Why American founders building European businesses should have the EU Inc. on their radar — and how to use it alongside your Delaware entity.
Europe is a $17 trillion market with 450 million consumers and some of the world's best engineering talent. But for US founders, operating in Europe has always meant navigating a patchwork of 27 different legal systems, each with its own company formation rules, tax structures, employment laws, and regulatory requirements.
The EU Inc. changes that. For the first time, a US founder can form a single legal entity that works across all 27 EU member states — formed online in 48 hours, from anywhere in the world, with €1 of capital.
To legally employ someone in France, Germany, or Spain, you typically need a local legal entity in that country, or an expensive Employer of Record (EOR) service. An EU Inc. gives you a single entity that can legally employ people across the EU, dramatically reducing both cost and complexity.
EU business bank accounts typically require a registered EU entity. An EU Inc. gives you that entity, opening the door to EU banking through providers like Wise Business, Revolut Business, or local EU banks.
GDPR, the AI Act, and other EU regulations apply to companies that process EU data or sell to EU consumers — regardless of where you're incorporated. Having an EU Inc. gives you a clean regulatory home base for your European operations.
Many EU innovation grants, accelerators, and public funding programmes require an EU-registered entity to participate. An EU Inc. makes you eligible where a US LLC does not.
The most common structure for US founders with European ambitions will be: Delaware LLC (US parent) for fundraising, US operations, and global contracts + EU Inc. (European subsidiary) for EU hiring, EU banking, EU regulatory compliance, and EU customer contracts.
Setting this up will typically involve having the Delaware LLC own the EU Inc., creating a clean holding structure that US investors are comfortable with.
Through Euralto: $499 one-time formation fee (your $49 deposit is applied), then €99/yr for your registered EU address, compliance, and registered agent. Compared to the alternative — local formation agents in individual EU countries typically charge €1,000–3,000 per country, per year — the EU Inc. is dramatically more cost-effective for any company operating across multiple EU member states.
The EU Inc. law is expected to pass by the end of 2026, with formations opening in 2027. Euralto is taking priority reservations now — a $49 fully refundable deposit locks in your position at the front of the queue. When the law passes, priority depositors form first.
Two requirements in the Commission's draft matter specifically if you're incorporating from outside the EU. First, the board of directors must include at least one director who is a Union resident — a solo US founder will need an EU-resident co-director or appointee. Second, an EU Inc. must have its registered office in a member state and its central administration or principal place of business in the Union — it's a structure for genuinely operating in Europe, not a letterbox. Neither is a dealbreaker for US founders building real EU operations, but both belong in your planning now, and both are exactly the kind of requirement a formation service handles: registered address, compliance setup, and structuring guidance are part of what your formation fee covers.
On the upside, the draft is unusually friendly to foreign founders in other ways: articles of association exist in English alongside the local language, tax and VAT identification numbers are issued automatically during registration under the once-only principle, share transfers are fully digital without notaries or intermediaries, and the draft explicitly enables SAFE-style early-stage financing instruments familiar to anyone who's raised in the US.
Reserve your EU Inc. priority spot for $49 — fully refundable.
Fully refundable · Not a payment for services · Applied to your $499 formation fee