Your first day at work

Your first week comes with forms that prove your right to work, set your tax withholding and choose your health insurance and retirement plan. Some of these choices are locked in for a year, so take time over them.

The forms in your first week

Proving your right to work

For the I-9, most Brits on a work visa show their UK passport together with their I-94 arrival record. Together they count as one “List A” document when your status lets you work for that employer, as long as the names match and the I-94 hasn’t expired. If you work on an Employment Authorization Document (EAD), you show that instead. Many employers also check your details through E-Verify, the government’s online system. If your Social Security number hasn’t arrived yet, tell HR: you can keep working, and the employer runs the check once you have the number. See Social Security number and US tax.

The W-4 and tax withholding

The W-4 for 2026 has five steps. Everyone completes Step 1 (name, address, filing status) and signs Step 5; the steps in between are for a second job or a working spouse, children and other dependants, and other income or deductions, and you can ask for extra tax to be withheld each pay period. If you are a “nonresident alien” for US tax in your first year, the form tells you to follow IRS Notice 1392, which changes how you fill it in. Your first US tax year can be unusual, so a cross-border (US–UK) tax adviser can help you set the W-4 right: see Telling HMRC and UK tax.

Besides income tax you pay FICA: 6.2% Social Security on pay up to $184,500 in 2026, and 1.45% Medicare on all pay. Your employer also withholds an extra 0.9% Medicare tax on pay above $200,000 in a calendar year (about £151,500).

Choosing your benefits

This is the decision most likely to cost you money if rushed. Your employer gives you a deadline to choose:

• A health plan: compare the premium (taken from each pay cheque), the deductible (what you pay for covered care before the plan starts to pay), copays and coinsurance, the out-of-pocket maximum and whether your doctors are in the network. For 2026, the out-of-pocket maximum on most plans can’t be more than $10,600 for one person or $21,200 for a family. See Healthcare and insurance
• Whether to cover your partner and children, which can cost much more than covering yourself
• A health savings account (HSA), if you pick a high-deductible plan that allows one. You pay in before tax and use it for medical costs such as deductibles
• Your 401(k) contribution, and how much your employer matches. See 401(k) and retirement accounts

Coverage may start on day one or after a wait; by federal law, a waiting period based only on time can’t be more than 90 days. After the deadline, you can usually change only at the yearly open enrolment or after a life event, such as a birth or marriage.

Payroll and pay stubs

Your contract or offer letter says how often you are paid; ask HR when your first payday is, as it may be a few weeks after you start, and budget for the gap. Your pay stub (payslip) shows gross pay, each tax withheld, benefit deductions and 401(k) contributions. Check the first one carefully: a wrong state, filing status or benefit choice is easier to fix early.

Holidays and time off

Federal law doesn’t require paid holidays or paid annual leave: the Department of Labor says these are a matter of agreement between you and your employer, though some states have their own rules. Your PTO (paid time off) comes from your contract. There are 11 federal holidays; in 2026 they include Juneteenth (19 June), Independence Day (observed on Friday 3 July) and Thanksgiving (26 November). Private employers choose which ones they give as paid days off. See Your rights at work and Working in the USA.