BRAND NEW TO THE US - GETTING STARTED

John is age 32 (hypothetical client*). He just moved to the US from Europe and his intent is to return home after his 3-year work assignment. However, his employer has discussed the possibility of sponsoring his permanent residency, so that could make him a long-term resident.

He wants to get established financially in the country. By any standards, he’s got great academic credentials, a great job, but everything feels completely foreign to him. 

JOHN’S CONCERNS AND CHALLENGES

• John is brand new to the country and has not yet established a US financial profile.
• He’s keen to start building his credit
• He needs to figure out his tax status and begin filing appropriately. He’s heard some horror stories around this and does not want to fall into the same trap.
• Bottom line, John doesn’t know what questions he needs to ask.

ELGON’S FINANCIAL PLANNING SOLUTION

When John reached out to Elgon, his initial question was how to go about establishing credit in the US. After a couple of conversations with advisor Jane Mepham, his questions expanded to include what else was needed to get him set up financially in the country.

• Jane guided John in successfully opening bank accounts and getting him set up with automatic payments of his bills. 
• She educated him on credit reports, credit history and credit scores and together they were able to use some of his international bank relationships to get started on this.
• He now has appropriate risk protection with renters’ insurance.
• Together Jane and John reviewed his companies benefits and selected health and disability insurance. Now John is contributing to his company’s retirement plan and receiving a valuable employer match.
• His first year here, taxes were a critical issue to consider. Jane and John worked with an international CPA to determine his tax status and filed accordingly including foreign assets reporting and taking into consideration tax treaty between the two countries. 
• So, John would be confident moving forward, Jane provided additional education in other areas, so he knew he was making the right financial decisions.  Some of these areas are
  • Financial Implications of changing his visa status and other green card (permanent residency) considerations.
  • Retirement saving in the US.
  • Currency exchange between the two countries,
  • Estate planning as a foreign national, insurance planning etc.
• John now has full access to his personal dashboard. This allows him to see his financial life in one place and continue to monitor it carefully as it changes over time.

Jane continues to be his accountability partner and a trusted contact as he learns more about this country and his new life here. 

He now feels confident exploring the US. during his downtime as he knows Elgon has an eye on his financial matters.