Preparing for an international relocation has never been easier. It is a mammoth task that drains your energy and causes you sleepless nights. However, with strategic planning, better arrangement of finances, management of documentation, and cultural adjustments, you will get a smooth transition, irrespective of the country you are moving to.
Whether you are moving to the USA, the UK, or Canada for employment or to settle there permanently, you need to devote enough time to planning your move. Preparing for an international move is not at all easy. With so many things to manage, most people fail to plan their move perfectly. Well, moving to another country is not an easy chore, as you need to prepare for it a few months before your actual move. An international relocation is full of challenges, which make your overall move stressful. Thus, the simplest way to experience a smooth transition is to prepare your move before starting it. Here are a few important things you can keep in mind while moving abroad: –
Prepare a Moving Checklist
If you organize your international move a few months before starting it, you can expect a stress-free relocation. You should first prepare a moving checklist, as that will make things easier for you. Just think about all the things that you need to carry or manage before your international relocation. Preparing a checklist will help you organize your relocation. You need to focus on the essential documentation, logistics, financial matters, and personal preparation while making this list. A checklist will be a handy guide for you that will help you organize your move. Sort your things and check what items you need to donate or sell. Making a list of essential items for your move will reduce your moving expenses and save you time.
Work Permits and Visa
You should apply for your work permit and visa 2-3 months before your international move. This will remove much of your stress during the move. The visa and work permit process is long, so you need to apply for these documents as early as you can. You need to arrange a lot of documents for these processes. Thus, you need enough time to get them. Also, these processes often get delayed. Thus, if you apply for them early, you will get them easily at the time of your relocation.
Learn the Language
What would you do in a foreign country if you don’t know how to speak the native language of your destination country? If you are relocating to a non-English-speaking country like Japan and China, you must learn the basic language.
If you are aware of the basic dialect, you will not face any difficulty interacting with the locals. You can also share your problem easily with them if you talk to them in their language. Thus, learning the local language of the destination country is a must. You can either enroll yourself in a reputed language centre or learn the language online.
Learning the language online will help you study at your own pace. Also, you will have all the videos so that you can watch them again. Many people take the help of YouTube videos to learn the language of their destination country.
Medical and Educational Records
You should also manage your medical and educational records before moving abroad. Remember, you need to plan for your international move depending on the country you are moving to. The reason behind it is that each country has its own rules and regulations.
Thus, you need to manage your documents based on that. Some of the important documents that you need to arrange include health and educational documents. Most countries want you to be properly vaccinated before you arrive there. Plus, you must also not suffer from any communicable disease such as Tuberculosis and HIV.
Apart from health documents, you should also carry your educational documents before your move. You will need to show them to the Govt authorities at the time of your move.
Look for the Support Resources
It is also important to search for support resources before moving to another country. This will help you move seamlessly to your destination country. You will find information about the online expat communities and join them.
You will get to know many things about your new destination. Remember, every country wants you to follow its rules and regulations. If you don’t follow them, you will be deported to your country. Hence, make sure to know all the rules of the country you are relocating to. This will help you a lot in managing your move.
Scanning and Uploading Your Documents
Apart from moving your documents, you also need to store them online. Remember, it is important to store your important medical and financial records online. You can scan your documents and save them to the hard drive. You can upload them to a cloud device. If you have them on the cloud, you can easily access them wherever you go. Some of the documents that you can upload to the cloud include birth certificates, financial records, medical records, degrees, etc.
Manage Your Finances
An international relocation is a costly affair. Thus, you need to start saving money for it as early as possible. Remember, many expenses can make your international move costly, such as visa fees, flight tickets, the cost of living in your destination country, etc.
Hence, if you want to manage these expenses, you need to start saving money for that. Managing your moving expenses efficiently will help you move to another country without any stress. You should manage your finances in India before relocating to another country. If you are moving to a new country permanently, you need to sell your property in India. After selling it, you can save the money for the future.
You also need to manage your debts in India before going to another country. If you have any home loans or personal loans, you should make a plan to close them as soon as possible. Remember, you need to close these loans before your international move. It is impossible to manage them from a foreign country. Remember, if you don’t close these loans in time, it will affect your financial health.
Create a Budget for Your New Lifestyle
When you move to a new country, you will need to adopt a different lifestyle. Thus, you need to save enough funds for this transition. However, you should research the living costs of your new country first to switch to a new lifestyle. Get information about the costs of food, transportation, and other leisure activities to create a new budget. When you collect the necessary information about the living costs of your destination country, you will not find it hard to manage the new expenses.
De-clutter
De-cluttering is also important if you want to prepare for your international move. It is a process to sort out the items that are of no use to you. However, it is not easy to identify them. You need to devote a lot of time to picking these belongings.
To start with, you need to go into every single room of your house and check the items that are lying unused. If you look closely, you will find many items in your home that you have not used for a long time. It is important to make a list of these items and consider donating or selling them according to your requirements.
If you want to donate your old belongings, you can find an NGO and donate them there. However, you can also sell them online. There are many portals where you can sell your second-hand stuff at the best prices. You need to make a profile on these sites and post the photos of your items there. The interested people will express their interest in buying these articles and offer a price. If you like their offer, you can sell your goods at their offered prices.
Book Your Flight Early
Booking your flights at the eleventh hour will land you in many problems. First of all, you will need to pay much to book them. Also, you will not be able to book your desired airline. Thus, you can consider booking your flight as early as possible. If you make haste, you will be able to book your preferred airline. Plus, you only need to pay the right amount for the flights.
Update Your Passport
Another important thing to do before your international move is to update your passport. If you have an old password, you need to renew it before moving abroad. Without the renewal of the passport, you can’t start your journey.
International Move Preparation Tips: Conclusion
If you want to make your international move a successful affair, you need to prepare for it. Learning the language, arranging the visa, and carrying medical and educational records are some of the ways to prepare for your international move. If you are well-prepared, you can experience a hassle-free move from India to another country.