International Moving Costs 9 Things You Can not Ignore

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International Moving Costs: 9 Things You Can't Ignore
International Moving Costs
Many people who move abroad are surprised a just how high international moving costs can be. Below we look at many of the expected and unexpected expenses you may face and how to save money.
Sections
1. Moving & Transportation Costs
The biggest single expense you'll face is hiring an international moving company to move your goods from your house in country A to your new home in country B. You can compare companies using the form above.
The cost will be based on a few main factors:
Size of the move: The bigger the move, the more expensive it will be. This goes both in terms of weight and volume. Groupage services can reduce this fee if you don’t have enough goods for a full load.
Distance: The further you have to move the more expensive it will be.
Route: Some destinations are quite common and other are quite rare. For example, international moves between Canada and the United States or within Europe are common and these routes will generally be cheaper due to competition, compared to less common ones.
Transportation method: What method you choose to move your goods is a big factor in the final price you'll pay. Shipping by sea is the cheapest option, whereas shipping by air is the most expensive. Trucks will almost always perform the first and last legs of any move, regardless of the method(s) used in between.
Given that sea freight is the cheapest option, some people try to go direct with an international shipping company. While this can sometimes be cheaper, most of these companies are not really set-up for home moves, but instead deal primarily with freight shipping.
To better understand moving and transportation costs you may also want to read our guide to International Container Shipping Costs or jump straight into getting international moving quotes.
Typical Cost: Starting from $1,600 USD and can easily exceed $10,000 for long distance moves overseas
2. Packing & Unpacking Costs
While not all moving companies charge extra for packing and unpacking, many do so. Depending on the country you're moving to, you may have no choice about incurring this cost. The reason is that some country's customs documents require the moving company to vouch for the goods being imported and to insure that nothing illegal is being shipped.
Illegal items include the obvious such as drugs and weapons but can also include things you may be unaware of such as certain plants or animals. Moving companies caught breaking the law may face fines or the loss of their licenses and hence ability to do business in that country.
If you'd like to avoid or reduce this cost be sure to speak to your mover and see if there's anything you can do. You can sometimes save money by packing things yourself, but leaving the boxes open for them to inspect. And you can always save money on the other end if you choose to unpack things yourself in your new home.
3. Moving Insurance Costs
Some moving companies include insurance in their quoted price, but not all do. Be sure to check exactly what the insurance does and does not cover.
If your goods are being sent by sea, you'll want to make sure there's some sort of maritime insurance policy. No matter what you'll want to have a policy that covers the full value of the loss, theft and/or damage to any of your goods.
Typical Cost: Starting from $200 USD, but can be much higher if transporting high-value, unusual and/or rare goods.
4. Storage Costs
When moving overseas you may find that you have to pay for storage in addition to your regular moving costs. This is because it can be difficult to coordinate your moving date to the shipping dates used by international shipping companies.
Thus, while your goods are not in transit they will have to be stored somewhere. Be sure to keep this in mind when setting expectations on when your goods will arrive.
You may also want to keep your goods in storage while you look for a place to live in your new country. Or you may just want to pay to store things until you come back, if you anticipate this as a temporary move.
Typical Cost: Starting from $100 USD per month for a small one or two bed apartment and prices can go up from there. Fortunately, there's a fair bit of competition in this space which helps keep prices down.
5.Customs Duty Charges & Taxes
Another small cost to look into before moving are customs duties in the country you are moving to. Some countries such as the United States allow most goods for household use to be moved duty-free.
Whereas countries such as the United Kingdom have more complicated rules that depend on where you’re moving from. For example, moves from within the EU (at the time of writing) are exempt from duty charges whereas moves from outside the EU may result in duty and taxes which you can claim relief on.
Most often custom charges and duty are charged based on the value of the goods themselves.
Typical Cost: Anywhere from free to almost unlimited depending on the value and type of goods you’re going to bringing with you.