> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://blog.otoco.io/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # How to Write a Privacy Policy and Terms of Service for Your US LLC (2026 Guide) - URL: https://blog.otoco.io/how-to-write-privacy-policy-terms-of-service-us-llc-2026/ - Published: 2026-11-13T13:02:13.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-13T13:02:13.000Z - Description: Your US LLC's website, app or checkout needs a privacy policy and terms of service. Here is who asks for them (California law, GDPR, Apple, Google Play, Stripe), what each should say, and where to publish them, in plain English for founders abroad. - Author: OtoCo - Tags: Guide, SEO, US LLC, Foreign Founders, Compliance Once your US LLC has a website, an app or a checkout page, two short documents start doing real work: a privacy policy and terms of service. Payment processors look for them, app stores ask for the links, and privacy laws abroad can expect them. Here is a plain-English 2026 guide to writing both for a US LLC run from outside the US. This is general information, not legal advice. OtoCo is software and admin support for forming and running US LLCs. Privacy law depends on where your users are and what you do with their data, so for anything beyond a simple setup, have a qualified lawyer review your final text. > **Short answer:** A privacy policy tells people what data your company collects, why, who it shares it with and how they can ask about it. Terms of service are the contract between your LLC and its users or customers. Write both in your LLC's full legal name, describe what you actually do (not what a template says), publish them at public links in your footer, checkout and app store listings, and update them whenever your product or tools change. ## Two documents, two jobs - **Privacy policy:** a public notice. It explains what personal information you collect (emails, names, payment details, IP addresses, wallet addresses), how you use it, which outside services receive it, how long you keep it and how a person can contact you about it. - **Terms of service:** a contract. It sets the rules of using your product: what you sell, how payment and refunds work, what users may not do, who owns what, and what happens when something goes wrong. Both should name the same party: your LLC, written exactly as on your formation document, for example "Example Labs LLC". ## Who actually asks for them No single global rule says every LLC must publish these pages. Instead, several rules each ask for them, and most online businesses meet at least one. ### California's online privacy law California Business and Professions Code ยง 22575 says an operator of a commercial website or online service that collects personally identifiable information about consumers residing in California must conspicuously post a privacy policy. It does not matter where the operator is based. The statute lists what the policy must cover: - the categories of personal information you collect, and of third parties you may share it with; - any process people can use to review and request changes to their information; - how you tell people about material changes to the policy; - the policy's effective date; - how you respond to browser "do not track" signals, if you track people across other sites over time; - whether other parties may track a person's activity across websites through your service. ### The EU's GDPR Article 3(2) of the EU General Data Protection Regulation applies to a company with no EU establishment when it processes personal data of people in the EU in connection with offering them goods or services (paid or free), or monitoring their behaviour in the EU. A US LLC selling software to customers in Germany can fall inside that scope. The European Data Protection Board's guidelines on Article 3 also explain that a company caught by Article 3(2) generally has to designate a representative in the EU under Article 27, unless an Article 27(2) exemption applies. ### Apple and Google Apple's App Review Guideline 5.1.1(i) says all apps must link their privacy policy in App Store Connect and inside the app. The policy must say what data the app collects and why, confirm that third parties receiving user data protect it equally, and explain retention and how users can request deletion. Google Play's User Data policy goes further on format. Every app must post a privacy policy link in Play Console and inside the app, even apps that collect no personal data. The policy must name the developer or the app, give a privacy contact, describe data handling and retention, be clearly labelled as a privacy policy, and live at an active, public, non-geofenced URL. Google says no PDFs. It must also match your app's Data safety section. See our guides to [the Apple App Store](https://blog.otoco.io/how-to-publish-apple-app-store-us-llc-outside-us-2026/) and [Google Play](https://blog.otoco.io/how-to-publish-google-play-us-llc-non-resident-2026/). ### Stripe and card payments Stripe's website checklist lists what each business on Stripe should show: a clear description of what you sell, prices with the currency, contact details beyond a contact form, refund and cancellation policies, any legal or export restrictions, promotion or trial terms, and a privacy policy. Stripe says it may ask you to add missing items after reviewing your site, and Stripe Checkout can display links to your terms and privacy policy. See our guide to [getting Stripe for a foreign-owned US LLC](https://blog.otoco.io/how-to-get-stripe-foreign-owned-us-llc-non-resident-2026/). ### The FTC and your own promises The US Federal Trade Commission treats broken privacy promises as a deceptive practice under Section 5 of the FTC Act. In plain terms: whatever your policy says, you have to actually do. A short, true policy beats a copied one that promises things you never set up. Also note the FTC's children's privacy rule (16 CFR Part 312): services aimed at children under 13, or that knowingly collect their data, need notice and verifiable parental consent first. If your product is for kids, get legal advice before launch. ## What to put in your privacy policy Start from a map of your real data flows, not a template: sign-up forms, checkout, analytics, support email, newsletter tool, hosting logs, any AI assistant that sees customer messages. Then write these sections: 1. **Who we are.