For foreign-owned brands · Stage one of five
Your TikTok Shop U.S. starts with your U.S. Business Representative.
Amazon and Shopify let your foreign company sell directly. TikTok Shop U.S. asks for two things they don’t: a U.S. company that can sign the W-9 as a U.S. person, and a U.S. Business Representative.
Lock down the representative first. It decides whether TikTok Shop U.S. is even possible for your brand.
Guided by us. Chosen by you. Prepared by us.
Your full $497 counts toward Verified Ready or the Verified Path within 90 days.
7,000+ brands served
60+ countries
Stage 1 of five
Watch this before you ask anyone.
Who would you trust to still be there?
TikTok Shop U.S. sales more than doubled in 2025, according to eMarketer. Buyers find you there, then buy again on Amazon or your own store. For a foreign-owned brand, it all starts with the right person.
Finding someone you trust is the start. Their role is much more than providing their ID to open the account. It runs through setup, your first 90 days, and any time TikTok asks them to verify again. What they do at each point, and what you do as the owner, is what the Verified U.S. Representative covers.
Unsure who to choose? It’s usually one of three things.
You don’t know where to look.
The Routing Guide: the 12 places our clients found their representative over the last six to eight months, each scored 0 to 5 on five measures, out of 25. Plus the checks that rule a candidate out before you ask.
Nobody comes to mind that you’d trust.
Your person, your relationship, your contract. The right person is usually someone you already know, and the search is built for that.
You don’t know the role yet.
What your person does at setup, in the first 90 days, and when TikTok asks them to verify again. And what you do as the owner, which is a different role.
Where the choice goes wrong.
Your U.S. Business Representative is the one part of your shop you can’t easily swap out later. Most of the trouble starts before anyone is asked.
The stranger. Says yes for the money, then goes quiet the week TikTok asks them to verify again.
The shared representative. Already on other shops. If one of those accounts goes bad, yours can go with it.
The employee. Someone at your agency or fulfilment partner. Their job can end. Your role doesn’t.
The favor. Underpaid or unwritten. Goodwill runs out, and ending it with no terms gets personal.
The bundled representative. Included with a monthly service. Their contract can end. Your role doesn’t.
Every one of these is avoidable before you ask anyone. That is what the Verified U.S. Representative is for.
Where the representatives actually came from.
Over the last six to eight months we tracked where our clients found their U.S. Business Representative when it was not a friend or family member, and what happened next. The Routing Guide is that record, scored.
Twelve routes. Each one scored 0 to 5 on the same five measures, for a score out of 25, so a cousin in Ohio and a commercial partner are compared on the same terms. Two of the routes most owners try first score lowest. One route most owners never consider scores near the top.
Eight of the routes are people: who they are, why they say yes, what kills it, and what it costs you to ask. Four are what to do when no route produces a person, because for some brands that is the honest answer and nobody else will give it to you. The compensation gate comes first, because what you are willing to pay decides which routes are open at all.
You run the search with the guide. We make sure it is run correctly, and your candidate call checks the person you land on against the same five measures before you ask.
One shop: yours.
TikTok links accounts. A representative on other shops brings those shops with them. If one of their other accounts goes bad, yours can go with it.
That history rarely comes up on its own. Checking it is the half that protects your account, and the half a checklist can’t give you. Your candidate call reviews your candidate against it.
Your representative is one part of a package TikTok reviews together. Your business information, ownership, brand, identity documents, addresses, and account history all have to line up with the person. The right paperwork still fails when the person is wrong.
A second attempt isn’t a fresh start. Each new attempt can be read against the last.
Reviewed and prepared before TikTok sees them.
Four parts, in the order you use them. Know the role first, then find, then ask. Your toolkit arrives the moment you purchase. Your four agreements follow once you sign a short waiver form, so your candidate can see what they would sign before they say yes.
The full $497 counts toward Verified Ready ($997) or the Verified Path ($2,497) within 90 days of purchase.
Why 90 days? It is built around your search. Both calls are good for the same 90 days.
Why $497? This is stage one of five. Most buyers continue to Verified Ready or the Verified Path, and the full $497 is credited there. We priced stage one to get the representative right, because we do our best work on stages two through five when the person is already right.
One-time payment. No recurring charges. Apple Pay and Google Pay enabled. By purchasing, you agree to our Terms of Service.
