When is the right time to start preparing for international relocation

If you are planning to move abroad, you need to start preparing as soon as possible. International relocations are very complicated and stressful. You are not just moving to another home. You are moving to totally different country and culture. And preparing for it will require time. You will need to find and hire reliable international movers, gather necessary documents, prepare extensive paperwork, prepare your belongings, research the new country and much more. The general advice is that the right time to start preparing for international relocation is at least 6 months before the move. But sometimes that is just not possible. If you do not have that much time, start preparing at least 10 weeks before the move.

10 weeks before is the right time to start preparing for international relocation

Start preparing your documents

10 weeks before your international move is the right time to start preparing for your international move. At this stage of your preparation, you need to start gathering all necessary legal documents. Those are usually visas, residential and work permits. It usually takes lots of time to finish all around the paperwork. And it takes even more time for those documents to be processed. Therefore, 10 weeks before the move is really the last moment to start dealing with this.

Map and passport
Start with preparing your documents

Find appropriate and reliable international movers

There aren’t many moving companies that do international relocations. So you could have troubles with finding appropriate and reliable movers and shipping services Kuwait. As soon as you finish dealing with your paperwork, start searching for a reliable international moving company.

Choosing the best offer

International relocations are pretty expensive, so you will need time to compare the quotes that you received. When moving internationally it is important to get estimates from several different moving companies so you could pick the best deal. After you choose the best offer, evaluate it and make sure that everything is clearly stated and that there are no hidden expenses.

8 weeks before the move

Start preparing your moving plan

8 weeks before the move is really the last moment to start preparing your moving plan. Good organization and planning are crucial for every successful move.  Think about packing, arrival time, delivery times and such. Important thing is to know what will be waiting for you, and that there are no surprises.

Prepare your personal documents

When you are moving to another country you will need to take all the personal documents with you. Prepare the passport, your ID, driver’s license, medical card and similar. Prepare them before you are caught up in packing. Then you will be in a mess and could easily forget or lose them. And that is something that you cannot afford in this situation.

Searching for the right schools for your kids

If you are moving with kids, you need to start searching for the right school for them. In every country, there are public schools and there are private schools. And they all have their teaching programs. If you want to be sure that your kids are in good hands, learning from the best, start searching for the right school at least 8 weeks before the move.

School classroom
You also need to find the right school for your kids

Learn about the new country

As you are searching for a school, you should also start learning about your new country. If you are moving to Kuwait from the US there will be many different things concerning culture and customs. So, you need to be acquainted before you arrive in Kuwait. Luckily, many helpful websites could help you with this task.

6 Weeks before the move

Prepare your moving inventory

This is the time when you should start thinking about your items. The price of your move is determined according to the size and weight of your moving inventory. And since international relocations are so expensive, try to remove as many items as you can. The money you save on relocating them you can use to get new ones, once you arrive.

Notify everyone that you are leaving

Also, prepare the list of people that you need to notify about your move. Family, friends, acquaintances, colleagues, make a list and make sure that you notify them all.

4 Weeks before the move

Start planning your new home

Get a blueprint of your new home and start thinking about your new space. Where the furniture will fit. And how will you do it? It is not easy to do when your home is thousands of miles away, but at least you can an idea.

Utility cancelation

Also, do not forget about utilities. Contact your utility companies and schedule termination. Do not forget about the cable, internet and phone providers.

2 Weeks before the move

Gather your medical and school records

Gather your, and your family member’s medical records. If you have a pet, do not forget about him too. Also, take your kid’s school records; you will need them when you enroll them in their new school.

Exchange some money

If you want to obtain some local currency, you could exchange some money before the move. This way you will be able to buy something once you arrive, and you wouldn’t have to search for an exchange office.

Prepare medications

Also, very important is to prepare supplies of medications that you are currently taking. Maybe you will need time to find the right doctor once you arrive, and this will ensure that you have enough medications until you do.

medical record
Do not forget to bring your medical records with you

1 Week before the move

Start packing your items

This is the time to start packing. If you want to ease this task, hire professional packers and let them do this for you. They will do it much better and quicker than you. And you will be sure that your items are properly protected during the difficult journey.

Even though 10 weeks before is not the right time to start preparing for international relocation. It is really the last moment. The proper preparation should start the moment you learn about the move. And if you can you should start preparing 6 months before.