Stripe isn't available in Vietnam — get a real US Stripe account with a company that already has its EIN

Stripe does not operate in Vietnam. Vietnam does not appear on Stripe's official list of supported countries, which means there is no way to register a Stripe account using a Vietnamese business, a Vietnamese tax ID, or a Vietnamese bank account (source: stripe.com/global). If you try to sign up and select Vietnam, Stripe simply will not let you create a live account. This is a country-availability restriction, not a temporary verification problem — waiting or re-applying changes nothing.

The underlying reason is regulatory. Card-acquiring and cross-border payment settlement in Vietnam fall under State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) licensing and foreign-exchange controls, and Stripe has not launched a licensed entity there. Domestic processing instead runs through the NAPAS national switch and SBV-licensed Intermediary Payment Service providers such as VNPay, MoMo, ZaloPay, and OnePay — all settling in Vietnamese đồng (VND) to local bank accounts, not USD to a global Stripe balance.

Vietnamese freelancers, SaaS builders, and especially dropshippers hit this ceiling immediately. VNPay, MoMo, ZaloPay and OnePay are excellent for selling to customers inside Vietnam, but they don't give you a global Stripe account, USD settlement, or Stripe Billing for international subscriptions. Payoneer handles marketplace payouts (Upwork, Fiverr, Amazon) and can issue a receiving account, but it is not a card-acquiring merchant processor — you can't drop a Stripe "Pay with card" button on your own Shopify store with it.

Result: a Hà Nội SaaS founder or a Hồ Chí Minh City dropshipper cannot run a US Stripe account, cannot accept USD card payments from US, UK and EU buyers, and cannot plug into the Stripe ecosystem (Stripe Billing, Stripe Checkout, Shopify Payments) that global e-commerce depends on. The fix is structural: use a US LLC as the legal merchant-of-record for your Stripe account.

You can form a brand-new LLC from scratch, but "from scratch" hides a queue: file Articles of Organization, wait for Wyoming to approve them, then apply to the IRS for an EIN — a realistic two to three weeks before Stripe will fully onboard you. A ready-made LLC removes the queue: the company already exists, is in good standing, and — the part that unblocks you — its EIN already exists. The moment the transfer completes, you connect Stripe and invoice in USD.

The shortcut: buy a ready-made Wyoming LLC and Steps 1–2 below are already done for you — the company exists and its EIN is already issued. You jump straight to banking and Stripe. If you'd rather register a brand-new company in your own name ($549), here is the full path:

1. Step 1 — Form a Wyoming LLC. Wyoming is the preferred state for non-resident LLCs: no state income tax, no franchise tax, $60/yr annual report, strong privacy with no public member register. We file Articles of Organization with the Wyoming Secretary of State. Complete in 1–5 business days. (Already done if you buy ready-made.)
2. Step 2 — Apply for EIN via IRS Form SS-4 (foreign person, no SSN required). Non-residents cannot use the IRS online EIN portal. We call the International EIN line at 267-941-1099 as Third Party Designee using your signed Form SS-4. The EIN is issued verbally on the call and confirmed by fax within 24 hours — same-day issuance. (Already issued if you buy ready-made.) See our EIN without an SSN guide.
3. Step 3 — Open Mercury or Wise Business account remotely. With your Certificate of Formation and EIN letter, apply online to Mercury (preferred: free, native Stripe integration, FDIC coverage via partner banks), Relay Financial, or Wise Business. Use a US virtual office address, not the registered-agent address. Approval: 3–10 business days. Full walkthrough in our US bank account for non-residents guide.
4. Step 4 — Connect Stripe with US LLC details. Sign up at stripe.com as a US business. Enter your Wyoming LLC name, EIN, Mercury routing and account numbers, and your Vietnamese passport for ID verification. Stripe activates within 1–3 business days. You now accept cards globally, run Stripe Billing and Stripe Checkout, and settle USD into Mercury.

Four mainstream providers sell the same LLC + EIN + bank + Stripe outcome at four different price points (figures shown are for registering a new LLC; ready-made companies are priced per available company):

Competitor prices as listed on doola.com, firstbase.io, stripe.com/atlas April 2026. Stripe Atlas defaults to Delaware C-Corp — a different tax structure than an LLC for non-residents.

Payment methods that do NOT solve the global Stripe problem

VNPay, MoMo, ZaloPay, OnePay are SBV-licensed domestic gateways. They accept Vietnamese cards and wallets and settle VND to local bank accounts — perfect for selling inside Vietnam, useless for a US Stripe account, USD settlement, or Stripe Billing's global subscription infrastructure.

NAPAS is Vietnam's national card switch for domestic interbank transactions; it is infrastructure, not a global merchant processor you can plug into Shopify or a SaaS checkout.

Payoneer works for marketplace payouts (Upwork, Fiverr, Amazon, Etsy) into a Vietnamese bank, and gives you a USD receiving account — but it is not a card-acquiring processor. You cannot place a "Pay with card" Stripe button on your own store with Payoneer, and dropshippers in particular need that direct checkout. Payoneer is best used downstream: pull USD from Mercury and withdraw to Vietnam.

Wise Business can receive USD and convert to VND at the mid-market rate, which is why many founders pair Wise with the US LLC for cheap repatriation — but Wise alone still isn't a Stripe substitute for accepting cards.

2Checkout / PayPal are sometimes suggested, but PayPal Vietnam can only receive (not withdraw to a Vietnamese bank for many sellers) and carries high holds for dropshipping; neither replaces a real US Stripe account.

Banking and repatriation: Mercury, Wise and Payoneer

Stripe pays out only to a US bank account, so the chain is: Stripe → Mercury (USD) → Wise or Payoneer → your Vietnamese đồng account. Mercury and Wise Business open online for Vietnam-resident LLC owners with the Certificate of Formation, EIN letter, passport, and a US address. Wise gives the cheapest USD→VND conversion; Payoneer is convenient if you already use it for freelancing.

Vietnam tax considerations

Vietnam's General Department of Taxation (GDT / Tổng cục Thuế) taxes tax residents on worldwide income under the Personal Income Tax Law. Income earned through your US LLC and sitting in Mercury is still taxable in Vietnam when you are a Vietnamese tax resident. Key points:

• Keep proper books — Stripe payouts, Mercury statements, LLC invoices and expenses
• Declare foreign-source income on your annual Vietnamese PIT return; freelancers and online sellers are increasingly tracked via the GDT's e-commerce tax portal
• Bring funds home through licensed channels (Wise, Payoneer, or a bank) and keep records for State Bank of Vietnam foreign-exchange compliance
• The US–Vietnam tax treaty was signed in 2015 but is not yet in force, so do not assume treaty relief; foreign tax credits may be limited
• Consult a Vietnamese tax advisor familiar with US LLC structures and GDT digital-economy rules before your first filing