International Moving

Moving from one city to another is already an act, now imagine moving from one continent to another. Even if you try to organize everything on your own, you soon will relize that it is impossible. I personally only moved one room worth of things and still, I was more then glad when the last package of goods finally left through my door straight into the container, destination Singapore.


Size Matters

It is probably very advisable to determine your need size of container/package first. Usually the moving companies will have fixed rates for fixed sizes (eg 4 cubique meters = 600$ etc.) So if you directly contact them with your needed amount of space, they will be probably come back to you much quicker with a detailed quote.
Before checking your flat and just throwing everything in into your estimation...you might want to check if there are things / furnitures which can be left behind/sold on ebay or just thrown away. Theres no need to move your old sofa, worse 50 bucks for costs of 200bucks, if you can get a brand new one for 150 $ at your new living place. (Read: 5 Biggest Mistakes When Moving Internationally)


Getting Quotes

If you have shortlisted a number of international moving companies (my recommendations with details below) you start getting quotes. The essential numbers you need and will get asked for everytime are most probably the following:
My recommendation is to send the same email, with all your details already given to the shortlisted companies requesting quotes. You will get a first idea of the costs and depending on the answers an idea for which company you more like or dislike as well.

• From where to where?
• How many cubique meters will your move include
• What kind of rooms do you move (bedroom, living room etc)
• Do you have large objects (beds, kitchen etc) that cant get disassembled
• Which floor do you live in (basement or 25th floor makes quite a difference)
• Is there space for a truck to load your belongings
• The way of shipping (air / ship)

Picture by photohome_uk


The little but very important details

The moving companies will most likely come back with offers and more questions regarding your move, visit your home to get more detailed quotes etc. And at one point you will have to decide for one of them. Following are some points that are very important to consider if to include in your final contract or not:

• Is the packing material provided?
• Is labeling, packing and delivering your goods to the departure place organized included?
• Is customs handling at departure and arrival included?
• Are the man-costs for handling your good included?
• Are sea taxes, custom taxes etc included?
• Are costs for eventual parking zone organization for packing your good included?
• Is the unpacking and delivering of your goods at the destination place included?
• In case you first need to find a new residence, how high are storage costs? (very important!!)
• How high is the amount the (included) insurance is covering

The Right Time

Once you have decided for a moving company, the contracts are written etc, you will need to choose a time for your moving. Be smart here. Once your flat is empty its not very comfortable to live their, so dont rush and get your house undone 2 month before moving. Furthermore, the longer your moving company has to store your belongings, the more you will pay for the storage space.

(Read:Packing List For Singapore)

Make Pre-Arrangements

It is very advisable to make piles of your stuff that you want to keep together or organized a special way shortly before the movers come and pack everything. It is also advisable to not leave anything behind that might result in custom problems. I realized 30 minutes after i send my stuff on its long travel that the movers had packed my gas-camping-fire, which...i only saw after signing the list about dangerous goods that my stuff should NOT contain.


Once You Have Arrived

Contact your moving company or the respective partners at your destination to get the current status of the whereabouts of your goods. Arrange eventual storage time and ask for daily updates on your stuff...the thing you dont want once you have successfully arrived is that your stuff gets lost or shipped to some wrong destination.