An international moving checklist for leaving the Netherlands runs on a three-month clock. Three months out you choose the mover and start the customs file if you are heading outside the EU. Two months out you sort the paperwork and decide what goes. One month out you book the Dutch deregistration. The last week is packing and confirmations, moving day is supervision and signatures, and the first month after arrival is registration, insurance and your car.
What makes an international checklist different from a local one?
A move within the Netherlands is mostly logistics. A move abroad adds three things with deadlines of their own: leaving the Dutch system, entering the new country’s system on time, and, outside the EU, customs clearance of your goods without paying duty. Each has a step that must happen before the lorry is loaded, which is why the checklist starts three months out. Crown Relocations and Sirelo UK advise three to six months of planning for a move abroad.
| When | Focus | Hard deadlines |
|---|---|---|
| 3 months before | Mover, visa, customs file | ToR1 (UK) or Swiss customs preparation started |
| 2 months before | Paperwork, what to take | Inventory drafted, lease or sale notice given |
| 1 month before | Dutch exit, utilities, school | BRP deregistration booked, M-form noted |
| Last week | Packing, confirmations | Customs reference in hand, parking arranged |
| Moving day | Supervision | Inventory signed, keys handed over |
| First month after | Registration, insurance, car | Country deadlines, see below |
Print this page or save it to your phone; the general moving checklist covers the household side in more detail.
What should you do three months before the move?
Three months before the move, book the mover and start any customs file. Ask for a consultation and a fixed quote now, because summer and month-end dates fill up, and a mover that has seen your home early can advise on what is worth taking. The Easy Move’s Easy Quote is free and without obligation, and the international moving service includes the customs documentation.
If you are going to the UK, confirm your visa route and start the Transfer of Residence (ToR1) application with HMRC now; the reference number has to exist before the goods ship. For Switzerland, check your permit situation with your employer and read up on customs form 18.44. Three months is also the time to give notice on a rented home, check that your passport has at least six months left (Crown Relocations lists this as the first document check), and book a vet appointment if you move with a dog or cat: Sirelo UK advises starting pet preparation four months ahead, and a rabies vaccination must be at least 21 days old before travel.
What belongs on the list two months out?
Two months out is about paper and decisions. Draft your inventory room by room, with a rough value per item; for a UK or Swiss move this is a customs document, for an EU move it is your insurance schedule. Decide what stays. Furniture that will not fit the new home, appliances on a different plug, and the contents of the shed are cheaper to sell or donate in the Netherlands than to transport and dispose of abroad.
The Easy Move’s disposal service recycles, donates or disposes of what stays. Gather the documents you will need abroad: birth and marriage certificates, often as an international extract from the municipality, diplomas, medical records and proof of income. Ask your pension fund, bank and insurer what changes. If children change school, apply now and request records from the current school. Anything that cannot move yet can be booked into storage in the south of the Netherlands.
What do you arrange in the final month?
The final month is the Dutch exit month. If you will be abroad for more than eight months in a year, you must deregister from the BRP at your municipality; you can do this from five days before departure, so book the appointment now. Deregistration ends your Dutch basic health insurance, so your new cover abroad has to start the same day.
For the year you leave, the Belastingdienst expects a tax return on the M-form, so keep your DigiD active. Check the current rules with your municipality and the Belastingdienst. Give notice to energy, water, internet and mobile providers with your final meter-reading date. Redirect your post, cancel Dutch subscriptions, and inform the RDW if you are taking your car abroad, since it will need re-registration at destination. Confirm the date, packing option and access with the mover, and request parking permits where required.
What happens in the last week?
The last week is for separating what the crew should not touch: passports, customs papers, medication, chargers, jewellery, the pet’s documents and a bag of clothes for the first days. Keep these in one suitcase in the car. If you pack yourself on a door-to-door move, finish the non-fragile boxes early in the week and label every box with the destination room and a number that matches your inventory.
- Confirm the ToR1 reference or the Swiss customs appointment; keep copies with your passport.
- Defrost the freezer and drain the washing machine two days before loading.
- Read the meters, photograph them and send the readings to the providers.
- Arrange keys: who hands over the old home, who opens the new one, and at what time.
- Reconfirm the crew’s arrival time, the lorry’s parking space and any lift booking.
Pets travel separately from the lorry; confirm their route and documents this week. The moving with dog and cat page explains what is needed.
What does moving day look like?
Moving day asks three things of you: be present, answer questions and sign. Walk the crew through the home first and point out anything fragile, anything that stays, and the suitcase that must not go on the lorry. As boxes are loaded, the crew checks them against the inventory, and you sign the list at the end; for a customs move this signed inventory travels with the declaration.
Photograph the empty rooms and any existing damage before you hand over the keys. Do the final meter readings, lock windows, hand in keys and keep copies of every signed document. A dedicated vehicle usually delivers inside Western Europe within one to three days; groupage runs to the carrier’s schedule, typically one to three weeks. Either way, someone must be at the new address with a working phone, because the driver calls before arrival.
What do you sort out in the first month after arrival?
Registration clocks are short in the first month. Germany expects you at the Bürgeramt within 14 days of moving in. Belgium asks for an arrival declaration at the commune within eight working days, after which you join a mutualité for health insurance. Switzerland requires registration at the Gemeinde within 14 days and before starting work, plus health insurance within three months.
France has no registration obligation for EU citizens, but you join the health system (PUMa) after three months of residence. In the UK, GP registration and the DVLA licence exchange follow once you have an address. Check the current rules with the local authority in your new town. The car is the other deadline: it must be re-registered at destination once you are resident, with Switzerland allowing 12 months. Open a local bank account, sort out a mobile number, and send your new address to your pension fund and the Belastingdienst. Then unpack the kitchen first; everything else can wait a day.
Frequently asked questions
How early should I start planning my international move?
Three months is the minimum for a move from the Netherlands to another European country; Crown Relocations and Sirelo UK both advise three to six months, and six is safer when a visa, a school place or a sea container is involved. Summer, month-end and the weeks around Christmas book out first, so fix the moving date with the mover before anything else.
What documents do you need to relocate to another country?
Passport with at least six months left, residence permit or visa where needed, birth and marriage certificates as international extracts from your Dutch municipality, diplomas and school records, medical records and vaccination cards, driving licence, insurance policies, proof of income or an employment contract, and the customs papers for a UK or Swiss move. Expatica advises allowing several weeks for official copies.
What is the best way to ship belongings overseas?
Inside Europe, by road: a dedicated vehicle for a full household, which usually delivers within one to three days in Western Europe, or groupage for a smaller volume, which runs to the carrier’s schedule over one to three weeks. Overseas destinations use a sea container or air freight. The Easy Move offers door-to-door transport with custom crating and a partner network at destination.
Can I move abroad with my pets?
Yes, with a microchip, a rabies vaccination at least 21 days old and, for the UK, an EU animal health certificate issued within ten days of travel. Dogs and cats never travel in the lorry; The Easy Move arranges their route separately. Sirelo UK advises starting the pet paperwork four months before the move, because the vaccination has to take effect before the certificate is issued.
Is there a PDF version of this checklist?
Not as a separate download; use your browser’s print function and save the page as a PDF. The table at the top gives the one-glance version, and the sections below hold the detail for each phase, so you can tick them off month by month. Movers such as UniGroup Worldwide publish PDF checklists too, but they do not cover the Dutch exit steps.
