Wyoming LLC Privacy: What Actually Works (And What Doesn't)
The privacy benefits are real, but so are the legal traps. Here's what you need to know.
Updated December 2025
Wyoming LLCs are popular for privacy because the state doesn’t require public disclosure of members or managers. That’s a real benefit because your name won’t appear on Wyoming’s public business registry.
But there’s a catch most promoters don’t mention:
if you live or operate outside Wyoming, you’ll likely need to register your LLC in your home state too. And that registration often requires ownership disclosure, eliminating the privacy advantage you were seeking.
As a privacy attorney who’s spent 15+ years working with business structures, we’ve seen people waste money on Wyoming LLCs that provided zero practical privacy benefit. We’ve also seen cases where the strategy made perfect sense.
Here’s what you actually need to know.
Quick Summary:
Wyoming LLCs offer real privacy benefits: anonymous ownership, no public member disclosure, no state income tax, and strong asset protection. However, if you operate your business from another state (which most people do), you’ll likely need to register there as a “foreign LLC”, potentially exposing your ownership information anyway.Bottom line: The Wyoming LLC strategy works best for Wyoming residents, holding companies with no operations, or specific asset protection scenarios. For most people running an active business from another state, the privacy benefits are limited or nonexistent.
What Privacy Benefits Do Wyoming LLCs Actually Provide?
Let’s give credit where it’s due. Wyoming offers some legitimate advantages:
Anonymous ownership: Wyoming doesn’t require LLCs to publicly disclose their members (owners) or managers. When you search Wyoming’s business database, you’ll see the LLC name and registered agent, and not who’s behind it.
No state income tax: Wyoming has no corporate or personal income tax, which can simplify your tax situation (though you’ll still owe federal taxes and taxes in states where you operate).
Strong asset protection: Wyoming offers some of the strongest charging order protections in the country, making it harder for creditors to seize LLC assets for a member’s personal debts.
Low fees and minimal reporting: Annual report fees are modest, and the state doesn’t require extensive ongoing disclosures.
For someone who actually lives in Wyoming and operates their business there, these benefits are straightforward and real.
The Catch: Foreign Registration Requirements
Here’s where the strategy falls apart for most people.
If you form a Wyoming LLC but live in California, Texas, New York, or virtually any other state, you don’t get to ignore your home state’s laws. Every state requires businesses “transacting business” within their borders to register, even if you formed the entity elsewhere.
What “transacting business” typically means:
Having an office or employees in the state
Regularly conducting business with customers in the state
Operating from your home in the state
In many states, running an e-commerce business from that state
Example: You form a Wyoming LLC for your online consulting business, but you work from your apartment in Texas. Texas considers you to be “transacting business” there. You’re required to register your Wyoming LLC as a “foreign LLC” in Texas.
Here’s what the Texas Secretary of State says (source):
“Generally, a foreign entity is transacting business in Texas if it has an office or an employee in Texas or is otherwise pursuing one of its purposes in Texas.”
When you register as a foreign LLC in your home state, you often must disclose ownership information, the exact information you were trying to keep private by using Wyoming in the first place.
The result: You now have filings in two states, double the fees, double the compliance obligations, and potentially no additional privacy.
The “Digital Business” Myth
We regularly see advice claiming that if your business is purely digital, you don’t need to register in your home state. This is wrong, and following it can get you in legal trouble.
Here’s an example of the bad advice floating around online:
“If your cashflow is digital only, you don’t need to register the LLC in your home state.”
This might have been a gray area 20 years ago. It’s not anymore. States have modernized their business registration requirements to account for e-commerce. Working from your home on a laptop is still “transacting business” in your home state.
Consequences of not registering:
Fines and penalties (often backdated to when you should have registered)
Inability to enforce contracts in your home state’s courts
Personal liability exposure (courts may “pierce the veil” of an improperly registered LLC)
Easier detection than ever thanks to data matching between state and federal tax returns
If you file a federal tax return listing income from “Wyoming Privacy LLC” while showing a Texas home address, it’s trivial for enforcement systems to flag the mismatch. AI and automated compliance tools are making this easier every year.
When Does a Wyoming LLC Actually Make Sense for Privacy?
Despite the limitations, there are scenarios where a Wyoming LLC can provide real privacy value:
You actually live in Wyoming. If you’re a Wyoming resident operating locally, you get the full benefit with no complications.
Holding company structure. A Wyoming LLC that owns assets (real estate, investments, other LLCs) but doesn’t actively “transact business” in other states may avoid foreign registration requirements. This is a legitimate strategy but requires careful structuring, ideally with an attorney.
Multi-entity setups. Some businesses use a Wyoming LLC as a parent entity that owns operating LLCs in other states. The operating LLCs are publicly registered, but the ownership chain leads back to the anonymous Wyoming entity. This adds complexity and cost but can provide meaningful privacy.
You’re okay with the risk. Some people knowingly skip foreign registration, accepting the legal risk in exchange for privacy. We don’t recommend this, but we acknowledge it happens. Just budget for potential fines and legal fees.
