Mercury vs Relay for Non-Resident US LLC Owners: Which Bank Actually Works with a Foreign Address?

Your LLC has an EIN. Your passport is valid. You have a business site and a domain email. You’re ready to open a US business bank account, and you hit the first wall: the Social Security Number requirement that most US comparison pages skip.

Here’s the answer in four sentences. For non-resident LLC owners who do not have a US Social Security Number, Relay is out. Relay’s own onboarding page states every beneficial owner must have a valid SSN. Mercury does not require an SSN; it onboard foreign owners using the LLC’s EIN and a passport. The catch is that Mercury has tightened address scrutiny sharply since 2024, and using a registered-agent address as your principal place of business will get you rejected or closed, sometimes months after approval. If you can provide a real operating address and you lack an SSN, Mercury is the one that works.

That’s the headline. The rest of this article is the paperwork: exactly what each bank demands, the address trap that closes accounts, the countries Relay won’t touch, and a decision tree you can run before you apply.

The SSN wall: why Relay shuts the door for most non-residents

Relay’s own support article lays out the requirement without hedging. “Every beneficial owner must have a valid SSN.” Not the LLC. The person. Every person with 25% or more ownership, and anyone who exercises significant control. If you are a sole non-resident owner of a US LLC and you do not have a US Social Security Number, you cannot open a Relay account. There is no workaround, no “pending” status, no EIN-only path.

This is not a rough rule buried in a PDF. It is the first eligibility condition Relay publishes on the account opening page, right below “Relay serves U.S.-registered small businesses whose owners live in eligible countries.” The SSN requirement immediately separates Relay from Mercury. Mercury’s model, by contrast, is built for founder-owned US LLCs where the individual owners may never step foot in the US. Entryly’s full 2026 guide states bluntly that Mercury does not accept individual non-US residents but does accept a properly formed US LLC owned by a non-US resident, using the LLC’s EIN for verification. That’s the architecture: the LLC is the US nexus; the owner’s passport is identity proof.

If you happen to have an SSN, perhaps from previous US residency, a work history, or a green card, Relay opens up. But for a large share of the non-resident founder market, the SSN gate is a hard stop. That alone answers the question for many readers. No SSN means Relay is off the table.

Mercury’s requirements: what you actually need

Mercury’s application checklist is longer than Relay’s 10-minute promise, and the documents matter in a specific order. Easyfiling’s 2026 guide lists the core: a US registered business (LLC or Corporation), an IRS-issued EIN, a valid passport for each beneficial owner, a legitimate business with clear products or services, a business website or online presence (recommended), a business email on your own domain (recommended), and a “U.S. or international principal business address.”

The “recommended” items are not optional in practice. Multiple third-party reports, including Founders-Credit’s rejection analysis, note that applying too early, the same day your LLC is formed, before the EIN confirmation letter (CP 575) even arrives, gives Mercury almost nothing to verify. Vague business descriptions also trigger rejections. The expectation is a real operating business, not a shelf entity.

Mercury’s published marketing page lists the features foreign founders want: USD checking and savings accounts, virtual and physical debit cards, free ACH and domestic wires, international wires, API access, and no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements. Entryly summarizes it as the “gold standard” for international founders taking Stripe payouts and wiring home via Wise. The page itself lacks deposit insurance detail, but the feature set is clear.

One thing Mercury does not list: a country prohibition list in the format Relay uses. That does not mean zero restrictions. ExpatMemo and Founders-Credit both report tighter underwriting and country-risk assessments since 2024. The risk assessment happens internally and isn’t published. So a passport from a sanctioned or high-risk country may be an unspoken barrier.

The address trap that closes Mercury accounts

The widest gap between “account approved” and “account stays open” is the principal business address.

Mercury’s support team, as captured by Easyfiling, states that it does not accept a Registered Agent address, a P.O. Box, a UPS mailbox, or a virtual mailbox as the principal business address. The address “should represent where your business actually operates.” That phrase is doing heavy lifting for a founder who runs a SaaS product from an apartment in Bangkok.

Founders-Credit lists “registered agent address only” as a common rejection trigger. But the risk goes beyond initial rejection. ExpatMemo documents a specific closure: a founder in Singapore with a Delaware LLC, a valid EIN, and real software revenue had his Mercury account closed four months after opening. Mercury’s support team confirmed the cause was using the registered-agent address as the principal place of business. The founder had passed initial verification, received Stripe payouts, and operated normally. The closure came from a post-approval review.

