Do you worry that living abroad is hard? Moving abroad is a big decision with so many variables that it can and will make your head spin. The checklist of things to do is endless once you decide to move abroad. Some of those things are just tasks to logistically relocate you from one country to another, while others are major decisions that can either make or break your expat experience abroad. But living abroad doesn’t have to be a lonely or scary affair. In fact, here are 5 decisions you can make before moving abroad that make expat life a whole lot easier, better, and most of all, happier.
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Is Living Abroad Worth It?
Though moving to the UK was by far the most challenging move, it’s also been the most rewarding one. Admittedly, I nearly pulled the eject cord in the last few hours before boarding the one-way flight, but even with all the turmoil I’d do it again.
Some say my family just got lucky with where we live and the conveniences we have living so close to London. But the truth is there were certain conditions that had to be met in order for our family to move abroad and make the move overseas worth it.
5 Decisions That Will Make Life Abroad Easier
Part luck, part planning, and part determined to get the best British immersion experience possible, the decisions we made before leaving the States are what make expat life easier and one we truly love.
Expat life isn’t for everyone, so I understand why some people return after 6 months to a year. Popular reasons include job issues, a family member being unhappy, the commute, single parenting without dating benefits …loads of reasons. 😳
One of the biggest factors I’ve realized personally is that establishing a home in a new country doesn’t happen overnight. In fact, expect it to be not awesome for the first 6 months. It usually takes around 6 months for the new normal to set in.
But there are some decisions you can influence before the big move that can make all the difference for those first 6 months and beyond.
5 Decisions That Can Make Or Break Living Abroad
If you’re feeling stuck with important relocation decisions about moving and living abroad, these 5 will influence your expat experience and happiness living abroad.
1 – Should The Pet Go?
Absolutely.
Even though there are more requirements, paperwork, and vet visits for your pet to become an expat than your firstborn, bring the pet. 🐕
Having your pet with you while you transition to a new country and home provides the comfort and familiarity you need during a stressful time.
Whether or not the pet should move abroad with the family will come up as a question. Your sponsor company (if you have one) likely won’t cover pet expenses and moving an animal overseas is expensive.
Complexities with finding a home or rental that takes pets can be a challenge. Other challenges include the overall health of the pet (can he/she handle the flight?), whether or not the country accepts the pet, and other debatable pros and cons.
Why The Pet Moving With You Helps Expat Life
The thing is, the pet is part of the family. And although it makes total sense to question whether or not the pet should become an expat too, don’t let go of the pet because of the move.
It’s expensive and worrisome to move a dog abroad, but more than worth it. And you’ll need him/her to make expat life easier.
Even though our own dog only lived one year into our expat assignment, he was the catalyst to many walks, funny stories, and friends we’ve met along the way. The climate proved better for him and he fit into English life better than the Texan one. That’s for sure!
Conversation starter and friend, our dog made the family truly feel at home. And yours will, too!
2 – Bring The Furniture Or Buy New?
Bring the furniture.
Well, unless you absolutely hate it. 😜
The thing is, everything else is going to be new in your life. If the option presents itself to take belongings abroad with you, take them.
Getting to know a new country is more than enough: driving, language, culture, laws, where the grocery store is, converting nearly everything to a metric that makes sense to you….I could go on. These are all the things you signed up for moving abroad and it’s out of your control how quickly it all connects.
Why make it more complicated with having to fully outfit a new house or rental? It’s one more thing to have to do right away upon arrival. The new furniture and household goods you have to buy might not be what you want or like, and quite possibly a lot more expensive. Not to mention GDPR makes international shopping of popular American retailers in the UK nearly impossible now.
For our big move, our kids’ entire rooms came with us. We wanted their home surroundings to feel unchanged and like a security blanket, so that they could more easily deal with everything else. The rest of the house was measured to know what would reasonably fit and what we couldn’t live without.
Bringing the furniture is totally within your control. The comforts of your old home will make adjusting to expat life easier.
3 – Go Private Or Public For School?
This one depends.
If you ask a Brit, the response might be private. If you ask a fellow expat, they might say public.
Like anywhere, public school systems all depend upon the location so knowing where you’ll live or how far you’re willing to commute (ie, train, drive, walk in the rain, UBER…not kidding) will determine the schools available.
The reality is you might not have a choice on private vs public depending upon the time of year. Getting into schools is tough and one of the hardest things to do. The really great public schools are oversubscribed and the private ones often have waiting lists, too.
The point is to make the decision and make it as soon as possible. It should be the first big decision to make once you’re committed to move abroad.
To make life easier as an expat, go private. Private schools are more flexible with international students, cater to different situations, offer more vacation time and give exceptions to absences as a result. Private might mean more of a commute, but the kids will receive an amazing education and you’ll receive the support you need from a school administration that understands.
Plus, there are likely to be more kids like your own in a similar situation. That is a huge win for your third culture kid.
Expat life is happy if you love where you live
4 – Live Near Public Transportation?
Yes, please.
You’re doing the living abroad thing so make sure that getting around to experience it is easy. Think trains, planes, and buses.
Take a map and circle possible cities to live in. Determine their distance to major airports, accessibility to cities, or other places of importance to you.
Answer these “where to live” questions:
- How long does it take to catch a flight for a weekend away? Or back to the USA?
- Is the commute too far (distance), too long (time), or simply too much (multiple modes or points of change)?
- Will it be difficult to pick up visitors or complicated to use public transportation?
- Can you walk to the train or hop on a bus?
- How will kids get to school?
- Are you willing to get a local driver’s license?
- Does Uber (or similar) operate?
The easier and more accessible public transportation is, the easier expat life will be.
Even if driving in a foreign country appeals to you, getting a local drivers license has been one of the longest and hardest processes to go through living in the UK. Having backup options for getting around, like walking to the grocery store, make expat life easier.
5 – Live In The City, Village, Or Country?
A little bit of everything.
This is entirely personal, but if you’ve read this far then you know it’s a combination of it all that can make any one of these three options work.
Decide what is most important and start making decisions from that angle. Just be sure to be honest about what each means.
Living in the country with no neighbors for miles or public transportation is likely not the best idea for an experience abroad. It doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist, but you’ll need to do your homework.
And a village might mean living on the edge of a bustling city with access to it all, without actually living in the big city.
Define what home looks like to you, with how far you have to walk or drive to school, to get to the train, to the grocery store or to fly to your next adventure.
Be upfront as a family with what you want to get out of the move abroad so that figuring out where to live is an easier decision to make, ultimately making life as an expat an easier one.
I’m Not Saying Living Abroad is Easy. Just Easier. And 100% Worth It.
As for us, we got lucky. We found that village on the edge of a city, that even has sheep in the garden on occasion.
Our dog made friends at the nearby pub and grocery shopping on foot or by bicycle is easy enough.
The commute to school is long but the British education and our children’s happiness is worth it.
Some expat life things aren’t perfect, but we return home every day to a welcome of familiarity and comfort that’s just in a new place. And you can, too.
Consider decisions that make expat life easier. After all, this is not your ordinary trip. 🛬
Looking for more help on expat life? Try these.
- How To Find A Primary School In The UK
- If You’re Having Second Thoughts About Moving Abroad
- Moving To England Workbook
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