaper ways to go about this by using an LLC formation service.
There are various companies that render LCC formation services. They do all the heavy lifting for you and make the process seamless and faster.
All LLC formation service providers have their pros and cons. To Review all of them is beyond the scope of this post.
Personally, I would recommend Inc Authority or Incfile but as a newbie who isn’t familiar with LLC formation, it is advisable and best to go for Inc Authority.
Since the purpose of the LLC formation is to open a stripe account in Nigeria, you should go for Inc Authority to form your business. It is much easier from experience.
Inc Authority is cheaper, they have $0 service fees. Do not be carried away by the free service charge, EIN costs $49 and the operating agreement fee costs $89. When you add the state fee using Kentucky, the total sum is $178. Anyway, this is cheaper than the others.
Getting A US Phone Number For Opening A Stripe Account In Nigeria
A lot of people are not aware that they can get a US phone while in Nigeria. Head on to Dingtone to download the app and create a US phone number. Another option is Skype.
Getting a US Physical Address For Opening a Stripe Account In Nigeria
As mentioned, a personal physical US address is needed in order to complete the process to file your LLC. You just have to get it before you proceed to create your US business. Never worry, it is very possible to get a US address.
You can use the following websites to do so;
- shipito.com
- physicaladdress.com
- virtualpostmail.com
We will recommend shipito.com ahead of the rest because it is free. Physicaladress.com charges $7.98 monthly as their lowest plan. Virtualpostmail.com also has its own pricing, $20 per month for a starter plan.
Your US address will be in that format. Take note of the state, that CA means California.
If you have all these requirements, it is time to proceed to form your LLC.
How To Form Your LLC In US Using Inc Authority
Remember that Inc Authority is the LLC formation service you will use to create a US company.
Step 1. Proceed to Inc Authority
When on the homepage, click on the ‘Get Started’ tab at the upper right.
Step 2. Select Business Type And Filing State
By default, it is on Limited Liability Company (LLC). Leave it like that. Choose Kentucky as State.
Click on Save and Continue.
Step 3. Enter Business Owner Details
You need to enter your first name, last name, email address, and US Phone number. I have told you to get a US number and if you already have it, enter it on the phone number option. Tick the box (I agree to the terms and conditions).
Click on Save and Continue.
Step 4. More Details About Your Business
At this stage, you will follow a series of questionnaires about your business. It is necessary you provide the right details.
Is this is your first business?
Choose ‘Yes’.
Click on Save and Continue.
What motivated you to start your own business?
Choose any answer. You can choose ‘All of the above’.
Click on Save and Continue.
When do you plan on being open for business?
Choose ‘I’m already open for business.
Click on Save and Continue.
What type of business do you have?
You can choose any of the businesses that fit what you do. I rather choose professional service.
Click on Save and Continue.
Do you already have or will you be hiring any employees in the first 12 months?
Choose ‘No’.
Click On Save and Continue.
Will you be accepting credit card payments?
Choose ‘Yes’
Click on Save and Continue.
Step 5. Your LLC Details
You will need to enter your proposed business name. You can decide to use your personal name if you want to run a personal brand. If not, use a brand name which is much preferable.
If the business name you choose is available, it will be created instantly upon state approval. Enter your business description in one complete sentence.
Click on Save and Continue.
Step 6. Business Address
By now you should already have a US address if you have created it using shipito as stated earlier in this post.
Your shipito address is a California address so your state should be California.
Click on Save and Continue.
Step 7. Employer Identification Number (EIN)
EIN is very important in completing your LLC formation. After going through other LLC services, getting your EIN from Inc Authority is a good deal at $49. They are the cheapest so far.
Choose ‘Yes’.
Click on Save and Continue.
Step 8. Operating Agreement
The operating agreement provides proof you own the LLC.
Click on Save and Continue
Step 9. Legal Documents Package with Ownership Certificates, and Seal
Ignore the lawsuit protection package. Choose ‘No’.
Click on Save and Continue.
Minutes and Resolutions
Choose ‘No’.
Click on Save and Continue.
Express Processing
This is for quick delivery if you want the whole process to be done within a few days. Choose ‘No’ and be patient. If you have the money you can choose ‘Yes’.
Click on Save and Continue.
Website Registration (Domain Registration) + Business Email
The purpose of this is to secure your domain (website address) for your business if you don’t have one at the moment. In my case, I have already secured the domain and it is presently a website having custom email.