Better Alternatives for Business Privacy
If a Wyoming LLC doesn’t fit your situation, here are other ways to enhance privacy when running a business:
Use a registered agent service. Even if you must register in your home state, a registered agent keeps your personal address off public filings. The agent’s address appears instead of yours.
Use a business address. Rent a virtual office or use a UPS Store mailbox (formatted as “Suite” not “Box”) for your business address. This keeps your home address private.
Consider other privacy-friendly states. Delaware and New Mexico also offer anonymous LLC formation with different fee structures and legal frameworks. They have the same foreign registration limitations, but depending on your situation, one may be preferable.
Use a trust or holding structure. For significant assets or complex situations, having your LLC owned by a trust or another entity can add privacy layers. This requires professional setup.
Minimize your public footprint. Keep your name off your business website, use a business email address rather than personal, and be thoughtful about what you share publicly. Sometimes operational privacy matters more than structural privacy.
Consult a lawyer. Privacy law and business structures intersect in complicated ways. A one-hour consultation with an attorney who specializes in this area can save you thousands in mistakes and help you find the right approach for your specific situation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a Wyoming LLC hide your name?
Yes, at the Wyoming state level. Wyoming doesn’t require public disclosure of LLC members or managers, so your name won’t appear in Wyoming’s business registry. However, your name may still surface through foreign registration in other states, federal tax filings, bank account applications, or the new Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) reports required by FinCEN.
Is a Wyoming LLC really anonymous?
At the state filing level, yes, Wyoming does provide genuine anonymity. But complete anonymity is harder to achieve in practice. Your identity may be discoverable through foreign registration requirements, IRS records, financial institutions, legal proceedings, or BOI reporting. “Anonymous” often means “harder to find,” not “impossible to find.”
Do I need to register my Wyoming LLC in my home state?
Almost certainly, if you live there or conduct business there. Most states require “foreign” LLCs to register if they have employees, an office, or regularly transact business within the state. Working from home on your laptop typically qualifies. Failure to register can result in fines, penalties, and loss of legal protections.
What happens if I don’t register in my home state?
Common consequences include: fines and back-fees (sometimes substantial), inability to sue or enforce contracts in that state’s courts, potential personal liability if courts disregard your LLC structure, and increased audit risk as state/federal data matching improves.
Wyoming LLC vs Delaware LLC for privacy—which is better?
Both offer anonymous LLC formation at the state level. Delaware has a more established body of corporate law and is preferred for companies seeking investors (though this is changing due to some anti-corporate legal rulings of late). Wyoming has lower fees and no state income tax. For pure privacy purposes, they’re roughly equivalent, and both face the same foreign registration limitations when you operate in other states.
Can I use a Wyoming LLC to keep my name off my rental properties?
Potentially, depending on where the properties are located. If the rental properties are in Wyoming, yes. If they’re in other states, you’ll likely need to register there. Some states are more privacy-friendly than others for real estate LLCs. An attorney familiar with the specific states can advise on structuring.
Is the Wyoming LLC strategy illegal?
Forming a Wyoming LLC is completely legal. The legal risk arises from not registering in states where you’re required to. That’s not typically criminal, but it violates business registration laws and can result in fines, penalties, and loss of legal protections.
What about the new BOI (Beneficial Ownership Information) reporting?
As of 2024, most LLCs must report their beneficial owners to FinCEN (the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network). This information isn’t public, but it is accessible to law enforcement and certain government agencies. BOI reporting applies regardless of which state you form your LLC in, so it doesn’t change the Wyoming vs. other states calculus. But it does mean true anonymity from the federal government is no longer possible for most LLCs.
Bottom Line
Wyoming LLCs offer real privacy benefits.
The problem is those benefits are more limited than the internet would have you believe. For most people operating a business from another state, the requirement to register locally eliminates much of the privacy advantage.
Before spending money on a Wyoming LLC, honestly assess:
Where do you live and work?
Where will your business actually operate?
What specific privacy outcome are you trying to achieve?
Is the added complexity and cost worth a marginal (or zero) privacy gain?
If privacy is a serious priority, consult with a lawyer who can evaluate your specific situation. The right structure depends on your circumstances, and generic advice, (including the advice of non-lawyers promoting Wyoming LLCs as a silver bullet) can lead you astray.
Looking for help with a privacy issue or privacy concern? Chances are we’ve covered it already or will soon. Follow us on X and LinkedIn for updates on this topic and other internet privacy related topics.
Disclaimer: None of the above is to be deemed legal advice of any kind. These are *opinions* written by a privacy and tech attorney with years of working for, with and against Big Tech and Big Data. And this post is for informational purposes only and is not intended for use in furtherance of any unlawful activity. This post may also contain affiliate links, which means that at no additional cost to you, we earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.
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One other thing to consider is whether a nexus is created between you and the LLC once you file your federal and state tax return. Typically you’ll need to list business income on those returns with the name of the Wyoming LLC. Twenty years ago perhaps it was challenging to sync up all these various data points. But in 2024, it’s quite easy with artificial intelligence advancements to create an unofficial beneficial owner record of so-called “private” LLCs.