Moving abroad — a step-by-step guide

Three months out: start the things that take longest

An international move is not lost on the packing. It is lost on the paperwork that has a waiting time. Three things go first, because they take weeks and money cannot speed them up.

• Proof that you are genuinely moving. De-registration of residence in Serbia and proof of registration in the new country, a tenancy agreement or an employment contract. Without it there is no relief from duty on personal effects.
• Your pet, if one is coming. Microchip, then rabies vaccine, then antibody titration — in that order, and at least four months in total. This is the commonest reason a move gets postponed. Details in moving a pet to the EU.
• A certificate of employment abroad — if you are returning to Serbia rather than leaving it. It is issued by our consular mission in the country where you worked, and far easier to obtain while you are still there. More in returning to Serbia.

Everything else — the vehicle, the packing, the date — can wait. These three cannot. Prices by route are on the international removals page.

A month out: the survey, the quote and the vehicle

This is where the cost is settled, and where the one decision that really moves the figure is made: a whole van or a part load.

The line sits at about 8 m³. Below that a part load is almost always cheaper — usually a third to a half of the whole-van price. Above 10 m³ a whole van starts to pay. As a guide to volume: studio 5–8 m³, one-bedroom 8–12, two-bedroom 12–25, three-bedroom 25–35.

But one question comes before volume: do you have a date that cannot move? If you do — whole van, whatever the cubic metres. A part load leaves when there is enough freight for that direction: to Germany and Austria as a rule monthly, to Spain every two to three months. The comparison is in part load or a whole van.

With the quote comes the inventory — a list of goods with estimated values, signed by you. It is not a formality: both the customs procedure and any damage claim depend on it. It is made before packing, not on the morning of the load.

A week out: packing and labelling

Packing is the only part of the job where you can genuinely save, but not equally on everything.

• Pack yourself: clothes, books, bedding and unbreakable kitchen things — we deliver boxes and materials the day before.
• Leave to the crew: glass, porcelain, electronics and pictures. It is not only about skill — goods packed by the owner are a standard insurance exclusion, so the burden of proof passes to you.

Labelling is not decoration. When a customs officer asks to open box 14, box 14 has to exist and contain what the list says. Write on the side of the box, not the top, and put the room and the contents.

Set aside a first-night box as well — kettle, mugs, chargers, medicines, toilet paper, a change of clothes. It goes into the vehicle last and comes out first.

What does not travel — two different lists

There are two groups of things that do not go, for different reasons.

Not recognised as personal effects, so they break the duty relief for the entire load: alcoholic drinks (all of them, home-made rakija included), tobacco and tobacco products, commercial means of transport, and articles used in a trade or profession.

Never carried at all, for safety: petrol and gas cylinders, thinners and pressurised aerosols, fireworks, weapons and ammunition, chemicals and plant protection products, and perishable food — the freezer is emptied before the move.

Money, jewellery, documents and your laptop travel with you, not in the load. The insurance does not cover them anyway. The full list is in what cannot cross the border.

Moving day and the border

Loading an average two-bedroom flat takes two to four hours, unloading two to three. In between is the drive, and it is longer than the map says: the regulation caps daily driving at nine hours and requires a 45-minute break after every 4.5 hours. That is why Munich can be reached in a day and Berlin never is.

At the border an officer opens one or two boxes at random and checks them against the inventory. If they match, the crossing takes about twenty minutes. If they do not, the whole load is examined.

We make the declaration and deal with customs. You supply the evidence of the move and sign the inventory, because that is your statement of what is being carried. The detailed price list is on its own page.

After you arrive: residence registration has a short deadline

This is the part most often taken for granted, and the clock starts immediately.

• Germany — two weeks from moving in. You also need the landlord's confirmation (Wohnungsgeberbestätigung), which you ask for when you collect the keys. Details: the Anmeldung.
• Austria — three days. The form is signed by both tenant and landlord, and a birth certificate is often required for a first registration. Details: the Meldezettel.

If the flat is not ready yet, the goods can go into storage rather than stand in a corridor.

The registration certificate is not only a formality — without it, opening a bank account and getting a tax number are difficult, and for customs it is the proof that the move actually happened.

Five mistakes we see most often

1. The inventory is written on loading day. A list made in a hurry while the crew waits is the commonest reason for being held at the border.
2. The pet is left until last. Four months cannot be made up by anything.
3. Everything gets taken. If an item costs under about €50 and takes half a cubic metre, it is cheaper to buy it there.
4. A part load with a fixed date. The run leaves when there is freight, not when you move in.
5. The delivery note is signed without looking. That is the only chance visible damage will ever be recorded.

Frequently asked questions