Preparing Your Pre-move To Do List
Proper planning can help you retire overseas successfully. When you are getting ready to move overseas all the prep to retire successfully can seem daunting. If you make a checklist, you can manage it rather easily. Let’s discuss some of the prep you may want to do. I made some videos about the checklist to prepare myself for the big move.
I have provided this information, in videos and vlogs, over the years but if you want it all in one easy reference I would recommend my eBook “Expat 101 – Your guide to a successful
Philippines retirement.
Only $7. Your purchase will help support the blog and YouTube channel.
Full Playlist (7 Videos)
Check out the whole playlist: In it I will cover banking, mail forwarding, what to bring (and how to ship it), phone service to the old country… all kinds of fun stuff. I will link to the videos, and give a short description of each.
I will not go into a lot of detail in this post but will be providing links to earlier blog posts and videos that do give more information. Hopefully you will find this page useful as a starting point in planning your big move!
Preparing for the move is essential, and I think this to do list is a great place to start. Here is the link to the whole playlist (7 videos). Retire To The Philippines Premove To Do List.
That link is for the YouTube playlist. Below I will post each of the 7 videos, with a short description of the video. At the bottom of the page there will be links to blog posts with useful information.
Good luck with your move! I hope you find this information useful. And again, it you want all the information in one easy to read place – I would recommend my eBook. Enjoy your day in paradise.
Playlist Intro.
In this video I discuss the idea behind the to do list and the importance of planning. I share some of the planning stages that worked well for me. I do not claim to be an expert, but with proper planning I had a very easy move to the Philippines.
Visa Options and Costs
This video discusses the various visa options. I discuss some of the visa types, but mostly the tourist visa. The tourist visa is the most common visa that expats start with. I include all the immigration fees from my first year in the Philippines. The prices may have changed some since 2013 but this is still a good starting point.
Overseas Banking
Banking is going to be a major concern. Do you keep all your money overseas? Back in the old country? Use banks in both countries? Your situation will determine your needs. I do recommend keeping a bank in the old country, even if you use a local bank. You may need to change to a bank that understands international travel. Many expats use Citibank, HSBC, or USAA. Make sure this bank can wire transfer money to your bank in the Philippines.
Expat “Home” Phone Services
You can use various apps to video chat with family and friends from the old country. Facebook Messenger is enough to video chat with friends and family. For banking and credit cards it is recommend to keep a “home” phone in the old country. There are numerous VoIP (voice over internet protocol) services. I use Magic Jack, it is very easy, inexpensive, and has a great smartphone app.
V.I.P. Very Important Paperwork
Before you move you will need to get copies of all important paperwork e.g. birth certificate, retirement info, health records etc. Remember once you get overseas it will be much harder to get some of these documents from the old country.
Mail Forwarding Services
A mail forwarding service can be very helpful, especially if you do not want to intrude on friends or family to handle your mail. I use Traveling Mailbox, but there are a lot of companies to choose from.
What To Bring & How To Ship It
You will likely not want to bring too much stuff with you, but if you are staying permanently you do want to be comfortable. I share some ideas on what to bring, what not to bring, and how to ship it here.
Helpful Blog Posts
You may also want to read a few of my blog posts that I wrote during my planning phase. Here are 3 that may be quite useful.
Things to do – making a checklist.
Visa Extensions – Annual Costs
Again, if you want all of this information in one easy to reference eBook I would recommend buying my eBook “Expat 101 – Your guide to a successful Philippines retirement. You can read about the details of the book here.
Only $7. Your purchase will help support the blog and YouTube channel.