That means the address question is not just about getting in; it’s about staying in. If your business has no physical US presence, you need an address that looks like a place where work happens. A virtual office with a real lease, a co-working desk, or your own overseas address backed by a utility bill or lease: anything that Mercury can accept as the “operating address” separate from the state-required registered agent.

The same address mismatch can hit Relay, but Relay’s published requirements don’t include an explicit “no registered agent address” rule on their onboarding page. Community threads suggest Relay also expects a real business address, but the public documentation isn’t as firm. Still, if you have an SSN and want Relay, you will face this scrutiny at some point.

Relay’s other hurdles: US phone number and the prohibited countries list

Even if you clear the SSN barrier, Relay throws two more checks that don’t appear on Mercury’s equivalent documentation.

First, a valid US phone number. Relay’s onboarding page lists it as a requirement alongside your EIN and personal ID. A non-resident can acquire a US VoIP number through services like Google Voice or OpenPhone, but Relay may verify it is a real mobile or landline, not a disposable number. Fail that, and the application stalls.

Second, and more important, a prohibited countries list. Relay says the restriction applies to “any business owner named on the Relay Account application, including beneficial owners. If a required owner holds citizenship or residency in a listed country, Relay cannot open the account, regardless of where the business itself is registered.” The list itself is published on Relay’s support site. We are not enumerating it here because country lists change and the specific names weren’t extracted for this article, but you can check it directly. The mechanism is blunt: if your passport or residence ties you to a listed country, Relay is unavailable even if your LLC is formed in Wyoming and your business is entirely remote.

Mercury does not publish an equivalent public list, which makes the barrier less predictable but also less of a categorical exclusion for most readers. The risk is assessed during underwriting, which means you might be rejected without knowing the reason. Relay’s approach is transparent but absolute.

A quantitative look at account freezes: Relay’s 1% figure and what Mercury hasn’t said

Both banks freeze transactions for fraud prevention and KYC reviews. The difference is in the numbers they publish.

Relay, in a blog post addressing its negative reviews, states that “fewer than one percent of all transactions on Relay ever receive a request for information as part of our fraud prevention measures.” The post frames most complaints as resulting from these legally required fraud measures. A sub-1% flag rate is a concrete claim. It says, in effect, 99% of transactions move without interruption. That’s useful when you’re moving client payments or wiring rent money and don’t want the money held for five days.

Mercury does not publish a comparable statistic. Its marketing page focuses on features, not friction. Third-party guides note post-approval closures and increased scrutiny, but no public metric exists for transaction holds. You’re relying on user reports and forum threads to assess the probability of a freeze. That asymmetry matters: Relay’s 1% figure is a vendor-supplied number you can cite in a complaint if reality doesn’t match. Mercury offers no benchmark.

FDIC coverage also differs in how it’s advertised. Relay’s deposit agreement, last updated September 1, 2026, describes a deposit sweep program that can make deposits eligible for up to $3,000,000 in FDIC insurance when placed at program banks, with $250,000 per program bank in the same ownership capacity. That’s a high headline number, backed by Thread Bank’s sweep network. Mercury’s website does not state a comparable sweep figure on its core business banking page, nor did the editorial sources in this research pack provide one. For a founder holding six figures in receivables, the FDIC math is a decision factor; Mercury leaves it undefined in our source set.

Comparison table

This table uses only facts traced to the sources listed above.

Decision tree: which bank fits your situation

Run these four gates in order. If you hit a “no,” move to the next branch.

1. Do you have a valid US Social Security Number (SSN)?

• No: Relay is unavailable. Continue to gate 2 for Mercury.
• Yes: Both banks are technically open. Go to gate 3.

1. For Mercury: can you provide a principal business address that is not a registered agent address, P.O. box, or virtual mailbox?

• No: Mercury is likely to reject or close your account later. If you also lack an SSN, you have no path with either bank under current rules. Explore alternatives outside this comparison.
• Yes: Mercury is your primary option. Proceed to gate 4 for final checks.

1. If you have an SSN, check Relay’s prohibited countries list. Are you a citizen or resident of any listed country?

• Yes: Relay is blocked; fall back to Mercury and check gate 2 for address requirements.
• No: Relay is open. But still verify you have a US phone number, and consider Mercury’s address flexibility if you lack a strong physical address.

1. Do you have these items ready?

• IRS CP 575 EIN confirmation letter (not just the number)
• LLC formation documents
• Valid passport for each beneficial owner
• Business website and domain email
• A clear, non-vague description of your products or services
• If applying to Relay: a US phone number

Yes: Apply to the bank that meets your eligibility. No: Collect the missing items before applying; incomplete applications trigger rejections in both banks.

