Artifact Signing Public Trust: newly formed US LLC whose sole owner lives in Venezuela — eligible?

Fabian 0 Reputation points
2026-10-22T20:02:02.98+00:00

Hi! I plan to form a single-member US LLC to publish a Windows desktop app, and I'd like to confirm eligibility for Artifact Signing (Public Trust, organization identity validation) before forming the company.

  • The LLC will be newly formed, with an EIN and no tax history yet. A moderator said in question 5977141 that there is no minimum organization age; I'd like to confirm that still applies.
  • Its sole owner/member is not a US citizen or resident and lives in Venezuela. The LLC's US address would be a registered agent or virtual office.

Questions:

  1. Is this LLC eligible for Public Trust organization validation? Does the owner's country of residence or nationality affect eligibility?
  2. Is any minimum organization age or tax history required?
  3. Which documents are accepted for a newly formed LLC (Articles of Organization, IRS EIN letter CP 575, D-U-N-S number, others)? Is a registered agent or virtual office address accepted?
  4. Is the owner also identity-verified during validation? If so, is a Venezuelan passport accepted?
  5. Can the pay-as-you-go subscription be paid with the LLC's US bank card and managed from Venezuela?

Thanks!

Artifact Signing
Artifact Signing

A fully managed end-to-end service for digitally signing code, documents, and applications. (formerly Trusted Signing)

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  1. Rukshan edirisinghe 2,205 Reputation points
    2026-10-28T02:39:57.82+00:00

    Hi @Fabian

    Smart move to check before forming the company. Here's what Microsoft documents, and what it leaves open:

    Documented

    1. Country: Public Trust is available to organizations in the United States, so a US LLC qualifies on location. The owner's nationality or residence isn't listed as a criterion.
    2. Documents: accepted business documents include a business registration form, charter or articles. For an LLC, your Articles of Organization fit here. They must list the same name and address as your request, and be issued within the last 12 months. You'll also need proof of the domain (registration or renewal invoice) listing the entity.
    3. Person check: the first and last name on the request must match a government-issued ID exactly, so the requester's identity is checked too.
    4. Subscription: Artifact Signing needs a paid Azure subscription (pay-as-you-go or enterprise). Free, trial and sponsored subscriptions aren't supported.
    5. Timing: validation takes 1 to 20 business days, and longer if more documents are requested.

    Not documented

    • A minimum organization age or tax history. The docs don't state one, but they do say onboarding is quicker when public records for the entity are up to date. A brand-new LLC may take longer to show up in the business databases validators check.
    • Whether a registered agent or virtual office address is accepted, and which passports are accepted.

    To give it the best chance: build a website on your own domain with the LLC's legal name, use an email on that domain, and keep the LLC name and address identical across the state filing, the EIN letter, the website and the request.

    Will the app be published under the LLC's exact legal name?

    If this answers your eligibility questions, please consider accepting it as the answer. If the validation asks for something you can't provide, let me know and I'll be happy to keep helping.

    Reference:

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