While relocating abroad can benefit your everyday life in various meaningful ways, there are some challenges you’ll need to overcome during the process of moving. Unfortunately, the cost of moving abroad will probably be your most significant challenge.
Aside from choosing the right international school for your kids, the costs of getting to your new home country will be your first concern.
When calculating the cost of relocation, your major expenses will include flight costs, shipping your belongings, securing temporary accommodation, and the potential need for a storage facility. But that’s not where it ends; you will also need to consider all those sneaky hidden costs of relocating, like transportation costs upon arrival, customs taxes, duties, the prices of transporting pets, replacing belongings left behind, and so much more.
Instead of prolonging your departure to save more money and afford the move, we have listed some of the more practical ways to save money when relocating, so you can start your new life as an expatriate sooner and with less financial stress.
Budget Carefully
The best way to save money in any situation is to create a detailed budget that itemizes every cost, regardless of how small. Instead of only considering the higher costs, it’s essential to make a budget that details every expense.
With this, you must also consider the impact the exchange rate will have on some costs, such as transportation upon arrival, temporary accommodation, and other essential expenses you won’t be able to avoid.
Purchase Relevant Insurance
An unpredictable mishap can send your finances into instant distress, that is if you aren’t protected with the right insurance policies.
The most beneficial insurance policies for expatriates are international shipping insurance and global health insurance. While you can access shipping insurance with your chosen international moving company, you can find out more about accessing global health insurance here.
International health insurance provides coverage for healthcare needs, emergency evacuation, trip cancellation, lost luggage, and much more.
Compare Moving Company Quotes
International moving services don’t come cheap. Often, expatriates decide to sell everything and move with the bare essentials as a result.
But if you want to ship your belongings without spending a fortune, the best approach is to compare quotes from all international moving companies in your area. This way, you’ll be able to find the most affordable deal.
Declutter Your Home
When searching for an international moving company, you might find the costs of moving your entire household a bit nauseating. Unlike when moving to a new neighborhood, the costs of moving everything overseas are typically unaffordable for most expatriates.
As a result, it’s wise to declutter your home, sell as much as possible, and only ship what you absolutely have to. With this, it’s more affordable to purchase new furniture abroad than it is to ship furniture. So, consider only moving abroad with items of sentiment and necessity.
Pick The Right Time
Choosing the right time to depart is the most effective way to lower flight costs. While booking your flight about seventy days before departure is highly recommended, you can save a lot more by booking your flight during off-peak seasons.
Flights that depart during inconvenient hours, such as after midnight, are also a bit cheaper than flights departing during the day.
Choose The Best Flight Route
If you decide to spend more time picking apart your flight costs, you can save even more by choosing the most affordable flight route. You might find that opting for additional connecting flights might lower the price.
Transfer Money Abroad Before The Move
It can be pretty costly to convert your funds into the correct currency upon arrival. Moreover, this approach might also leave you unable to access your funds for some time, which will be understandably stressful for any expatriate.
Instead, consider opening a foreign banking account now and then transferring funds across in the meantime. This way, you will have access to funds when you arrive, and you will avoid hefty currency conversion fees as well.
Sort Out Your Taxes
Tax obligations can emerge and cause a financial upset when relocating. Instead of assuming your taxes are in order, it’s essential to consult a tax accountant before moving abroad to ensure tax compliance doesn’t disrupt your move.
Unfortunately, if your taxes are not in order, you might be liable for penalty fees, which can set off your budget at the last minute. A tax accountant can lower your tax totals and ensure compliance.
Even though relocating abroad is a pretty expensive venture, there are several ways to lower the costs without prolonging your departure. Nevertheless, once you have settled the finances of moving abroad, you might want to consider hiring a relocation agent to help you manage the mountains of paperwork and admin. A relocation agent will assist with all essential documents like your visa, work permit, medical records, credit checks, employment records, etc.