The 30-Day Moving Checklist (India Edition)

30 days out

• Get three surveys and three written quotations. Not phone estimates — surveys.
• Book the mover. Peak season (April–June) needs four weeks; off-season can be done in two.
• Start decluttering. Everything you throw away now is something you do not pay to transport.
• If you are renting, give written notice and confirm the deposit-return process.
• Check whether your new society or building restricts moving days and hours. Many do.

21 days out

• Apply for school transfer certificates. This is the item that most often delays a family move — schools are slow and the TC cannot be rushed.
• Arrange the gas connection transfer with your distributor. An LPG cylinder cannot legally travel on a goods vehicle; the connection transfers, the cylinder does not.
• Book vehicle transport if you are shipping a car or bike separately.
• Start using up frozen and tinned food rather than buying more.

14 days out

• Notify your bank, insurers, employer and any subscription services of the address change.
• Update the address on Aadhaar — several other updates depend on it and it takes time to reflect.
• Arrange final meter readings and account closure or transfer for electricity and water.
• Collect medical records and prescriptions; get repeat prescriptions filled if you will be between doctors.
• Confirm the mover's quotation in writing if anything has changed since the survey.

7 days out

• Pack everything you will not need in the last week. Realistically that is most of the house.
• Defrost the fridge 48 hours before, not the night before.
• Fit the transit bolts to the washing machine.
• Confirm lift booking and gate pass with both societies.
• Withdraw some cash. Moving day involves small payments to people who do not take UPI.
• Pack the "open first" box: kettle, mugs, tea, chargers, bedding, towels, toilet paper, basic tools, medicines.

The day before

• Charge every phone and power bank.
• Keep jewellery, cash, documents, laptops and medicines aside to travel with you personally. These do not go on the truck — no mover's insurance covers them and no sensible mover will accept them.
• Photograph the meter readings and the empty rooms.
• Confirm the crew's arrival time and the supervisor's phone number.

Moving day

• Walk the crew through the house first, flagging fragile and high-value items.
• Check the inventory as it is written, not afterwards. Sign it once it is right.
• Do a final walk-through of every room, cupboard, loft and balcony before the truck closes.
• Keep the inventory copy with you, not in a box.

At the new address

• Check the inventory against what comes off the truck, before signing the delivery sheet.
• Note any damage on the delivery sheet before signing. This single step decides most insurance claims.
• Let the fridge stand upright for a few hours before switching it on.
• Test the essentials — water, power, geyser — while the crew is still there.