Who should not use either bank

This is the “not for you” line. You fall into it if:

• You lack an SSN and you cannot provide a Mercury-acceptable operating address that is not a registered agent or virtual mailbox. Right now, no public path exists with either bank.
• You are a citizen or resident of a country on Relay’s prohibited list and you are uncertain whether Mercury’s internal risk assessment will reject your nationality. Mercury may also decline without explanation, and you’ll have wasted the application time.
• Your business is a new LLC formed less than a week ago, with no EIN letter, no website, and no revenue history. Both banks want a live business, not a shell. Applying too early is the most common rejection trigger cited by Founders-Credit.

If you’re in any of these situations, sit tight, build the evidence, or research banks that cater specifically to non-residents with lighter address requirements (not covered in this pack). And if you’re unsure, a cross-border tax professional can review your setup before you apply.

Pre-application checklist: what to have ready for either bank

1. IRS CP 575 confirmation letter (the physical or scanned letter that proves your EIN, not just the number from the IRS’s online tool). Mercury underwriters often ask for it.
2. Official LLC formation documents (Certificate of Formation/Organization, Operating Agreement).
3. Passport for each beneficial owner: must match the name, date of birth, and details on the LLC documents exactly.
4. A business website, live and displaying your services. Even a simple landing page helps.
5. A business email on your own domain ([email protected], not Gmail).
6. A principal business address that is not your registered agent. This could be your overseas office address, a US co-working space, or a virtual office with a real lease: anything Mercury can verify as “where the business operates.”
7. For Relay: a valid US phone number.
8. A one-paragraph business description that is specific: what you sell, who buys, how revenue flows. Avoid “consulting” or “e-commerce” alone; name the niche.

Glossary

• EIN (Employer Identification Number): The US tax ID assigned by the IRS to your LLC. Non-residents can obtain one by filing Form SS-4 or through a formation service.
• CP 575: The official IRS letter that confirms your EIN. It is the paper proof underwriters want, not the verbal number.
• Beneficial owner: Any individual who owns 25% or more of the LLC or exercises significant control. Both banks require identity verification for each.
• Registered agent: A person or company appointed by your LLC to receive legal documents in the state of formation. It is not a business operating address.
• FDIC pass-through insurance: A structure where deposits held in your name at a partner bank are insured up to $250,000 per ownership capacity. The sweep program spreads funds across multiple banks to increase total coverage.
• Sweep program: A mechanism that distributes your deposit across a network of banks, raising aggregate FDIC coverage above the $250,000 limit.

FAQ

Does Mercury require a Social Security Number for non-resident owners? No. Mercury onboards foreign-owned US LLCs using the LLC’s EIN and the owners’ passports. The SSN requirement is Relay’s rule, not Mercury’s.

Can I use my registered agent’s address as my business address with Mercury? No, and doing so is a leading cause of rejections and post-approval closures. Mercury explicitly prohibits registered agent addresses, P.O. boxes, and virtual mailboxes as the principal business address.

Will Relay accept my foreign phone number? No. Relay requires a valid US phone number. You can acquire a US VoIP number, but Relay may verify its authenticity.

Where can I see the full list of Relay’s prohibited countries? The list is on Relay’s support site. If any beneficial owner holds citizenship or residency in a listed country, the account cannot be opened regardless of where the LLC is registered.

What if Mercury rejects me after I’ve already been approved? Post-approval closures happen: the ExpatMemo case shows an account closed four months after opening due to address issues. If it happens, Mercury’s support will state the reason; you can then correct the address or shift funds to another institution. Having a backup account (e.g., a Wise Business account for holding currency) is prudent.

The verdict

If you do not have a US Social Security Number, the question between Mercury and Relay is already answered: Mercury is the bank you can attempt, and Relay is not. Mercury’s path works only if you bring a verifiable operating address that is not your registered agent, a live business, and patience for underwriting that takes days, not minutes.

If you do have an SSN and you’re not on Relay’s prohibited list, the choice gets interesting. Relay publishes numbers Mercury does not: a quantified fraud-flag rate under 1%, a sweep insurance ceiling of $3 million, and a 10-minute application clock. Mercury counters with deeper API access, same-day ACH, and a track record as the default payout destination for Stripe-connected international founders. Your call then depends on whether you value transparent metrics (Relay) or founder-ecosystem integrations (Mercury).

The worst mistake is applying too early, with a shell LLC and a registered agent address. Both banks will reject that, and a rejection can complicate your next application. Lock down your EIN letter and your real address first. Then apply to the bank that actually accepts your ID documents.