Should I register my Etsy shop as a 'business' or an 'individual' if I have a Virginia LLC?

If you have an EIN and file taxes as a business entity (not a disregarded entity), register as a business. Etsy then verifies the entity name and EIN against IRS records, so the name has to match your Virginia Articles of Organization. A single-member Virginia LLC taxed as a disregarded entity can register as an individual and provide an SSN or ITIN.

What happens if I do not complete Etsy's seller verification?

Etsy withholds payouts until verification is complete, whichever state the shop's LLC comes from. If you miss the deadline shown in your Shop Manager dashboard, you have 90 days before the shop may be closed.

I do not live in Virginia. Can I still use a Virginia LLC on Etsy?

Etsy does not check where you live, only that the Virginia entity is validly registered and that the details you enter match Virginia's record. The catch is not Etsy, it is the state you actually operate from: states require an out-of-state LLC to register as a foreign LLC before it transacts business there, which is a second filing and a second fee on top of Virginia's $100. Forming in Virginia while working somewhere else usually means paying both states, not one.

Do I need a Virginia sales-tax permit before my first sale through Etsy?

Not for your Etsy orders themselves. Virginia charges a 5.3% state rate and, like every sales-tax state, has a marketplace-facilitator law that makes Etsy collect and remit it for you. You need your own Virginia registration once you also sell off-marketplace and either have physical presence in Virginia or cross its remote-seller threshold of $100,000 in sales or 200 transactions in the previous or current calendar year.

Marketplace Verification

How to pass Etsy verification with a Virginia LLC

What Etsy asks for at signup, and which Virginia LLC documents satisfy each requirement.

By Edmond Hui · Last updated: August 4, 2026

Edmond Hui · Founder, MyStateLLC

Edmond Hui is a software engineer and serial entrepreneur based in New York who has founded multiple online businesses across e-commerce, media, and information publishing. Before transitioning into tech, he spent years as a commercial real estate professional closing deals totaling over 100,000 square feet, giving him firsthand experience with business formation and entity structuring. He built MyStateLLC to provide the free, state-specific LLC guidance he wished existed when forming his own companies.

A Virginia LLC is generally eligible for Etsy verification — you will need to provide your Articles of Organization, EIN, beneficial-owner ID, and a valid US business address. Nothing about forming in Virginia blocks approval, and nothing about it guarantees approval either: the final call is Etsy's.

Etsy requires sellers using Etsy Payments to complete identity and tax verification before receiving payouts. For a Virginia LLC registered as a business (not a disregarded entity), Etsy collects the entity name as it appears on your Articles of Organization, the legal address, the EIN or other taxpayer number, and verifies this information against the IRS database. Etsy also requires a government photo ID and selfie via its identity-verification partner Persona, plus a bank account linked to receive Etsy Payments disbursements.

In Virginia the entity behind that check is an LLC created by filing Articles of Organization, which costs $100. Virginia does not publish a processing time for LLC filings, so treat state approval as the open-ended step in your timeline rather than the Etsy review. Because Virginia keeps members and managers off routine public filings, Etsy has no public state record to match your owner name against, and relies entirely on the identification you upload.

Virginia has 54,964 solo retail trade businesses with no employees, averaging $43,560 in annual receipts (U.S. Census Bureau, Nonemployer Statistics (NES), 2023).

Not legal advice: Verification requirements change, and so do Virginia's filing fees and forms. Confirm current platform rules with Etsy, and current filing rules with the Virginia filing office, before you file. Etsy's requirements were last reviewed 2026-07-21, and Virginia's figures on this page come from its own published schedule.

What Etsy requires, and how a Virginia LLC meets each

Requirement	How your Virginia LLC satisfies it
LLC entity name verified against IRS	Use the exact LLC name as Virginia recorded it on your Articles of Organization; it must match your bank account holder name.
Employer Identification Number (EIN)	Provide your federal EIN (free from the IRS; non-US founders without an SSN must apply via Form SS-4 by fax or phone rather than the online tool) — independent of Virginia.
Taxpayer information and IRS verification	Complete the tax interview. A Virginia LLC owned by US persons typically submits a W-9 using its EIN; non-US owners of a disregarded-entity Virginia LLC generally use a W-8 form instead.
Government photo ID and selfie (via Persona)	Provide a government ID for each beneficial owner, even though Virginia names none of them publicly. Virginia publishes no member or manager, so the platform relies entirely on the ID you upload — names must match your operating agreement.
Bank account for Etsy Payments disbursements	Link a US business bank account opened with your EIN and your Virginia Articles of Organization.

