Before boarding the plane to your new home...

The months leading up to the departure from your home country to your new destination will be extremely stressful and often this will be a time wracked with uncertainty. On the other hand though, this is also a very exciting period of counting the months and then days before you board the plane. A lot needs to be done and kept in mind while packing up your life. 

If you are moving from the US to another country: 

• I would suggest starting your organization in earnest about six months before your eventual departure by putting together a list of all the things that need to be done.
• Make a list of all the things you want to get rid of and send this list to family and friends. Give them first choice for your things. Sell whatever is left. If some things don't sell, make a donation to the Salvation Army or another charitable organization.
• Get  all your bills and statements sent to you electronically so that you don't have to rely on companies to send your last bill or correspondence via regular mail.
• If you collect books, send your collection using the book rate from the US postal service. Or use MBags. Bundle your books in ten pound packages and put them in an MBag, which gets tagged and sent to your new addres. Much cheaper than sending your books surface rates (by sea). 
• Start selling your off seasonal items like Christmas/holiday decorations, winter coats etc. Advertise your things online (Ebay is a good one) and bundle your things - a great way to get more money. An example would be to sell a Christmas tree with decorations, lights, wrapping paper in a big bundle. You can also sell kitcehn items as a big bundle - college students in your area would find it very appealing! 
• Scan your favourite magazine articles and give away your magazines and some cookbooks or have them reclycled. 
• Scan all your important documents and save them on a memory stick. This way you'll have the information readily available while waiting for your shipment to arrive in your new country.
• Don't bother with many electronic items - the voltage and plug may be different in your new country. Converters may be available in case there is an item that you just have to take with you. Think twice about taking along your desktop computer though. Remove the hard drive before packing it up to ship and wrap it really well before you ship it. The hard drive may be something you want to pack in your carry-on luggage, although airport security may decide to confiscate it. 
• It may be cheaper and easier to box up things that you don't need now into cartons and send over via surface mail to your partner. This way a lot of familiar things will already be at your new home when you get there.  

If you are moving to the US:

• A lot of the above suggestions will apply; however, in my experience I would suggest that you bring only sentimental items with you. The cost of living is so affordable in the US, setting up a home with your partner with goodies that you like and choose will happen quickly. I had two bags of clothing and very few sentimental things when I came over. Three years down the line my husband and I have built a beautiful house and have made it a wonderful home for us - without going crazy on credit.