How do you move abroad?

Moving abroad can be highly stressful, but it should always be viewed as an opportunity. To make you initial decision, you need to consider your key reasons for leaving your current country of residence and understand if moving abroad will offer you a better solution.

Once you've decided to move, regardless of your age, there are a number of things that you must consider and put in place to be able to move abroad, including:

• Create a list of the key factors behind wanting to move and prioritise the things most important to you when considering where to live
• Research suitable places you'd like to live, looking at quality of life, employment opportunities, existing expat communities, cost of living and healthcare
• Identify any visa or entry requirements, such as points systems
• Talk to family and friends about your options
• Investigate local customs, language barriers and any cultural barriers to entry
• Look at financial sustainability, considering any job opportunities, pension requirements and ensure you have a suitable income. Also consider any currency exchange issues you may have
• Research living arrangements
• Visit potential places you may like to live in advance
• Create a list of pros and cons of moving to a particular country
• Plan your move by using a checklist of the important things you need to do before, during and after your move
• Move abroad

We have created a very helpful moving abroad checklist which looks at the important things you must remember to do when moving abroad.