Selling on Amazon USA from India 2026 - The Complete Guide

You make something good in India. You want to sell it on Amazon USA. The path looks confusing: US LLC? EIN? FBA? Freight? Sales tax? This is the complete guide, written by people who have done it 12 times in the last 24 months for Indian founders. No fluff, just the steps.

Step 1: Pick the right product

Before forming an LLC or wiring money anywhere, validate your product. The biggest mistake Indian sellers make is launching what sells well on Amazon India but fails on Amazon USA. Different audience, different price points, different competitors.

Categories that work well from India (based on our 12 client LLCs):

• Home textiles: Bedsheets, towels, throws, cushion covers. $1.08M GMV across 4 of our LLCs in 2025.
• Beauty and Ayurvedic: Highest margin category, 50-65% net. Trust the Indian-origin story.
• Kitchen and dining: Cookware, serveware, specialty items. Mid margin, steady demand.
• Apparel: Especially ethnic-fusion, cotton basics, kidswear. Seasonal but big.
• STEM toys: Premium pricing, Indian sellers compete well here.

Categories to AVOID from India: low-margin electronics, generic plastic goods, anything where China has 10x your shipping cost advantage.

How to validate: search your product on amazon.com. Check the Best Seller Rank (BSR). If the top sellers are doing under 1,000 monthly sales, the niche is too small. If they are all under $20 in price, the margins after FBA + freight will not work.

Step 2: Form a US LLC

You need a US legal entity to sell on Amazon USA. Three reasons: Amazon requires it for sustained operations, US bank accounts require it, and tax efficiency requires it.

State choice:

• Texas: No state income tax. Annual franchise tax only above $1.23M revenue. Where most Indian founders form. (Our recommendation.)
• Wyoming: Highest privacy. Lowest annual fees. Slight tax disadvantage for high-revenue LLCs.
• Delaware: Best for VC-backed startups. Overkill for most sellers.

Cost: $300-500 in state fees. $99-299 for a registered agent (required). $1,499 if you have us do the full setup including EIN and bank account.

Timeline: 3-5 business days for the LLC certificate.

Read the full LLC formation guide.

Step 3: Get an EIN (without an SSN)

An EIN (Employer Identification Number) is your LLC's tax ID. You need it for the bank account, for Amazon, and for taxes.

Indian founders without an SSN need to file IRS Form SS-4 by FAX (yes, fax in 2026). The IRS issues the EIN in 10-14 business days. Some online services claim to do it in 24 hours - they cannot, unless you have an SSN or ITIN.

Most common mistake: applying online through the IRS website. That only works if you have an SSN. Use fax.

Step 4: Open a US bank account

Three options for foreign-founded LLCs:

• Mercury: Free, fully remote, 5-7 days to open. Our default recommendation. Used by ~28 of the 50+ LLCs we have set up.
• Relay Financial: Also free, slightly more features (multi-user, expense management). Good alternative.
• Wise Business: Best for multi-currency. Less ideal as primary Amazon bank.

Traditional banks (Chase, BoA, Wells Fargo) require a US visit and a US driver's license. Skip them for year 1.

Read the US banking guide.

Step 5: Set up freight from India

You need to move your inventory from India to a US warehouse. Two main options:

• Sea freight (FCL or LCL): 28-35 days door to door. ~$2.20 per kg for LCL. Best for orders over 100 kg.
• Air freight: 5-7 days door to door. ~$4-6 per kg. Best for samples or rush replenishment.

What is included in a good freight quote: pickup from your factory, export documentation, ocean/air freight, customs clearance in the US, drayage to your warehouse, last-mile to Amazon FBA. Get a single quote that covers all of it.

For a 1,000-unit launch (300g per unit, 300 kg total): sea freight costs about $660 all-in. Air would be $1,500-2,000.

See full freight pricing or use the shipping calculator.

Step 6: FBA prep

Amazon will not accept your inventory directly from your factory. It needs FNSKU labels, polybags (for textiles/apparel), and proper packing. This is "FBA prep."

Your options: do it yourself (impractical from India), use Amazon's own prep service (expensive, slow), or use a third-party prep center.

Typical cost: $0.75 per unit at Think14, $1.50-3.50 at big-name 3PLs.

Read the full prep cost comparison.

Step 7: Create Amazon listings

While your inventory is in transit, build your listings on Amazon Seller Central.

Key elements:

• Title: Brand + product type + 2-3 differentiators + size/color. Under 200 chars.
• Bullets: 5 bullets, each starting with a CAPS lead. Benefits first, features second.
• Description: If not Brand Registry, use plain HTML. If Brand Registry, use A+ Content (much better).
• Images: 7-9 images. First image: pure white background. Then lifestyle, scale, infographic, packaging, comparison.
• Backend keywords: 250 chars of unique search terms not in your title or bullets.

Bad listings kill conversion. Invest in this. Or pay an agency $499-1,500 to do it right.

Step 8: Launch with PPC

Your inventory is live in FBA. You will get zero sales without ads. Amazon PPC is required for new launches.

Launch playbook (first 30 days):

• Start with Sponsored Products auto campaigns. Budget $20-40 per day per ASIN.
• After 7 days, harvest converting search terms from auto campaigns into exact-match manual campaigns.
• Expect ACoS 40-60% in week 1-2. Should drop to 25-35% by week 4. Mature accounts run 15-20%.
• Once you have a few reviews (5-10), launch Sponsored Brands ads.
• If you have Brand Registry, launch Sponsored Display remarketing.

Bad PPC management can burn $1,000-3,000 per month with no return. Get a free PPC audit before scaling spend.

Step 9: Stay compliant

Once you are selling, you have ongoing compliance obligations:

• Federal tax return (Form 1120): Filed annually by April 15. ~$499 with a US CPA.
• State sales tax nexus tracking: Amazon collects sales tax on FBA sales in most states, but you still need to register and file in your nexus states.
• BOI report: Beneficial Ownership Information, filed once with FinCEN. Takes 30 minutes.
• Texas franchise tax: Annual report. No tax owed below $1.23M revenue.
• QuickBooks bookkeeping: Monthly categorization of transactions. Makes tax season a paperwork exercise instead of a panic.

Total compliance cost for a small seller: $1,000-2,000 per year.

The total launch cost for a typical Indian seller

Pulling it all together, a representative 1,000-unit launch:

• US LLC + EIN + bank setup: $1,499 (one-time)
• Brand identity + packaging: $2,500 (one-time)
• Sea freight (300 kg): $660
• FBA prep: $750 (1,000 units × $0.75)
• First month storage: $200
• Warehouse base: $50
• Customs duty estimate: $320
• Amazon initial PPC budget: $1,000 (first month)

Total to first sale: $6,979. Plus your COGS (manufacturing cost in India), which we do not touch.

Most of our clients break even by month 4-6 and become profitable by month 8-12.

Want a written quote for your specific products? Book a 30-minute call or run your numbers in the live cost calculator.