Moving House Change of Address Checklist Australia

Let’s face it: for most people, moving home is often a dreaded yet unavoidable part of life. With some careful planning and organisation though, much of the associated stress can be avoided to ensure the smoothest move possible!

Organising all of the tasks to be done before the actual moving day is only half the battle – once all of your belongings have been moved, your old home has been cleaned up, and you’ve arrived at your final destination, there are still a few important things to remember. Updating your new address with all of the relevant organisations will ensure that you receive everything you’re supposed to and your personal details are correct from the get-go, avoiding trouble further down the track. Follow this checklist to ensure you don’t forget to change any addresses whilst moving home.

1. Utilities
Contact your electricity, gas, water, internet/phone, and pay TV providers several weeks before the move to inform them of the need to disconnect or transfer their services. Be sure to ask about potential disconnection/connection charges so you don’t get a shock when you receive your bills!

2. Vehicle License & Registration
One of the first things you need to do is update your address on your vehicle licence. If you’re moving interstate, you’ve got quite a bit more planning to do than someone who is just moving the next suburb over. This includes transferring your vehicle registration over to the relevant Department of Transport in your new state.

3. Medical Services
Get in touch with your doctor, dentist, optometrist and other medical specialists to change your address. Organise a transfer of your medical records to your new providers if you’re moving away from your current ones.

4. Don’t Forget Your Furry Family
Update your contact details at the vet, and also in the pet microchip registry so if your pet escapes your home, you can organise to have them safely returned much quicker.

5. Work
Even though you spend most of your time there, updating your details at your workplace can be easy to forget. You’ll thank yourself later for providing payroll with your new address, so if you ever need to use your payslips for identification purposes they’ll be up to date. Make sure your superannuation company is aware of your new address while you’re at it!

6. Insurance
Update your health and other personal insurance policies, and more importantly your car, home and contents insurance companies so your belongings are correctly covered in your new location.

7. Government Services
Don’t forget to update your new address with services such as the Australian Taxation Office and Medicare, easily done via the MyGov website.

8. Memberships and Subscriptions
Update any local memberships such as the gym, mail subscriptions and loyalty programs – you don’t want to miss out on any juicy 50% off coupons!

9. Australian Electoral Commission
Don’t risk getting into trouble when the time comes to vote – the last thing you want on top of your other moving costs is a fine for not voting if your address indicates you’re living in a different state!

10. Education
Whether you’re studying at University or TAFE yourself, or you have children at school or higher education, it’s important to make sure your address is updated with these institutions. You want to make sure you’re receiving all the important letters they may send out, such as bills and events notices.

11. Mail Redirection
Just in case anything has slipped through the cracks and there are a few places you’ve forgotten about, it can be a good idea to organise a mail redirection at your local post office, even just for a couple of months to see if anything comes through to your old address.

By ticking off this checklist, you’ll be taking a weight off your shoulders so you can quickly settle into your new home and neighbourhood!

Guest author: Georgia Budden is the Web Content and Marketing Coordinator at Service.com.au a trades and services platform that connects everyday homeowners to local service professionals, and also provides useful lifestyle and home improvement tips