Moving to and managing money in the USA

Visas are purpose-specific: employment, family, study, investment and others. Status, the right to work, and the path to anything longer term should be read from the visa itself.

Immigration residence and tax residence use different tests. Substantial presence can make you tax resident without a green card.

US banks typically ask for a Social Security number or an individual taxpayer identification number, an address, and identification. New arrivals sometimes start with the bank their employer recommends.

Accounts outside the US may need to be reported. Tell your existing providers you are moving. Some will close non-resident accounts.

Federal income tax, state income tax, and in some places city tax can all apply. Citizens and green-card holders are taxed on worldwide income even when they live abroad.

If you are moving to the US, or leaving it, the year of arrival or departure needs its own calculation. This is adviser territory.

Buying is state-specific: attorneys in some states, escrow companies in others. Financing depends on credit history, which many new arrivals do not yet have.

A mortgage approved on foreign income is a specialist product. Compare it with renting for the first year.

US tax rules on foreign funds can be punitive and surprising. Do not move a non-US portfolio into the US, or keep one after you become resident, without advice.

Retirement accounts in your home country may not accept contributions once you leave, and withdrawals may be taxed in both places.

Healthcare is largely private. Employer cover, a marketplace plan, or an international policy that actually works in the US are very different products.

Check networks, deductibles and whether pre-existing conditions are covered. The premium is the smallest part of the comparison.

A US company, a foreign company with US customers, and a person working remotely for a foreign employer are three different compliance pictures.

State of formation is a real choice. So is where you personally sit while you run it.

Bringing savings to fund a move or a home is normal and should be documented. Banks ask. So, sometimes, does the tax return.

Price dollar conversions properly if your capital is in sterling, euros or another currency.