How it works.
Getting TikTok Shop U.S. right happens in five stages. This package is stage one, the one everything else is built on.
Buy here. You get one welcome email with your toolkit and the Briefing video. Short emails follow with the sequence.
Watch the Briefing video first. Then work the Routing Guide, score your candidates, screen them with the Master Guide, and make the ask with the Scripts Companion. Write your questions down and bring them to your questions call.
Book your questions call after the Briefing video, with every question you have saved. Book your candidate call once you have a candidate or a shortlist. We review your candidate against the standard, with your representative on the call if you want them there. Both calls are good for 90 days from purchase.
Your U.S. company already signs a W-9 and your U.S. taxes are handled? Verified Ready, $997: your file reviewed and a written verdict before you submit. Not sure yet how your U.S. company should be taxed, or what it has to file? The Verified Path, $2,497, which starts with your U.S. tax position. Your full $497 counts toward either within 90 days of purchase.
Two calls, and clear options after them.
Your questions call after the Briefing video. Your candidate call once you have a candidate or a shortlist, with your representative on if you want them there. Both good for 90 days from purchase.
A Private Working Session, $297: 30 minutes with the team on your specific step.
The full $497 counts toward Verified Ready or the Verified Path within 90 days of purchase. Your calls and your $497 credit are all good for 90 days.
Your package covers the representative: finding, asking, reviewing, and preparing your person. Your account setup is Verified Ready, $997, or the Verified Path, $2,497, and nobody creates a TikTok Shop account before then.
Questions before your call? Write them down and bring them. Email is for documents, billing, and scheduling.
Structure and tax questions belong in the Verified Path, $2,497. We work with tax attorneys and CPAs.
Built for brands choosing their U.S. Business Representative.
This is your page if
You have run marketplace accounts in several countries and passed verification before. TikTok Shop U.S. is different, and you would rather learn how before you apply than after.
You run a foreign-owned brand already selling on Amazon, Shopify, or DTC, and you are entering TikTok Shop U.S. deliberately.
You are still looking. That is most buyers, and the search is the reason this exists.
You have someone in mind and want them reviewed before you commit them to the role.
You already asked someone, got a soft answer, and want to know whether it can be reopened.
You are a U.S. brand with a foreign co-founder, investor, or family member inside Seller Center.
A different starting point
Already rejected, or deactivated? Start with the Verified Diagnostic, $597, where the diagnosis comes first.
No U.S. company yet, or unsure how yours is taxed? Start with the Verified Path, $2,497.
Your representative has already said yes, and your U.S. company already signs a W-9? Go straight to Verified Ready, $997. It includes these representative documents.
Ninety days (or less) from now.
You have a named U.S. person who has agreed to the role, understands what it asks, and is paid on an arrangement that still holds a year from now.
Your person has been reviewed against the standard with our team, including the one-shop rule, before anyone touched a form.
They saw the agreement before they said yes, so the yes holds.
Your person is ready before TikTok ever sees them.
Or you learn early that nobody in your world fits the role yet. That answer costs $497, not a rejection on your record, and the $497 still counts toward the Verified Path, where we build around it.
Your representative is ready. The account still has to be built around them.
The W-9, the company, and a setup TikTok accepts the first time all come next. That is Verified Ready, $997 or the Verified Path, $2,497, and when we set up the account, it is registered through our TikTok Shop partner channel. Your full $497 counts toward either within 90 days.
From foreign-owned brands who went first.
They helped me open my US TikTok shop as a non-US resident living outside the US; everything works, and the sales are rolling in. Riley also did a great job with the email support! Recommend!
Scott goes above and beyond and has been an invaluable source of expertise for a UK brand looking to grow into the US, spanning tax, operations, and business strategy. He thinks of pitfalls and solves them before you even realize they exist. Thank you, Scott and the NCP team, for all the support to date.
One question decides it.
Are you choosing your U.S. Business Representative?
Someone in mind? We review them and prepare them before TikTok ever sees them.
Still looking? That is the normal starting point. Our work starts while you search.
Common questions.
I have nobody in mind at all. Am I too early?+
You are on time. Most buyers start there, which is why the Routing Guide comes first. Your tools work while you search, and your credit window is built around that search.
Having nobody today is a search problem. Asking the wrong person tomorrow is a permanent one.
