Your First 90 Days in America
£67
You will land in America with a credit score of zero. Not bad credit — none.
Ten years of perfect British credit means nothing the moment you arrive. No apartment without six months upfront. No phone contract. No car finance. Most people find this out standing at a letting agent's desk.
It's fixable far faster than most people manage. But only in a particular order — and one of the shortcuts has to be set up before you leave the UK.
What's inside (15 pages):
✦ Week one in order — the I-94, a prepaid number, an address that takes post, the SSN, the bank account
✦ The credit problem explained properly, with a month-by-month timeline to a usable score
✦ The two shortcuts almost no Brit knows about — American Express Global Transfer, which carries your UK history across, and Nova Credit
✦ Four ways to rent with no credit file, and exactly what US landlords ask for
✦ Banking: which accounts, in what order, how to kill the monthly fee, and why Wise beats your bank
✦ The 60-day health insurance window most people miss entirely
✦ Driving — the legal deadline by state, the letter of experience to get before you leave, and the insurance shock
✦ Tax in two countries: FBAR, Form 8938, why an ISA isn't tax-free to the IRS, and PFICs
✦ The admin stack — every document you'll be asked for
✦ Building a social life from zero, and the 90-day wall
✦ A printable Day 1 to Day 90 checklist, including what to do before you fly
This is for you if: You've got a visa, or you're close. Everyone's advice stops at "book the flight."