If you want to move abroad, it’ll quite possibly be the biggest thing you’ll ever do in your life. Setting up roots in a totally new country and culture, finding new friends and local spots, as well as maintaining contact back home – it’s a lot to handle! As such, we’ve already created some tips around moving internationally, but we should also talk about the initial stages of the process. That moment when you realise you want to move abroad and make a new home in another country – it can be absolutely magical! But it takes a lot of logistical planning as well, and you can’t leave it all up to your dreams.
Draw Up a Schedule
If you’re going to move abroad and you’ve already picked the place, set up a schedule of what needs to happen when. When do you contact the owner/seller of the house? When does your mortgage need to be in? When do you need to sell/move out of your current place? How long will the packing take? What documents need to be submitted and by when? If you’ve got a headache by now, so do we! But if you have the foresight to set up a schedule, you really can take each problem one at a time.
Apply for Your Visa Early
If you want to move ASAP, get your indefinite leave to remain application in ASAP. Honestly, as soon as you know you want to move, get the ball rolling to ensure you can settle into your new country legally. It could take upwards of 6 months for the visa to come through, and while that helps your schedule a little, it can make things a lot more expensive on your budget. But more on that later!
Look into Medical Concerns
Moving abroad could introduce you to a new world of bacteria. As such, head onto the NHS website and see if your destination will require you to get vaccinated, and at what point. And if you’ve got pets, don’t forget about their medical concerns either. Will they need any vaccinations of their own? Will they have to go through quarantine once arriving in your new country? Look it up now and see the entry requirements.
Draw Up a Minimum Budget
Now we come onto the budget you’ll need to strictly live by. And by minimum budget, we mean the least amount of money you’re going to have to spend to keep this process smooth. That might not sound hard to put together, but it’s not just your new home you’ll need to fork out for. You’ll need to account for anything that could go wrong, as well as the longest period of time it might take to move. Once you’ve got a picture of the minimum cost, you’ll have a much better aim for your savings pot.
Nearly 5 million British citizens live abroad. If you want to join them, make sure you know what it takes.
