Tips for moving

Include birth and marriage certificates, mortgage and bank statements, your driver's licence and any insurance policy documents you have.

Electronic copies are also useful, as you may need to email these if you need to secure a rental agreement.

If you have children, make sure you get a copy of their immunisation records.

Bring enough to last until you find a new doctor in Australia or Victoria.

Include work references and qualifications. Scan and save these documents to a USB memory stick to reduce the amount of paperwork you're travelling with.

Finalise and close utility accounts such as power, gas, internet and phone. Make sure you've supplied a forwarding address for the final statements.

You may like to leave a fee-free or low-fee account open for any last-minute banking. Ensure your signing authority is up to date and you're able to provide email instructions if possible.

Cancel your insurances, including house, contents and car. Also review your life insurance – check if it's valid overseas.

Ensure you have the up-to-date superannuation statements showing balances. Check to see if these can be transferred to Australia.

Be sure to advise remaining contacts of your new address.

Use an independent email address such as Gmail to transfer your existing address book over before you leave. You might like to save this to a USB memory stick as well.

Obtain taxation advice from your accountant and advise your them of your intending relocation and new address.

Advise your solicitor of your intended move and provide them with your new contact details. This might also be a good time to ensure your will is up to date.

Obtain a reference letter if you’re intending to rent in Australia. If you've rented previously, get a letter from the property manager or owner of the property. If you own a rental property, obtain a reference letter from your property manager. Alternatively, obtain a personal reference letter.

If you’re intending to rent, budget for at least six–eight weeks rent, as most rental properties require four weeks deposit as well as monthly payments in advance.