To reduce cost, ignore it. Choose ‘No’.
If you need a domain name for your business you can get it at Namecheap and secure it yourself.
Click Save and Continue.
Business Phone Number
Ignore the business phone number. Choose ‘No’.
Click on Save and Continue.
INC Success Advisor
You don’t really need this, so you should choose ‘No’.
Click on Save and Continue.
Business Checking & Credit Card
The choice is yours to choose ‘Yes’ or ‘No’. You might not see this page when you try to do yours. This is just an offer for a limited time.
Click on Save and Continue.
Step 10. Make Payment
Tick ‘Free – Standard delivery’.
Choose your payment method; Credit/Debit card or PayPal.
If you are using a Naira debit card, you might not be able to proceed with the payment due to the $100 international spending limit on Nigeria bank cards. If you have a dollar card, you can make the payment if you have sufficient funds.
Another option is using PayPal. You can create a PayPal account and buy PayPal funds in order to complete the payment.
If you follow all the above steps closely, you should be seeing $178 for checkout.
If your transaction is completed successfully, your LLC will be created by Inc Authority. At this stage, congratulations to you. But it doesn’t end here.
How To Fill The EIN And Members Form From Inc Authority
After forming your LLC with Inc Authority, you will be sent an EIN form and members form. There is nothing hard about filling out these forms.
For the EIN, enter your full name and your US address in the required places. For the SSN, enter foreign; this indicates that you are not a US citizen and do not have SSN or EIN yet.
For the members’ form, enter your full name and your US address. If you have more than one team member for your business, enter their full names and their US address.
We are in the process to open a verified stripe account in Nigeria and I stated that you will need a US bank account.
You can have a US bank account without stress. All you need is to open a Payoneer account. They will give you a virtual US bank account which you can add to stripe.
Let me explain the process in just 5 short sentences. You will add your US bank account gotten from Payoneer to your stripe account payout section. When customers pay you via stripe, you will move the funds to your Payoneer US bank account.
From there you can move the funds into your local bank account. Better still, you can decide to sell the funds to another Payoneer user at a sweet rate.
With this, you can go ahead and set up a stripe account in Nigeria.
How To Setup A Verified Stripe Account
If your LLC has been formed and your EIN/Federal Tax ID has been delivered, you will need to set up your verified stripe account using those documents.
Step 1. Visit https://dashboard.stripe.com/register.
Fill in your email, name and country. (Leave it in the United States). Put in your password and click create account.
Step 2. Verify your email address.
Step 3. Activate payments on your account. Click on activate payments to start the process of setting up your Stripe account.
Step 4. Choose your business type. The business location should be the United States. The type of business should be a company and business structure single-member LLC.
Step 5. Business details. Your legal business name should be the name of your LLC. Fill in the EIN gotten from Inc Authority. The registered business address should be the registered agent’s address from Inc authority. Choose your industry, and enter your website URL and product description (business description). Click on continue.
Step 6. Business representative. This part is for you to verify your personal details. Your legal name should be your real name. Your email address will automatically be displayed there. Enter your home address. You should use your home address and phone number (not a US phone number). Since you are a non-US citizen, you don’t have an SSN. So choose to provide a government-issued ID number instead.
Step 7. Fulfilment details. This part is to let stripe know how long it will take for you to deliver to customers the products or services that you are selling after they make payment.
Step 8. Public details. This part is for you to let decide what customers will see on their payment statements, invoices, and receipts. It is recommended that you enter your LLC in the statement descriptor (eg Thequickweb LLC). In the shortened descriptor, you can add only the name of your business (eg Thequickweb).
Step 9. Add your bank account to receive payouts. For you to be able to move your money out for Stripe, you must add a bank account. If your bank is not listed there, you need to enter it manually.
If you have a Payoneer account, you can go there and add the bank details. If you have any other US bank account from other financial institutions, you can try it too.
Step 10. Secure your account. You can use SMS or an authenticator app. With two-step authentication, no one else will be able to log in to your account. Once you are done, click continue.
Step 11. Tax calculation. Click no thanks.
Step 12. Climate contributions. Ignore this part.
Step 13. Review and submit. Check to see that all details you have entered are correct. If all information is correct, click on submit.
Please check your email for any additional information from Stripe. It is possible that they will request proof of certain details you provided if they are having difficulty verifying the information.
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Read Free LLC Formation – What You Need To Know
Last Updated 3/1/2023
