Most moves go wrong in the same places: a permit or school place applied for too late, a lease signed in a hurry, and a first month spent queueing for the papers you needed in week one. This plan puts the slow things first. Your ticks are saved in this browser, and each list prints on its own.
Three months before
Start with whatever needs another authority's approval. Visas, school places and international removals all take longer than you expect.
Twelve weeks before
Six weeks before
Now find the home and plan the first month.
Six weeks before
The first week there
The first week is about getting registered. Many later steps (bank, health care, school, phone contract) need proof that you live at an address.
Week one
The first month
First month
Money for the first three months
Plan for more cash than you think. A typical budget for the first months includes the temporary flat, deposits and guarantees on the new lease (two to four months' rent in many countries), furniture and appliances, removal costs, school enrolment fees, and the gap before your first local salary. Use the affordability calculator for the rental part.
Questions people ask
Should I ship furniture or buy new?
Shipping a full container across Europe often costs as much as furnishing a flat. Ship what is valuable or meaningful, and remember that many rentals in southern Europe come furnished.
What should I do in the first 24 hours?
Get a working phone, find the nearest supermarket and pharmacy, and check the date of your registration appointment.
When do I become tax resident in the new country?
Often sooner than you think, and sometimes from the day you arrive. Read tax when you move abroad before you choose your moving date.
This guide is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Rules change; check the details with a local professional before you sign or pay anything.