Cost of Moving Abroad
Have you ever wanted to live abroad in another country, but thought that you can’t because it is too expensive?
When moving abroad, you will need to factor in the cost of moving your items to your new home, including hiring a moving company and paying for shipping your items.
You may assume that the international removals of your items will cost you more than your current situation, so you decide that you can’t afford it. However, are you really aware of how much more expensive it is to move abroad? The costs of making an international move might not be as expensive as you think.
For example, moving the contents of a 3 bedroom house from Manchester to Brighton would cost £1,200, however, to move the same volume of contents from Manchester to Alicante, it would cost £3,500 by road or sea, £2,300 more expensive. The method of shipping your items to your new home abroad and the quantity of goods you are taking will affect the price of your international move.
You should also keep in mind the costs for international flights, health insurance and many other factors. These other costs can really add up, so be sure to consider them when you are moving abroad.
Cost of Living Abroad
The answer to the question “how much more expensive is moving abroad” will really depend on the cost of living where you are now compared to the cost of living in your destination country.
If you are moving from Australia to Thailand, the cost of living will be much cheaper than you are used to back home. If you are moving from a small town in Northern England with cheap prices to a big city such as Paris, you will find that moving abroad is more expensive and your cost of living will be higher as a result. Many people choose to move to countries with cheaper living costs so that their income or retirement payments go a lot further than back home.
It is important to consider what kind of lifestyle you plan to lead in your destination country. Will you be renting a simple apartment without hot water for a cheap price, or will you choose to live in a luxury gated community? Will you be eating the cheap local food or will you be paying extra in restaurants for Western food that reminds you of home? How often do you plan to fly back and forth to visit friends and family? How much will you go out drinking and enjoy recreational activities in your new home?
Taxes in Destination Country
Another factor is that differences in taxes in your new country will affect how much you get to take home from your job. You might also have the potential to make more (or less) in your professional in your new country, so that is another consideration to take into account.
In some countries, including the USA and Canada, if you move for specific reasons and stay for long enough you will be able to deduct your moving costs from your taxes. Take a look into the specific situation and see if this deduction applies to you.
When you ask the question “how much more expensive is moving abroad?” it’s difficult to come up with a specific answer. The situation will depend on where you move to, whether you have a family to care for and how much you tend to spend on your lifestyle.
page last updated June 2015
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Please note: as we are awaiting information about the UK’s exit from the EU, this information is only correct up to 28th March 2019. As soon as we have more information, we will update these pages.