Start With Your Decision

D1 — Go, wait, or don’t?

The question: Should you move at all, and now? It turns on five things: 12+ months runway at SF burn, a US-weighted market, a lawyer-validated visa path, 3+ year commitment, and demonstrated pull from US customers or investors. Three or fewer yeses means wait — and “wait” is a strategy with a to-do list, not a rejection. Read: Reality Check (03), Scout Trip (00)

D2 — Which visa path?

The question: B-1 scout now — then O-1, H-1B, or L-1? It turns on your evidence profile and your entity. The O-1 (extraordinary-ability visa: no cap, no lottery, needs 3 of 8 criteria — funding, press, awards, judging) is the founder default in 2026. H-1B is a lottery with a wage-weighted system that penalises modest founder salaries. L-1A works if you’ve run an Indian entity 1+ years and open a US office. Start the O-1 evidence folder regardless — it’s also your fundraising credibility file. Read: Visa Paths, Scout Trip (00)

D3 — Entity: flip, fresh, or subsidiary?

The question: Delaware flip (US parent, Indian company becomes subsidiary), fresh US incorporation, or a US subsidiary of your Indian parent? It turns on where your investors and revenue will sit. US VCs overwhelmingly want a Delaware C-Corp parent. But the flip is expensive to reverse — reverse-flipping later can trigger heavy US capital-gains tax (Meesho’s cost ran into hundreds of millions) — so don’t flip on speculation. Fresh incorporation is cleanest if the Indian entity has little history; subsidiary keeps optionality if India remains your base. Jargon: Flip (restructuring so a new US company owns your Indian company). Read: Entity Decision, Remote Setup (14)

D4 — Trip length: scout, sprint, or permanent?

The question: 2-week scout, 3-month sprint (B-1 max stay is typically 6 months), or the one-way move? It turns on how much you’ve validated. No US pull yet → scout. Validated pull but visa pending → sprint(s) while the O-1 files. Visa in hand and D1 says go → permanent. Skipping straight to permanent without a scout is how people discover SF prices and isolation simultaneously. Read: Scout Trip (00), Reality Check (03)

D5 — Solo first, or family together?

The question: Move alone and set up, or land together? It turns on housing and schools. Solo-first (4–8 weeks) lets you pick an area, secure a lease and absorb the chaos before your family lands — but doubles housing costs briefly and delays their settling. Family-together works when kids’ school-year timing forces it; then you must nail the area decision faster. Spouse work rights depend on your visa type — check before deciding. Read: Family Logistics, Where to Live

D6 — SF vs Peninsula vs South Bay vs East Bay?

The question: Where do you actually live? It turns on your daily graph. SF proper: highest events/investor density, highest rent (~$4,000+ median 1BR, mid-2026), best for pre-seed networking. Peninsula (Palo Alto–Redwood City): VC proximity, quieter, car-ish. South Bay: cheaper-ish, enterprise/hardware gravity, car mandatory. East Bay: best value, real commute. Decide from the ground in month 1 — never from India. Read: Where to Live, Housing

D7 — Short-term stay vs lease?

The question: When do you sign a 12-month lease? It turns on the area decision. Book weeks 1–4 furnished (co-living, hacker house, monthly sublet), decide your area, then lease. Leases need proof of income or a fat deposit, and your rental resume (documents packet: funds proof, India landlord references, company story) does the work your missing US credit score can’t. Read: Housing, Remote Setup (14)

D8 — Keep Indian number and banking, or cut over?

The question: How much of your Indian financial identity do you keep alive? Keep the number, always — Indian bank OTPs, UPI and Aadhaar services die without it. Run dual SIM: US eSIM primary, Indian SIM on roaming for SMS. Banking: keep accounts (convert to NRO/NRE as your residency status changes — talk to your bank), keep one Indian card active. Cutting over fully is a year-three decision, not a week-one one. Read: Remote Setup (14), Credit & Banking

D9 — Travel insurance vs marketplace plan?

The question: How are you covered, and when do you switch? It’s a sequence, not a choice: travel insurance covers days 0–60; Covered California’s special-enrolment window for new residents closes 60 days after your move — enrol inside it or risk months uninsured at $1,500–3,500 per uninsured ER visit. Unsubsidised premiums average ~$728/month in 2026; budget it like rent. Read: Health Insurance

D10 — Corridor VCs, US-native funds, or angels?

The question: Who do you pitch first? It turns on your story’s legibility. Corridor funds (US–India cross-border investors who know both markets) price Indian traction correctly and move on thinner US proof. US-native funds pay better prices but pattern-match on networks you’re still building — they’re your second wave. Operator angels (often Indian-origin) are the fastest first cheques and the intro engine to both. Map all three before you pitch any. Read: Fundraising, Community

Do this now

• ☐ Answer D1 in writing before touching the others
• ☐ Book the immigration-lawyer consult (D2) — every later decision has a visa dependency
• ☐ Don’t decide D3 alone — entity mistakes cost six figures to unwind; get counsel
• ☐ Put the D9 60-day insurance deadline in your calendar the day you land

Nobody tells you

• Decisions D2 and D3 are entangled: your entity structure determines who can sponsor your visa (an L-1 needs the Indian parent; an O-1 petition is cleaner with a US entity). Founders who decide them separately often have to redo one.
• The 2026 H-1B wage-weighted selection quietly worsened the founder path — low founder salaries rank poorly — which is why O-1 has become the default advice from startup immigration lawyers this cycle.
• The flip is fashionable but increasingly questioned: with India’s fast-track reverse-merger process (90–120 days) and Meesho-scale tax bills on unwinding, 2026 counsel is “flip when a US lead cheque requires it, not before.”

Sources & further reading

• Best US visa options for pre-seed founders in 2026 — Alma — O-1 vs H-1B vs alternatives, founder-specific.
• O-1 visa for startup founders — Lighthouse — the 8 criteria and what evidence actually works.
• The Delaware Flip: how and why startups reincorporate — SPZ Legal — mechanics and costs of the flip.
• The Reverse Flip Playbook for Indian founders — Treelife — why founders unwind flips and what it costs.
• Quick overview: reverse flips and the return of Indian startups — ACC — tax and process context, including fast-track mergers.
• CorridorX — US–India startup corridor platform — directory of cross-border investors and operators.
• Average rent in San Francisco — Zumper — live numbers for the D6 cost comparison.
• Special Enrollment — Covered California — the 60-day rule behind D9.