emigrating in 7 weeks - to do list??

[GirlWithTheMouseyHair]

We're moving to California really frigging soon!! Does anyone have a to do list to hand I can put against mine to make sure I've not forgotten anything essential? We're renting our 2 bed flat, being put up in temporary accommodation for few months til we find our own place, and it's me, DH and 2DC (2months and 3years)

Also, what do you think is essential to take with you, in suitcases or shipped? Marmite, tea bags, duvet covers on the list!

Post office forwarding
Change of address letters/cards/emails
Check whether you or letting agents or new tenants will need to change gas/electricity/water/phone/tv etc to new name
Cleaning of your house before you leave
All electricity safety checks etc done before renting house?
Are you sending stuff by sea or taking it all with you? Packing lists for both - including last minute packing for you and in particular the dc's
Distribute important stuff across more than one suitcase in case one is lost
Contact lenses/glasses - do you need to order spares?
Your car - selling? Leaving? At the other end - renting?
Make sure you have enough for the dc's for the journey, including nappies, food, formula if not bfeeding etc. Take spares in case of emergency (we once made unplanned stop at Dubai for 12 hours with 7 month old)
At the other end - school/preschool? Housing? Is it all sorted?
House insurance, make sure it's insured for renting
Travel insurance
Insurance of anything you are taking with you, and of anything you are leaving behind
Medical - do you have health insurance in the States sorted? De-register at dr's, make sure you have all necessary certificates, red books etc with you on journey just in case
Bank accounts - are you opening one there? Do you have online banking?

Sorry I'm sure there is more but that's just off the top of my head. As for what to take with you, I haven't lived in the States but imagine you can get pretty much anything you want there. I would take some good quality chocolate though - that's the one thing my BIL in Florida seems to miss the most!

Good luck!

thankyou! There are a few things on your list I don't have on mine so really helpful already.

Anyone/thing else?

Dentist - worth getting check-ups before you go? (or not, depending on what insurance you have at the other end!)
Getting to the airport - hire car needed?
Pets/plants etc - need to give away?
Leaving party (I must say I never managed this one, I had far too much else on my plate the two times I have moved with small dc's!)

hee hee - I clearly have my priorities straight, been planning the leaving party all evening!

The grocery dept on Amazon.com is marvellous - real Teabags (not the fake pretend 'British Blend' stuff in the supermarkets here), Marmite, even Twiglets!

Jaffa cakes
Birthdays of people in first month of so of you going, do their cards and presents now, saves posting things when you are still getting organised in new place.
Do you need proof of vaccinations for children to get into pre school ect where you are going?
How clean does outside stuff had to be? NZ are very strict and we had to pay to have one bike cleaned when it got here. Check what is banned from entering the country. This may not be an issue in America.
Check what your luggage allowance is, as we were emmigrating we were allowed double.

Good luck

Check with your mortgage provider that you are allowed to rent on your current mortgage agreement.
Contact council tax as well should be in tenant name.
Contact H&M tax office, we got quite a lot of money back for the last year in the UK.
Travel with important papers with you not in suitcase, or use a fedex (registered mail?) to send them if you already have a safe place to send them to.
Check the vaccinations needed for kids to go to school or kindergarden (they might not be the same as the one in the UK).
Get your medical history out of the GP practice (they will print it out for you if you ask)
You need to make sure that your 3 year old has some familiar things with him, travel with comforter and a few toys and pack some more loved things (or ship them). It won't matter for the baby, as long as he has you he will be happy.
Make copies of passports.

Agree about printing off all your medical histories - think I had to pay the GP £10. But i've needed it - esp the dc's vaccination lists.

Get no claims certificates from your car insurance companies.

If anyone is on meds, get enough to last a couple of months, so you don't have to rush to the dr.

what about banking?

get an E111 form or what ever its called now...allowing you to access medical care in europe/england....think you still are eligible....just incase you come back in first year or so

ah - would I need that to use NHS whenever we come back on hols as well?

You need to find out from your own bank whether they'll let you keep your account open. My RBS one was ok but First Direct made me close it since there were no regular payments going in. The Child Trust funds for the dc are still there but we cant add any money to them.

I would add sort out online banking if poss and check your credit/debit cards aren't about to expire. Also I found it useful to have a certified copy of my birth certificate (and marriage cert etc.).

Not sure what legal situation is once you have stopped paying tax in UK re E111 but it takes a while to stop paying tax in UK, even once you have left the country.

We've been overseas for 6 years now and as we have no UK address and are not paying I have no legal right to use the NHS.

I'd get the form filled in now whilst you can...may come in handy.

First Direct for us have been flippin' amazing. Can't recommend them highly enough.

And I second the advice re renewing bank cards etc.

No matter how global each and every retail bank says it is, IME they are not...Indaba thinks back to sobbing at the HSBC desk (the "global bank"...pah!) in Australia with whom I had banked for 25 years and they still wouldn't even consider me for an account as I was unknown....bast**rds.

have first direct got american banks then? We're with HSBC, can keep our account open but don't qualify for premier or expat so they said just set up with our nearest bank once we arrive...will get on E111

If you buy anything expensive, keep your reciepts before you go and you can claim back VAT at the airport on your way out..

Oh and have fun! Would live to move there

Also, if you take your old DVDs they will be a different region so take your old player so you can watch the old ones...

We've been overseas for 6 years now and as we have no UK address and are not paying I have no legal right to use the NHS

I wonder if that has changed. My MIL visited us when we lived in the UK (2001) and feel & fractured her arm. All work done on nhs (op to remove fragments, ambulance ride to hosp) not a penny paid or claimed. She lived (still does) in Australia at the time & had no residential address in the UK.

Tell Child Benefit people - if it's a permanent move anyway.
Agree with getting medical histories printed off and take red books, it can save a lot of hassle. American drs do not, in my experience, understand that someone might have had chickenpox and therefore do not need the varicella vaccine...
Gas, electric, phone, council tax, cable, banks, building socs.
First Direct are brilliant. They will also give you a great rate if you are moving currency.

Sounds like most of it's been covered... racking my brains for what else I did (or didn't do and wish I had!)

Oh if you're renting your house out there's a form you need to fill in for HMRC - the non-residents landlord scheme. Our letting agent submitted them for us once we'd filled them in: www.hmrc.gov.uk/international/nr-landlords.htm

When we got here we went to Bank of America and got bank accounts straight away.

Buy a cheap pay as you go phone as soon as you get here (you can't get a contract phone until you have a social security number). You'll need a local number so people (bank, letting agents when you're house hunting etc) can get hold of you. They won't call an international mobile. For some unknown reason we didn't do this until we were here for 2 weeks which was so silly in retrospect.

If I think of anything else I'll post again. Any questions feel free to message me - I'm in California too :)

Actually any other tips for the minute we land would be great too.

We want to keep our HSBC acct open in UK due to mortgage, life insurance etc etc coming out of it, so is it best just to choose an American bank when we arrive?

Vintage - didn't realise you're also in CA, will drop you a message

Thanks all!