The quote is not the cost
People budget an international move by collecting removal quotes. The removal quote is usually the second or third largest item, not the largest. The costs that catch households out are the ones that appear before the truck arrives and after it leaves: documents, duplicated housing, replacement goods and the resale losses on everything left behind.
This article gives you a four bucket budget you can fill in with real quotes. It is about the move itself, not about the cost of living once you arrive.
The four buckets
- Pre departure. Visa and permit fees, document legalisation or apostille, certified translations, medical examinations and vaccinations, police certificates, pet export paperwork, lease break penalties and cleaning or dilapidation charges at the old home.
- Physical transport. Survey, packing and materials, the freight itself, marine or air insurance, origin and destination port or terminal handling, customs clearance and any duty or tax on goods that do not qualify for relief, final delivery and unpacking, and storage at either end.
- Duplicated setup. Temporary accommodation, the deposit and first rent on the new home, agency or broker fees, utility connection and meter deposits, and replacement of items that could not travel.
- Write offs. The gap between what your belongings are worth to you and what you recover by selling them, plus anything abandoned at the last minute.
How freight is actually priced
Sea freight for household goods is priced either as a full container, typically a twenty foot or forty foot unit, or as a share of a consolidated container charged by volume. Volume is measured in cubic metres and is estimated by a surveyor, in person or by video. Air freight is priced on chargeable weight, which is the greater of actual weight and volumetric weight, so bulky light items are expensive by air. Insurance is normally a percentage of a declared replacement value that you set yourself, and it usually requires a full valued inventory.
The decision rule for each item is simple. Ship it if the cost of shipping its share of the volume is less than the local replacement price minus what you would recover by selling it at origin. Applied honestly, this rule empties a surprising number of boxes.
An illustrative worked example
All figures are invented for illustration and are not quotes from any real provider. Suppose a household ships 30 cubic metres door to door at 120 per cubic metre, declares 40,000 of replacement value and insures at 2 percent, and faces the following.
- Freight, 30 cubic metres at 120: 3,600
- Insurance, 2 percent of 40,000: 800
- Customs clearance and destination handling: 500
- Temporary accommodation, 6 weeks at 900 per week: 5,400
- New home entry costs, two months deposit at 1,500 plus first month plus one month agency fee: 6,000
- Replacement appliances and fittings that could not travel: 2,500
- Visas, legalisation, translations and medicals: 1,200
The total is 20,000. The freight line, which is the number most people budget for, is 3,600, or 18 percent of the whole. That ratio is the point of the exercise.
| Bucket | Illustrative amount | Share | How to get a real figure |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pre departure documents | 1,200 | 6 percent | Immigration authority fee schedule, sworn translator quote |
| Freight and insurance | 4,400 | 22 percent | Three written door to door quotes after a survey |
| Customs and handling | 500 | 3 percent | Customs authority relief rules, broker quote |
| Temporary accommodation | 5,400 | 27 percent | Serviced apartment rates for your arrival month |
| New home entry costs | 6,000 | 30 percent | Local letting agents, published deposit rules |
| Replacement goods | 2,500 | 12 percent | Local retailer prices for the specific items |
| Total | 20,000 | 100 percent |
Customs relief is conditional, not automatic
Many countries allow used personal effects to enter free of duty when someone transfers their normal residence, but the relief is always conditional. Typical conditions include a minimum period of prior ownership and use, a maximum window between arrival and importation, a prohibition on selling the goods for a set period, and a detailed inventory. Alcohol, tobacco, vehicles, firearms, plants, food and certain electronics are commonly excluded or separately regulated. Vehicles in particular are usually treated as a distinct import with their own duty, tax, emissions and homologation requirements, and importing one is often more expensive than buying locally. Rules differ substantially by country, and you should confirm the specific relief conditions with the destination customs authority or a licensed customs broker before packing.
Items that rarely travel well
- Large appliances. Voltage, frequency, plug type, water inlet standards and cabinet dimensions all differ. A washing machine that does not fit the space is a write off with freight already paid.
- Wardrobes and beds. Mattress sizes and ceiling heights vary, and bulky furniture consumes the volume that drives your quote.
- Media and paper. Heavy, cheap to replace, and often the single biggest volume saving available.
- Anything with a battery. Lithium cells are restricted or prohibited in many freight modes.
Timing and cash flow
Even when the total is affordable, the sequence can be difficult. Deposits at the new home, temporary accommodation and freight are typically paid before the final salary from the old job arrives and before any employer relocation allowance is reimbursed. We suggest building a simple month by month cash flow alongside the budget, because a move that works on an annual total can still fail in week three. If an employer is contributing, get in writing what is covered, whether it is paid or reimbursed, whether it is taxable in the destination country, and what happens if you leave the job within a set period.
We have kept every number here hypothetical on purpose. Costs vary enormously by route, season, volume and destination, and you should confirm the applicable rules and prices with the relevant local authorities and with providers who will put a quote in writing. This article is informational only and is not personalised advice.
How to Use This Guide
Every worked example on this page is illustrative. The figures are chosen to show how the calculation behaves, not to report current market rates. Costs, tax rules and eligibility criteria differ by country and change over time, so take the method from this page and put your own current figures into it. Browse the rest of our guides, or see how we source and check our comparison figures on the about page.
Information only. This article explains how costs and rules are structured. It is not financial, tax, legal or immigration advice, and it is not a recommendation to buy any property, vehicle or investment. Confirm anything that affects a decision with the relevant local authority or a qualified professional before you act on it.
Last updated: August 14, 2026