Do you provide the U.S. representative?+
Guided by us. Chosen by you. Prepared by us. And yes, we help you find them. The guiding is the Routing Guide: over the last six to eight months we tracked where our clients found their representative when it was not a friend or family member, and scored all twelve routes 0 to 5 on trust, durability, responsiveness, document integrity, and exit position. You work the routes, your candidate call checks the person against the same five measures, and the Briefing, the scripts, and the agreements prepare them. The role is much more than lending an ID; it continues after setup, including any time TikTok asks them to verify again. The choice stays with you because the person who holds that seat should answer to you.
Do you recommend a representative service?+
Services that supply a representative exist, and they are in the Routing Guide as routes of their own, scored on the same five measures as your cousin or your business partner. Read their exit-position score before anything else: who answers when TikTok asks your representative to verify again, two years from now, and what happens to your representative if you stop paying? The guide gives you the same standard we use to judge anyone, a person you know or a provider you would hire, and the choice stays with you.
Is a U.S. Business Representative the same as TikTok’s “Primary Representative”?+
Yes. Same role, two labels. TikTok’s instructions call this person the business representative, and the account setup screen calls the same person the primary representative. We say U.S. Business Representative because U.S. residency is the reason the role exists for a foreign-owned brand, and because this page is about TikTok Shop U.S., not the EU or another market.
I already asked someone and it did not go well. Can it be reopened?+
Sometimes. It depends on what they were told and how the conversation ended. Bring the details to your questions call, and we will tell you honestly whether to reopen it or start fresh with a correct first ask.
Should I pay my representative, or is this a favor?+
In almost every case, a paid and structured arrangement. This person puts their government ID and home address on your shop and may be asked to complete verification or account actions later, so they need to remain available after setup. Pay what the role is worth to your shop, not the least someone will accept. Plan on $300 to $1,000 a month. The right number depends on the person and what you’re asking of them, and the Fair-Pay Calculator sets it before you ask. Paying widens the pool. It does not turn a stranger into a safe choice.
Are the agreements ready to sign?+
They follow by email once you sign a short waiver form. Use the paid or voluntary version that fits your representative, and bring your questions to your questions call. Each is a fillable template with instructions. We recommend a review by an attorney before anyone signs, and we can introduce you to one of the attorneys we work with. Questions about tax or liability belong in the Verified Path, $2,497. We work with tax attorneys and CPAs.
What’s included, and when does it end?+
Two 30-minute calls, good for 90 days from purchase: your questions call after the Briefing video, and your candidate call once you have a candidate or a shortlist. After your calls, more time with the team is a Private Working Session, $297. Your package covers the representative: finding, asking, reviewing, and preparing your person. Your account setup is Verified Ready, $997, or the Verified Path, $2,497, and nobody creates a TikTok Shop account before then. Email is for documents, billing, and scheduling. Separately, the full $497 counts toward Verified Ready or the Verified Path within 90 days of purchase. That is a credit window, not a support window.
Does this include registering my TikTok Shop?+
This package gets your person right. Account setup is part of Verified Ready, $997, or the Verified Path, $2,497, through our TikTok Shop partner channel, and your $497 counts toward either in full within 90 days of purchase.
Does this get my TikTok Shop approved?+
TikTok makes every approval decision, and any program promising approval is selling something TikTok controls. This package makes sure your person is reviewed against the standard and prepared before TikTok sees them.
TikTok has already rejected me. Where do I start?+
With a diagnosis. Start with the Verified Diagnostic, $597. This page is for brands that have not yet submitted.
Get the representative right, then build around them.
The trusted contact who could say yes today has a move, a job change, and a life that will not wait for you to get organized.
If you have not created a TikTok Shop account yet, keep it that way. Not even a login, from you or your candidate. Start with the person. Then build the rest around them, on a call with us.
Get Your U.S. Representative Right · $497→
The full $497 counts toward Verified Ready ($997) or the Verified Path ($2,497) within 90 days of purchase. Verification timelines vary by account.
This page is educational and is not legal or tax advice. Nevada Corporate Planners, Inc., our legal entity since 1997, appears on your card statement.
P.S. You may be wondering whether we would find the person for you. We looked hard at doing that ourselves, including with our insurance and legal advisors. Your representative holds a key role on your account for the life of your shop, so the choice stays with you. Everything in this package exists to make sure you choose well.
