Is an LLC required to accept Shopify payments?

Shopify Discussion

Topic summary

LLC not required to use Shopify Payments; you can register as a sole proprietor or as a company. Requirements vary by country, but you must provide tax and banking details.

Setup essentials:

  • Tax ID (e.g., EIN—Employer Identification Number, TIN) and bank information. Sole proprietors without a separate tax ID can use SSN (US) or SIN (Canada) where applicable.
  • Region-specific documentation may be requested during onboarding.

US-specific rules: A full 9‑digit SSN or ITIN (Individual Taxpayer Identification Number) is mandatory for US Shopify Payments identity verification, even if you have an EIN. Non‑US owners with a US LLC may be eligible, but the account owner must still pass verification; eligibility can be reviewed by Shopify’s Financial Services team.

Verification timeline and status:

  • Identity, address, and legal entity documents are reviewed, typically within up to 5 business days. Payouts may be on hold during review, but stores usually remain open; holds lift automatically once approved.
  • Some payment methods show “manual review” until approved.

If ineligible for Shopify Payments, alternative payment providers are available. Discussion outcome: clarified requirements; no unresolved action beyond contacting Support for eligibility reviews.

Summarized with AI on January 15. AI used: gpt-5.
1

do you need an LLC to accept Shopify payments/t

2

Hi @aone

Hope you’re having a great day!

You don’t necessarily need an LLC company, but you still need a legally registered company.

When you set up Shopify Payments, you need the following information:

  • your Employer Identification Number (EIN)
  • your banking information

Useful resources:

Setting up Shopify Payments

If you found this comment useful, hit the ‘Like’ and ‘Accepted solution’ buttons.

1 Like
3

Hey, @aone !

This is Moira from the Social Care team at Shopify. Thanks for posting, and a very warm welcome to the Community!

You don’t need to be a company or register a business in order to sell on Shopify. The Shopify Payments Terms of Service states:

“You may register as an individual (sole proprietor) or as a corporation or other legal entity.” (section B - 1).

You are able to select either business type when setting up your Shopify Payments. If applicable, add in your Business Number, EIN, or Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) depending on which country your business is located in. All businesses need to submit a tax ID (EIN). If you are a sole proprietor and don’t have a tax ID, then you can submit your Social Insurance Number (SIN) or the last four digits of your Social Security Number (SSN) instead. I would also suggest you check with your local laws to see where you can register for a license when needed!

Depending on your region, there may be additional information needed to set up Shopify Payments. Shopify Payments is available only to stores in certain countries and regions, you can use the following list to find out if Shopify Payments is available in the country where your business operates.

An SSN is required for USA Shopify Payments accounts, as per the Terms of Service: Section B-3. Our banking partners need to be able to verify the identity of an account representative to ensure they are who they say they are, that they are a resident of a Shopify Payments supported country and that they are over eighteen. However, if you personally are not located in the USA, but your business has an operational presence there, there’s a possibility that you may still be eligible to use Shopify Payments! If you (the Account Owner) have a business presence in the USA (LLC), then your account can be reviewed to determine if you may be eligible to use a US Shopify Payments account.

The Financial Services team can help you evaluate if you’re eligible to use Shopify Payments. Therefore, please visit the Shopify Help Center and log in to your account to create a support request via live chat, email, or callback. A Support Advisor will be able to assist you with escalating the request to review your account to the Financial Services department if necessary.

For further reference, in the event that you are not eligible to use Shopify Payments, please find an extensive list here per region of all payment providers that integrate with Shopify.

If you have any questions please feel free to thread those below.

Cheers!

4

I already submitted EIN AND ID AND LLC required document’s still getting not responses

5

Hey @MANOJ121 .,

Your identity, address, and proof of legal entity document uploads must be reviewed and matched successfully to the information on your Shopify Payments account before your business can be fully verified.

Reviews can take up to 5 business days to complete. During the review process, your payouts might be placed on hold until your information is verified, but usually your store remains open and customers can still buy your products. After your information is verified, any payout or processing holds applied to your account are removed automatically.

Some payment methods for Shopify Payments must be approved before you can use them. When you activate Shopify Payments, the approval process for applicable local payment methods and credit card methods begins automatically. A payment method remains in “manual review” status while your application is reviewed. If your application is approved, then you can begin using the payment method.

6

Hello, I’m a NON US Citizen, and had EIN with LLC in US, can i install Shopify Payment in my store ? i tied many times but it required my SSN ( 9 digits number)

7

Hey @CocoLeeDiamond ,

US merchants are required to provide all 9 digits of their SSN/ITIN as verification, even if you have an EIN for your business. There is no way to bypass this step!