International moving checklist for families

Start with the decisions that control the rest of the move

Do not begin with removals quotes or a one-way flight. First establish that your family has a workable immigration route, a school and healthcare plan, and a budget that includes the expensive annual items. These decisions can change the destination, city and departure date.

Keep one planning sheet with the source, date checked, owner and next action for every important decision. A screenshot or saved PDF is useful when a rule changes, but always return to the responsible authority before acting.

• Confirm passport validity and the destination's current entry and residence requirements for every nationality in the family.
• Ask shortlisted schools for written admissions requirements, available year or grade, deposits, annual fees and support arrangements.
• Compare healthcare access and insurance using the family's actual conditions, medicines, planned care and likely location.
• Build a first-year budget that includes deposits, school joining costs, insurance, temporary housing, travel and a contingency fund.

Prepare family documents before notice periods begin

Birth, marriage, adoption, custody, school and professional documents may need certified copies, translation, notarisation, an Apostille or consular legalisation. The correct route depends on the document, where it was issued, the country receiving it and the purpose for which it will be used.

The Hague Apostille Convention replaces traditional legalisation with an Apostille only between places where the Convention applies. It does not prove the contents of a document, and it does not remove a receiving authority's translation, recency or original-document requirements.

• Ask the receiving immigration authority, school or other organisation exactly which version it accepts before ordering certification.
• Keep originals in hand luggage and encrypted copies in a secure account that both adults can reach.
• Check consent requirements when a child travels with one parent, a guardian or a different surname.
• Record replacement routes for passports, bank cards and essential documents before departure.

Treat travel, belongings and pets as separate projects

Compare accompanied luggage, air freight, sea freight, storage and replacement rather than assuming the family home should be shipped in full. Ask for a written inventory, insurance terms, customs responsibilities, likely destination charges and a realistic delivery range.

Pet travel runs on its own timetable. Destination permits, vaccination or blood-test timing, airline acceptance, transit rules, containers and quarantine can interact. IATA also advises checking the operating airline's procedures directly because airline and country requirements differ.

• Keep a first-month suitcase plan in case shipped belongings arrive later than expected.
• Check customs relief for household goods with the destination customs authority rather than relying only on a mover's summary.
• Book temporary accommodation that works for school visits, healthcare and ordinary errands—not only sightseeing.
• Confirm how each family member and pet gets from the arrival airport to the first home.

Make the first two weeks boring in the best possible way

The first days should not depend on a single phone, card or adult. Carry several ways to pay, offline contact details, insurance and medicine information, copies of bookings and a simple plan for food, transport, sleep and school administration.

Leave room in the schedule. Jet lag, illness, bank verification, local holidays or a delayed shipment can turn an over-filled arrival plan into unnecessary pressure.