Moving Abroad? Some Useful Things To Remember

Travelling abroad has never been hassle-free with the falling Euro. A “golden ticket” also known as U.S. passport may place the world to be dearer but a large difference looms between simply travelling and actually moving abroad. Beirut Storage understands the importance of moving and relocation services, but in this blog we go one step ahead in helping the movers understand and remember vital things when moving abroad.

First things first- managing all the paperwork:

Seek whether you will require a visa or not, if yes what type. Apply for the visa at least six weeks in advance to draft a well-forged plan.

For instance, some countries like European Union and United Kingdom, permit U.S. citizens travel and stay there without visa for minimum 90 days during 180-day period. However, most countries require you to have visas for longer stays (three-six months)

Check with the country’s immigration department for its regulations. Unlike moving abroad during a stint where your company assists in your visa process, moving independently requires a tourist visa for an extended stay.

Stay in budget:

Before moving abroad, draft a budget and try not exceeding it. While preparing a budget, factor in moving prices, exchange rates, and other foreseeable charges. Ensure you have sufficient funds in your savings account during emergency scenarios.

Check with your bank and ensure it allows debit card and credit card usage overseas.

Decide with regards to moving and storage requirements

You may need help moving your belongings with you to a new country or having them stored in utmost security while you’re gone.

Image credit: gov.uk

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How to Choose your Moving Company

Moving companies nowadays offer a range of services. These include packing, unpacking, hiring or sale of packaging material and even storage. At your request, they can even unpack your possession in your new home and place them according to your instruction. With such a plethora of services, it is easy to get lost amongst the several moving services in the market. With this blog, we are here to make the choice easy for you.

Here are a few questions you should answer before you call a moving company to enquire about their services:

• How far are you relocating? Is it local, long-distance or international?
• Would you want help packing?
• Would you want to hire/buy packing materials?
• Would you want the moving company to transport all your items or would you want them to just take care of the valuable and fragile items?
• Would you be doing the moving yourself and only need to hire the vehicle?
• Are you going to throw away or donate some things before moving?
• How much insurance will you need?

Image Credit: themoving.company

Here are some things to keep in mind before you finalize on your moving company:

• Call the moving company and ask for at least 3 references. Make sure that the companies know that you are asking for numbers of previous customers. Call the references and ask them questions about the kind of services that they had from the moving company.
• Identify the items that you want to move yourself and the items that you want the moving company to take care of.
• Make an inventory of all the items that have to be moved.
• When the representative comes over, take him through your house and tell him exactly which items need moving. Tell them which items you will move yourself and which items they should handle. Also let the movers know if you want them to dismantle and pack any item. It is better to leave the dismantling and packing of heavier items for movers.
• Tell the movers the exact location of your new house. It is also important to know if there are any obstacles such as narrow hallways or staircases and inform your mover accordingly.
• Remember to prioritize. If you hire a mover only because they offer you a cheaper price, you might sacrifice on other things, such a safety, customer service and getting your items delivered on time.

We hope that with these tips, you will do your research before hiring movers.  Make sure that you book your moving company 4-8 weeks in advance so that you get your choice of movers.

At Beirut Moving and Storage, we provide the most efficient and customer centric moving options. Call us or fill our form to know more. You also offer storage options and will be more than happy to provide references.

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