The first two days in San Francisco, in priority order: what has to happen, what should, and what can wait. Tick things off as you go.
For San Francisco
How long you are staying
Must do
A prepaid SIM or eSIM from T-Mobile, AT&T or Verizon, or a cheaper carrier that runs on their networks. Banks, landlords and two-factor logins all want a US number.
Clipper readers on Muni, BART, Caltrain and the ferries take contactless bank cards and phones as well as Clipper cards. Tap on and, on BART and Caltrain, tap off too.
Retrieve it from the CBP I-94 website and check the class of admission and the date you must leave by. Errors are much easier to fix in the first weeks.
Unless you requested the number with your visa application, plan to visit a Social Security office about ten days after arrival with your passport, visa and I-94.
Bring your passport, visa, proof of address and an employer letter. Some banks open accounts before you have an SSN and add it later.
Starting a job or arriving in the country opens a short special enrolment window, often 30 days with an employer and 60 on the public marketplace. Miss it and you may wait until the autumn.
Should do
Police, fire and ambulance. Ambulance rides are billed, sometimes heavily, so check how your plan covers them.
Sales tax is added at the till, not shown on the shelf, and table service expects a tip of roughly 18โ20%. Bartenders, cab drivers and delivery riders expect one too.
Conditions change within a few blocks here. See any shortlisted address on a weekday evening, not just at the Saturday viewing.
A secured credit card, backed by your own deposit and paid in full each month, is the usual first line on a US credit report.
Water, food, a torch, a radio and medication for three days, and a plan for meeting up if the phones are down. Sign up for the city's emergency alerts by text.
Most non-citizens must tell USCIS of a new address within ten days of moving, online. Do it when you move from temporary housing into your flat.
Buildings first occupied before June 1979 are generally under the city's rent ordinance. Look the property up on the city's records before falling for a flat.
Nice to do
Every block posts its cleaning hours, and the tickets are frequent and expensive. Car-free? Ignore this one.
Most embassies run a registration or alert service for nationals abroad. It takes two minutes.
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