If you want a stress-free immigration process, you’ll want to be well-prepared for this usually stressful ordeal. To avoid any hiccups at the border, you need to do your research on visas, deadlines, and paperwork. Take care of these things ahead of time, so you don’t have to worry about them when you arrive.
Get Legal Representation
Although it’s possible to fill out the correct forms and file them correctly on your own, it could be a risk if you’re not quite sure about what you’re doing. If you need help filing or just want peace of mind that things are being handled correctly, then be sure to hire an attorney. Lawyers often offer flat-fee pricing for this kind of paperwork, so make sure to ask for this before hiring one.
Make Sure You Have All Required Documentation
This is another step where hiring an immigration lawyer could save you some stress. Pack doubles the amount of documentation required because there’s no guarantee they’ll believe everything is accurate without seeing proof yourself. A passport can be accepted as proof, but only the latest version; any older passports will not be valid. If you have a copy of your degree or work permit, bring that as well. The moment your immigration process is approved, change all your information to reflect your new identity (name, phone number, address). Use this time to make copies of government documents like tax forms and utility bills, especially when seeking asylum. This will save you stress in the future when your tax information is lost or destroyed for some reason.
Open an International Bank Account
For any money sent into the country that’s not being brought in for personal use, it must be opened with a financial institution first. Open up an international bank account before coming to the country so if you transfer any funds over they’ll arrive faster and won’t get held up at customs. This will save you time once you’re already living there too because it will make transferring money even easier. Opening an international bank account is never a straightforward process. There are many factors you need to consider before deciding on the best bank for your needs, including fees, ease of use, and customer service. You’ll also want to make sure that the institution has access to all of the different currencies you might need in order to complete transactions with people around the world. And if you’re opening up accounts for family members or business partners, be aware that they may not have had much experience with banks outside their home country, so it’s important to help them navigate this unfamiliar territory.
Pack Your Food
When it comes to food, it’s much less expensive to buy groceries at home and pack them in your luggage rather than buying food at local grocery stores when you arrive. Try buying dry goods like canned foods, cereals, oatmeal, rice, pasta, sauces, and spices in bulk, so there are no gaps between moves to different cities. Packing your food means avoiding hidden charges that come along with having large amounts of food delivered to your door, or trying to find somewhere that sells what you need without being too expensive. Although you can pack snacks from home if you want, these can sometimes be expensive to ship. If you want more options, make sure to shop for snacks at duty-free stores or bring enough cash with you for this purpose. While many grocery store chains have a lot of the same products from home, some things just can’t be matched, so it’s best to have these as well. Packing your food and snacks will save you money in the long run if you’re moving abroad because delivery charges aren’t free and neither is having large amounts of groceries dropped off at your door. Make sure to check if local stores sell what you would normally buy back home before going shopping, though!
Pack Liquor Carefully
Take care to pack liquor carefully because heavy bottles might break during transit. If you’re moving abroad, then don’t take any liquor that isn’t plastic-bottled or corked because it could break and cause a mess not only in your luggage but also in the cargo hold of the airplane. While this is more hassle than just buying booze there, you’ll have one less thing to worry about when you get there, so it might be worth taking a few heavy bottles with you to avoid paying a lot for delivery fees or breaking them at customs during transit.
Pack Your Electronics and Clothes
Even though airlines can sometimes charge an additional fee for checked baggage, many people prefer to pack their suitcases without checking bags because these tend to add up quickly. In addition to saving money on airline fees, packing all your bags into a single suitcase saves time and energy on arrival day. When it comes to electronics, make sure you pack any type of charger, cord, or accessory that was designed for use in your home country, so you don’t have to buy replacements at international prices. Make sure all the appliances are unplugged before checking them because they could get fried otherwise due to voltage differences between countries. If you’re moving abroad, check out the voltage difference between your new location and the one you live in now before packing anything!
Finally, be sure to pack different clothes in different bags, just in case there’s a problem with your luggage when arriving at immigration or customs. You want things like jewelry or shoes that can break if they are packed in the same bag as stuff that could damage them. Try to mark your bags, so you can see which ones have fragile items inside, so they don’t get mixed up with other bags on the loading belt at customs. If you’re moving abroad, then make sure to pack clothes that fit the weather of your new destination, or else you’ll end up cold or hot after taking a few steps outside.
Make sure to do all of these things ahead of time if possible because having to worry about this before leaving will only make it harder for you! Don’t forget anything important because it will stress you out even more if something goes wrong during transit, delivery, or pick-up. Even though any baggage through international shipping is insured against damage, it’s best to avoid having damage occur in the first place.
