Last week, I provided you tips about what documents you should have when moving overseas. This week’s blog highlights important moving tips for our military when moving and transferring overseas. Moving is complicated by itself and if you are in the military, you know moving your household goods and family can be quite a challenge.
A permanent change of station (PCS) is something every military family will experience eventually.
To make the move a lot smoother, here are some simple tips when heading overseas:
• Personal Property Office (PPO) – Once you receive your PCS, contact the PPO. You might have already done this before but no two moves are alike and they have excellent resources for you. There, you can find your basic entitlements and responsibilities among many other helpful tips. A website you will find useful is the Department of Defense site that offers a lot of basic PCS information.
• Contact sponsor or new command – Once you receive your PCS, your sponsor can help you get to know your new destination and provide you valuable information about what specific belongings to bring or not to bring. In other words, if you are moving to a country that doesn’t accommodate big-sized furniture, your sponsor will let you know so you can put some of your possessions in storage until your new PCS.
• Know your entitlement – Make sure you find out how much weight for your move that the government will pay for you. This is important to ensure you stay within their budget and yours too so you avoid any extra excessive weight fees or charges.
• Papers in order – Before moving, you will need to make sure you have plenty of copies of your PCS available and stored in a safe location. Be sure to have any letters of authorizations, powers of attorney docs, appraisal of high-priced belongings, video or photo identification of your items, and pertinent insurance policies.
One final tip, always purchase movers’ insurance before you move so that your personal belongings are protected when they are shipped overseas, it will give you peace-of-mind. By following these tips and thoroughly preparing before your move, you will know you did everything in your power to ensure a safe military move.
Safe moving!