Guide
Who to notify when you move house, and when
The question is not only who to tell. It is when. Some companies want a month’s notice, some want three weeks to send an engineer, and some are happier hearing from you once you have arrived.
Go through the list below and write down the real names of your own companies and offices. For each one decide what you need: move the service to the new address, cancel it, give them the new address, or set up something new. Then look at the timing.
Tell them early: six to eight weeks before
- The landlord or property manager, in writing, with the notice period your agreement sets.
- The school or nursery at both ends: a leaving date, records, and a confirmed place.
- Your employer, so the days off are booked and any relocation help is known.
Tell them about a month before
- Gyms, clubs and memberships with notice periods.
- Mobile phone and TV contracts if you are cancelling.
- Internet and landline: an engineer visit needs a slot, and slots run out around the end of the month.
- Electricity, gas and water at the new home: who supplies the property now, and from which day it is yours.
Tell them two weeks before
- Electricity, gas and water at the old home: the date you leave and how to send the final reading.
- Home, car, health and life insurers: the new address, the date, and cover for belongings in transit.
- The bank, cards, loans and pensions, so that nothing is posted to the old address after you leave.
- Subscriptions and delivery boxes.
Tell them after you arrive
- Online shops and delivery accounts: a few days after, when you know the parcels will find you.
- The doctor, the dentist, the pharmacy, the vet: register, transfer records and prescriptions.
- The tax office, benefits, electoral or voter registration, and any residence registration your country requires, within whatever deadline applies.
- Vehicle registration and driving licence; many countries set a deadline for this.
The ones everyone forgets
- Loyalty cards and apps that post things.
- The vet and the pet microchip register.
- Clubs your children belong to.
- The neighbour who has a spare key.
- Anyone who sends you a card once a year.
Mail forwarding catches the rest. Every forwarded letter in the first month is a company you still have to tell; add it to the list and tick it when done.
Questions
Where do these timings come from?
From the usual notice periods and installation lead times in household contracts. Your own contract decides the real period; use these as the day to check it by.
Should I cancel or transfer the electricity?
That depends on whether the same supplier serves the new home and whether you want to keep the tariff. If in doubt, ask the supplier early; the answer changes what you do and when.
Can the planner do this for me?
It dates the list. Add each company, pick its kind and what you need from it, and the call lands on the right day on the timeline, in the calendar file and on the printed who-to-tell page.
Related
Published 2026-10-30. General information, not legal or financial advice; notice periods and deadlines come from your contracts and your country.