It’s Time to Move

It’s time to move to Thailand.

Now what?

Once the decision is made to move to Thailand full time, you will be flooded with all kinds of thoughts and emotions.

It is quite a massive undertaking that many mis-underestimate.

Making a moving checklist or finding one on social media from someone that has already moved is probably the smartest thing a person can do.

There is just so much to do and remember to do before you move.

Here are a few things for your checklist to do before you get on the airplane:

1. Make sure your Passport is up to date and has plenty of time/pages/entries left.
2. Apply for your VISA.
3. Inform the embassy in your country that you are moving to Thailand.
4. Gather all your important documents and make digital copies. Marriage certificate, birth certificates, medical, education, etc.
5. Getting rid of your belongings. You can sell these, donate these or hire an estate sale company to sell them for you.
6. Selling/donating any vehicles you may own.
7. Scheduling to have your utilities turned off. Water, electricity, internet, trash, cable tv, lawn care service, car insurance and any other bills you won’t need. If you are selling your house you will have to coordinate the shut off date on closing. (Be sure to clear ALL bills before you leave).
8. Mobile phones. Cancel all the mobile phones you have except 1. Find the cheapest plan to keep a US number while you are living in Thailand. T-mobile offers free international texting.
9. Bank Accounts – You need to research which bank will be most cost effective if you have to make money transfers to Thailand each month. Cancel all others.
10. Make sure your retirement account, Roth, IRA is setup and easily accessible from overseas.
11. Set up a virtual mailbox in order to still have a US address.
12. Figure out which clothes you will take with you and donate the rest.
13. Sort out your credit cards. Do you really need 20 US credit cards while living in Thailand? Research which are the best credit cards to use internationally with no fees and only keep 1 or 2. Cancel the rest.
14. If you are taking medical prescriptions, research to see if they are available in Thailand, bring all records of your prescriptions.
15. Research your flights for the best time and price.
16. Say final goodbyes to family and friends.
17. Have an up to date Legal Will to take care of your loved ones.

Don’t stress yourself out trying to do all these tasks in one day. Pace yourself!

Thailand relocation checklist