Life in the US after the move: your first year after the talent visa
Updated: Author: Alina Kanametova
The petition is approved, the visa is in your passport - and the second part of the journey begins, one the chats discuss as much as the criteria. Here are the seven topics the community asks about most, with member experience, dates and official links.
- US taxes in your first year: residency, return, ITINYou moved on an O-1 or a green card - when do you become a US tax resident, when is your first return due, and how does a spouse or child without an SSN get an ITIN.
- Your SSN after arrival: timing, the SSA office, EADThe SSN unlocks most of your first year: bank, credit history, license, work.
- US health insurance: what it costs and how to enrollUS health insurance per CMS: the average benchmark HealthCare.
- US school and daycare in year one: enrollmentPublic schools take children regardless of visa status - what matters is district paperwork, vaccination records and the hard age cutoff.
- US bank account and credit history from zeroYou can open an account in your first days - even before the SSN - and the community builds credit history along one chain: account, secured card, three-six months of tidy spending.
- US driver license: without an SSN, Real ID, the testThe license is the main everyday US document.
- Bringing a pet to the US: CDC rules and experienceDog imports are governed by CDC rules (updated August 2024); cats are treated more leniently.
Community experience: SSN, bank, licence in the first weeks
From community discussions
«If it's remote, then yes, it's probably worth the money. If in person, you can go yourself and teach the local staff how it's done))) (as was the case for us). The magic phrase was: "our friends opened without an SSN and everything was fine, but if you can't open it, we will go try at Chase" - it was at BofA. Then the manager comes and magically the necessary fields can be filled in and everything goes through the system.»
Serge · from public community chats
«Yes, but DMV employees are sometimes different) and they asked me to provide some proof of address, a bank statement worked for me, which I printed immediately. But it's worth noting that I went there right away, still without an SSN, and probably my passport with a visa would have been enough.»
Valeriaa · from public community chats
«You need to send the medicals immediately. Otherwise, you will get an RFE. I received one, but not for that reason, rather because they lost the translations of the birth certificates of the children. By the way, the children got their work authorization and SSN within 2 months. As for me and my eldest daughter, we heard nothing, silence, and then suddenly the green cards.»
Irina G. · from public community chats
«I have experience. We received an EIN in 4 business days without an SSN remotely this summer. The hardest part was obtaining a bank account. I had proof of address in another country for over 2 years, but Mercury still refused me when opening an account. It requires a long and tedious effort.»
Nastya M. · from public community chats
«Are you referring to work authorization??? It takes forever. Everyone told me that the SSN comes quickly. In the end, the timelines are all different. Plus, with the elections, and now so many holidays ahead. I wonder if the authorization will come before New Year.»
Mila B. · from public community chats
«An SSN will not be needed if you do not plan to open a bank account, rent an apartment, or obtain insurance. So if you're coming as a tourist, then you do not need to rush to the SSA. Just enjoy America while you travel around.»
Egor A. · from public community chats
«I have acquaintances who moved on an O1 visa; I don't know what documents they were waiting for on-site, but they started working literally a week after arriving. So it should all be quick. I think they only received the SSN.»
Alena · from public community chats
«I first got an Amex blue cash everyday card for $2000, after 90 days I requested a 3x increase which was approved up to $6000. Recently, I was approved for a Gold card with a significant spending power limit. I don't have an SSN and never had one.»
community member · from public community chats
Personal opinions of community members from public discussions, not legal advice.
Community experience - not legal, tax or insurance advice. Rules change; each page points to its official source.
Questions and answers on the site
Distilled from the public community chats, anonymised; corpus as of June 2026. These are participants' observations, not legal advice and not USCIS statistics.