How to Get a New Life Abroad

Published on Friday, January 07th, 2005
Living Abroad » Starting a New Life Abroad

Summary: How to find the courage and commitment to make your new life abroad a reality.

Step Five - Visit the countries you’ve short listed as dream destinations.

This may sound so obvious to many people, but unfortunately in my time as an expat in 5 very different countries I’ve met many people who have made the move based on house prices or photographs alone and seriously regret their decision. 

You have to get a feel for a country before you make a commitment to it.

First impressions do count but they are not the be all and end all - when you spend longer in a place you begin to see both the cracks and the hidden treasures.

Take time getting to know a country, an area.  If practically possible take several long breaks there at different times of the year.  Understand the seasons, the customs, the people.  How does a holiday resort fare out of season?  How does that quiet isolated island cope with an influx of tourists? 

Use the internet, the library and the telephone to find out even more about your chosen destination.  Familiarise yourself with your preferred country as much as you possibly can before you make a final decision.

On the internet you may find expat forums - speak to the people who already live in your country of choice - ask them outright about their experiences.  Most expats are proud of their relocation achievement and will happily tell you EVERYTHING, from how easy it is to find a dentist to how friendly the locals REALLY are towards incomers!

Any time and money you spend in researching your ideal destination will never be wasted if it brings you one step closer to getting a true feel for the place. 

Better to waste a holiday than the rest of your life!!!

Step Six - Remember that you can’t run away from your problems or who you are.

Problems, issues, debts and emotional baggage will follow you around the world! 

You’ll still react to upsets the same way whether you’re at home or abroad. 

Self knowledge is the key to success in life.  Problems always crop up, but if you can learn to live or deal with them before you go, you are far more likely to survive life abroad.

Step Seven - Ready, steadily, go!

If you’ve done your homework, covered all the considerations and suggestions I’ve made, and researched all your options you will have found your motivation, found the inner stoicism to see this through, and you will ultimately have your new life mapped out in your mind.

You are now ready to make the whole thing happen!

It’s time to move steadily through the practicalities of sorting out your old life and preparing your new life.

And if you spend time dealing with the necessary organisation and arrangements, the time to go will come around so quickly, you’ll soon find you’re living your new life abroad and never looking back.

At this point personal circumstances dictate progress. 

The following are areas of your life you will now need to get in order and arrange...the list may not be exhaustive, furthermore there may be certain aspects of your life that will take priority and certain aspects that I do not cover. 

Just take this list as your starting point and build your own personal check list...then take time to think about each point you’ve noted down and what steps you have to take in order to tick it off and move on.

When juggling the transition from old life to new there is an awful lot to keep in mind and it can be easy to lose your way and forget certain things - like where you put the flight tickets, or when to cancel the milk and newspapers back home! 

By keeping a list or journal you can plot your progress and scare other people with your efficiency!

Immigration - Before you do anything else, before you even begin to consider planning or moving you have to make sure you are 100% legally allowed to move to your country of choice and set up a new life there.  If there is a set immigration procedure or you have to acquire a certain visa or document to ensure you will be allowed to settle in the country make sure you do this FIRST.

There is no point doing anything else towards your move before you have all the important documents in your hand and all the necessary bureaucracy has been handled.

Prepare and submit any visa or immigration applications in plenty of time before your ideal moving date and then do nothing but wait for the result.

Only then can you start to plan effectively.

Money - Examine all the debts you have currently, which ones will move with you, which ones you can pay off and which ones will be wiped out by, say, the sale of your house.

Cover every single bill you pay - from your mortgage, your savings, your credit cards and your monthly outgoings.

Make sure you have enough coming in to cover essential outgoings during any transitional period - e.g., if you move abroad and your house has not yet sold for example.

Consider also the cost of living you will encounter in your new country.  Factor in everything from any deposits you will have to pay for rental accommodation, any bonds for getting services connected, extra money for hiring a car initially.

If you’re buying a new house abroad or considering purchasing any significant items such as transportation or furniture, work out how much you are going to need based on local prices and then work out how you are going to finance that.

Then take into account the money you will need to finance the move - from removal costs to bridging loans for example.

Know what money is coming in from where and when, and get a break down of what amount of money will need to go out and in which directions.

Relocating can be costly, if you keep a fairly tight rein on your purse strings you should get through alright.  But be aware that the unexpected often happens, especially when you’re taking such drastic action!  If at all possible have some money to cushion you, even if you use it to buy champagne to toast your new life!

Employment - Do you have work secured, is your company relocating you, will you need a job when you arrive, are you going to be relying on the local economy? 

Think carefully about the realities and practicalities of the decisions you make.  If you are hoping to find work when you arrive and will need this work’s income to afford to live, you have to be very careful and make sure that your salary expectations are achievable and that the local jobs market can accommodate you. 

If you need £20 a day to survive and the local economy only pays out £10 a day how are you going to live?

Don’t overlook this factor in terms of planning and preparing, don’t assume you’ll be able to sort this one out when you get there.

Schools - If you’re relocating with children when do the new school terms start, what about enrolling them in a new school?

When to go - If you’re fairly free to choose when you make the move, think about when the best time is for you to go.  Factor in the weather and season when you plan on going, if it’s high tourist season how easy and affordable will it be to find accommodation, what about employment prospects if you move out of season...all these things should be factored in to your planning.

Selling up - What goes with you, what stays behind?  What can you give away, recycle, dump or sell?  Will you need to sell a house, a car, furniture?  Think about the timing of your decisions; plan ahead.

Packing up - Think about the cost of removals, get quotations.  What can you realistically think of living without in terms of personal possessions?  Is it cheaper to travel lightly, sell up at home and buy new in the new country?  Also, are you allowed to import used personal effects tax free or will you be taxed on all or some of your belongings if you choose to bring them into your new country.  Often the poorer the country you’re moving to the more they will tax if you attempt to bring items in with you.  A good relocation or international removal company should be able to help you find out.

Pets - Transportation, vaccinations, documentation...costs and timings.

Documentation - Get copies and originals of everything you can think of!  From your passports, medical records, children’s school records and reports, professional qualifications, wills, savings certificates, useful telephone numbers, wedding and birth certificates.  Take copies with you, get copies translated if you think it will help and keep an entire set of copies safe and accessible with a friend, family member or lawyer back home...just in case!

Doctors, dentists, medication - Do you need check-ups or medication before you go?  Do you need additional health insurance in your new country?  Will you need a medical, do you need any vaccinations?

Flights & accommodation - You have to get to your new country and you need somewhere to base yourself when you get there!  Obvious, but write it on your list and tick it off when it’s all arranged.

Services & utilities - From gas, water, electricity, telephone, mobile phone contracts, subscriptions, milkman, council tax, insurances etc., who needs informing you’re leaving, who needs informing you’re arriving. 

Make sure you inform these people and companies in plenty of time.  In Germany you need to inform some of them about a year before you want to come or go, in the UK between one and three months is the norm and in Cyprus sometimes the same day is sufficient!

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