Virginia-specific things to watch

Virginia keeps both members and managers off routine public filings, but you must still upload beneficial-owner identification directly to Etsy. State-level anonymity does not exempt you from the platform's KYC. (Virginia's Articles of Organization require only a registered agent (no members or managers), and Virginia LLCs file no information-bearing annual report (just a $50 annual registration fee), so owner names stay off public filings. One avoidable exposure: Va. Code s.13.1-1011(A)(3) requires the articles to state the registered agent's qualification, and one permitted qualification is that the agent is a member or manager of the LLC, selecting it names that person. Using a commercial agent or a Virginia State Bar member avoids it.)

Virginia sales tax & nexus rules for Etsy sellers

Virginia charges a 5.3% state sales-tax rate, and like every state with a sales tax it has a marketplace-facilitator law — Etsy collects and remits Virginia sales tax on your marketplace orders for you. You still need your own Virginia registration if you also sell off-marketplace (your own site, invoices) and either have physical presence in Virginia — an in-state location, inventory, or employees — or cross the state's remote-seller economic-nexus threshold of $100,000 in sales or 200 transactions in the previous or current calendar year.

Virginia's 5.3% state rate includes a 1% local component built into the state rate, making the effective combined rate 5.3% in most areas (Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads areas have an additional 0.7% regional tax). Virginia taxes digital products and SaaS. Register through the Virginia Department of Taxation's iReg portal.

How to verify your Virginia LLC on Etsy

LLC entity name verified against IRS. Use the exact LLC name as Virginia recorded it on your Articles of Organization; it must match your bank account holder name.
Employer Identification Number (EIN). Provide your federal EIN (free from the IRS; non-US founders without an SSN must apply via Form SS-4 by fax or phone rather than the online tool) — independent of Virginia.
Taxpayer information and IRS verification. Complete the tax interview. A Virginia LLC owned by US persons typically submits a W-9 using its EIN; non-US owners of a disregarded-entity Virginia LLC generally use a W-8 form instead.
Government photo ID and selfie (via Persona). Provide a government ID for each beneficial owner, even though Virginia names none of them publicly. Virginia publishes no member or manager, so the platform relies entirely on the ID you upload — names must match your operating agreement.
Bank account for Etsy Payments disbursements. Link a US business bank account opened with your EIN and your Virginia Articles of Organization.

Non-US founders with Virginia LLCs

Non-US sellers can use Etsy Payments in supported countries, but a Virginia LLC's seller account must be linked to a US bank account or an eligible payment method. Non-US beneficial owners of a Virginia LLC must still complete identity verification via Persona with a valid government ID.

Frequently Asked Questions

: If you have an EIN and file taxes as a business entity (not a disregarded entity), register as a business. Etsy then verifies the entity name and EIN against IRS records, so the name has to match your Virginia Articles of Organization. A single-member Virginia LLC taxed as a disregarded entity can register as an individual and provide an SSN or ITIN.
: Etsy withholds payouts until verification is complete, whichever state the shop's LLC comes from. If you miss the deadline shown in your Shop Manager dashboard, you have 90 days before the shop may be closed.
: Virginia charges $100 to file Articles of Organization, and that is the state's fee to create the LLC. Virginia does not publish a processing time for LLC filings, so treat state approval as the open-ended step in your timeline rather than the Etsy review. Etsy charges nothing for verification itself, so the $100 filing fee and Virginia's ongoing obligations are the real cost of getting verified as a Virginia entity.
: Etsy does not check where you live, only that the Virginia entity is validly registered and that the details you enter match Virginia's record. The catch is not Etsy, it is the state you actually operate from: states require an out-of-state LLC to register as a foreign LLC before it transacts business there, which is a second filing and a second fee on top of Virginia's $100. Forming in Virginia while working somewhere else usually means paying both states, not one.
: Not for your Etsy orders themselves. Virginia charges a 5.3% state rate and, like every sales-tax state, has a marketplace-facilitator law that makes Etsy collect and remit it for you. You need your own Virginia registration once you also sell off-marketplace and either have physical presence in Virginia or cross its remote-seller threshold of $100,000 in sales or 200 transactions in the previous or current calendar year.