** Your LLC's full legal name and a contact email for privacy questions. 2. **What we collect.** Categories of data, and whether people give it to you or it is collected automatically (cookies, logs, device data). 3. **Why we use it.** To deliver the service, take payment, send receipts, improve the product. 4. **Who we share it with.** Categories of service providers: payments, hosting, email, analytics. Say if any of them track people across other sites. 5. **How long we keep it, and how deletion works.** Apple and Google both expect this. 6. **How people can ask about their data.** Access, correction or deletion requests, and how you respond. 7. **Do not track.** How you respond to those browser signals, if California's rule applies to you. 8. **Changes and effective date.** How you notify people of material changes, and the date the current version took effect. ## What to put in your terms of service 1. **The parties.** Your LLC by its full legal name, and the user or customer. 2. **What you provide.** The product or service, in plain words. 3. **Price and payment.** Currency, billing cycle, renewals and free-trial rules. 4. **Refunds and cancellation.** When and how. Stripe treats this as a core website item. 5. **Acceptable use.** What users may not do with your product. 6. **Intellectual property.** Your LLC owns the product; the user gets a licence to use it. Make sure the company actually owns what it licenses. Our guide to [assigning intellectual property to your US LLC](https://blog.otoco.io/how-to-assign-intellectual-property-to-us-llc-2026/) covers that step. 7. **Disclaimers and limits of liability.** How far your company's responsibility goes. Enforceability varies by country and by customer type, so this is lawyer territory. 8. **Governing law and disputes.** Which law applies and where disputes go. Get advice; consumer protection rules in your customers' countries may still apply. 9. **Changes and contact.** How you update the terms and how to reach you. A useful starting point: Stripe publishes its own Stripe Shop Terms of Use under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence and says you can use them as a starting point. Adapt them to what you actually sell. Do not copy another company's terms wholesale; they are often protected by copyright and describe someone else's business. ## Publish them where people see them - Link both pages in the footer of every page of your site. - Show them at checkout and sign-up, near the button. - Paste the privacy policy URL into App Store Connect and Play Console, and link it inside the app. - Keep them as normal web pages on your own domain, not PDFs, and do not block any country from viewing them. ## Crypto founders: onchain data is public If you run a dapp or accept crypto, say plainly which data you collect, such as wallet addresses and transaction hashes, and that blockchain records are public and cannot be deleted by your company. Do not promise deletion you cannot deliver. Your terms should state clearly whether your company ever holds user funds, and match your real setup. Our guide to [accepting crypto and stablecoin payments as a US LLC](https://blog.otoco.io/how-to-accept-crypto-stablecoin-payments-us-llc-2026/) covers the payment side. ## Using an AI assistant to draft An AI assistant can turn your data map into a clean draft in minutes. Check every claim against what your product really does, remove anything you have not set up, and have a lawyer review the risky parts: liability limits, governing law, and anything aimed at EU users or children. ## How OtoCo fits Your policies need a real legal name to stand behind them. OtoCo forms Delaware and Wyoming LLCs online for founders anywhere in the world, as Instant Series LLCs from $99/year or Standalone LLCs from $299/year on public pricing at [otoco.io](https://otoco.io/?ref=blog.otoco.io) and in [otoco.io/llms.txt](https://otoco.io/llms.txt?ref=blog.otoco.io) (checked 13 November 2026). Your documents, registered agent service and renewals sit in one dashboard, with an AI assistant for routine company tasks. That is software and admin support, not legal advice, and we do not write or review your privacy policy or terms. ## FAQ ### Do I need a privacy policy for a simple landing page? If the page collects anything personal, such as an email sign-up, it is wise to have one. California's rule applies to commercial sites collecting personal information from California residents, and payment processors and app stores expect one anyway. ### Do I need an EU representative? Possibly. A company outside the EU that falls under GDPR Article 3(2) generally must designate one under Article 27, unless an exemption applies. Ask a privacy lawyer if you target EU customers. ### How often should I update them? Whenever something real changes, such as a new analytics tool or payment method. Update the effective date and tell users about material changes the way your policy says you will. ### Is this guide legal advice? No. It is general information. For your specific product and markets, talk to a qualified lawyer. ## Bottom line A privacy policy says what you do with people's data. Terms of service say how your LLC and its customers deal with each other. Write both in your company's legal name, keep them true to your real setup, publish them where users, app stores and Stripe can find them, and update them as you grow. Form or manage your US LLC at [otoco.io](https://otoco.io/?utm%5Fsource=blog&utm%5Fmedium=organic&utm%5Fcampaign=seo&utm%5Fcontent=how-to-write-privacy-policy-terms-of-service-us-llc-2026).