Before you start

A valid visa or other admission category, and work authorisation from DHS for anything paid
An electronic I-94 record from the CBP website
Two proofs of a Florida residential address
An appointment with a Hillsborough County Tax Collector licensing office

Step-by-step

1
Download your I-94 in the first few days
It records your admission class and 'admit until' date, and it is what employers, the licensing office and the Social Security Administration will ask for. Retrieved electronically from the CBP website, free.
OnlineWho: YouWeek 1
2
Wait about ten days, then apply for a Social Security number
The SSA verifies your status against DHS systems that lag entry by one to two weeks. File Form SS-5 in person with your passport, visa and I-94. There is no fee.
In personWho: YouFrom ~day 10Free
3
If you cannot get an SSN, file for an ITIN
IRS Form W-7 produces an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number for tax filing, accepted by many banks and landlords. It grants no right to work.
OnlineWho: You
4
Book a county licensing appointment as soon as you have an address
In Hillsborough County driver licence and vehicle services are delivered by the Tax Collector's offices acting for the state, on booked appointments that fill up. Book first and gather documents second — the 30-day window is short and the calendar is the constraint.
OnlineWho: YouWeek 1
5
Know that your licence expires with your status
Florida issues non-immigrants a driver licence valid only until the end of the authorised period on the immigration document. An extension of status means another appointment and another set of documents. Diary it against your I-94 date rather than assuming the licence runs its printed term.
In personWho: You
6
Establish whether your address is in a city or in unincorporated county
Hillsborough has only three incorporated cities. If you are in Brandon, Riverview, Carrollwood or Town 'n' Country you are in unincorporated county: the Sheriff's Office rather than a city police department, county code enforcement, county permits and no municipal property tax line. It changes which office handles almost everything local.
OnlineWho: You
7
Keep a copy of every immigration document in two places
The I-94, the visa page, the approval notices and the SSN card get asked for repeatedly across the first year — by employers, banks, landlords, the tax collector and the marketplace. Scan them once and keep the set somewhere you can reach from a phone.
OnlineWho: You

Documents you’ll need

Passport with valid visa
I-94 admission record from the CBP website
Form SS-5 for a Social Security number, or IRS Form W-7 for an ITIN
Two proofs of a Florida residential address
Employment authorisation document, where applicable
Certified English translations of any non-English documents

Things most newcomers don’t know

Most of this metro has no city government at all.

Hillsborough County contains only Tampa, Temple Terrace and Plant City as incorporated municipalities, and the unincorporated areas hold more people than the City of Tampa. For a newcomer that means the Sheriff rather than a police department, county rather than city permits, and no municipal tax line — the opposite of South Florida, where a single county can hold thirty-one separate city governments.

Source: Hillsborough County

In Florida the county tax collector, not a state DMV, is who you deal with.

Florida delegates most driver licence and vehicle services to county tax collector offices acting as state agents. The booking system, the queue and the office hours are Hillsborough County's, and advice written for a state-run DMV elsewhere does not describe the process here.

Source: Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles

A non-immigrant licence expires when your status does.

Florida ties the validity of a licence issued to a temporary visa holder to the authorised period on the immigration document. People renew their status and forget the licence did not renew with it, then discover the problem at a traffic stop or a rental counter. Diary both dates together.

Source: Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles

The visa sticker's expiry is not your permission to stay.

A visa authorises travel to a port of entry; the officer there decides how long you may remain and records it on the I-94. People routinely plan around the wrong date and discover the error at renewal.

Source: US Customs and Border Protection — I-94 record

Common mistakes to avoid

Assuming a 'Tampa, FL' postal address means the City of Tampa governs it — much of the metro is unincorporated county.
Visiting a Social Security office in the first week, before DHS records have synced.
Turning up without an appointment and losing days off the 30-day window.
Renewing immigration status and forgetting the driver licence expired with the old one.
Budgeting for a registration renewal and being hit with Florida's much larger initial registration fee.

Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.