Expats
Going home after years abroad: what you have to switch back on
Address registration, healthcare, the bank and the number you left behind. The order for existing administratively again without losing weeks.
Tomás Berruezo 6 min Photo by Nikolai Kolosov on Unsplash Going home has a list of its own, and it surprises anyone who expected to find everything where they left it. After a few years away you go back to being an administrative oddity.
The order
- Register your address wherever your country keeps that register, because it is what unlocks almost everything else.
- Deregister from the consular register of the country you were living in.
- Healthcare: apply for your card again and get a doctor assigned.
- Tax: from what point you are resident again and what that means.
- Bank: update your address, your phone and your residence status.
- And the phone, if you cancelled the number or had it on a minimum plan.
The phone number
If you kept it, all you have to do is go back to a normal tariff. If you cancelled it, after a while the number cannot be recovered, and that is where the boring work starts: changing the contact number at your bank, with the administration and in every service that uses text messages.
It is the best reason not to cancel it in the first place, and if that has already happened, the list gets made and dealt with in one afternoon.
The options for not ending up there are in keeping your existing number while you live abroad.
What you can bring back and what you cannot
- Medical and vaccination records, which you will be asked for.
- Employment and contribution certificates from that country, for future pensions.
- Degrees and training, with recognition if it is needed.
- And your tax paperwork from over there, in case it is needed when you file.
Coming home starts with the address register: almost everything else hangs off it.
The real landing
And then there is the part that is not paperwork: coming back is tiring. The city has changed, so have the people, and it takes months to fit back in. Knowing it is normal does not make it easier, but knowing it in advance stops you reading it as a mistake.
Frequently asked questions
What do I do first when I move back?
Register your address where your country requires it, because nearly all the other steps hang off that. Then the consular deregistration, healthcare and the bank.
Can I get my phone number back?
Only if you kept the line. Once enough time has passed since cancelling, the number is gone.
What paperwork should I bring from the country I lived in?
Medical and vaccination records, employment and contribution certificates, degrees with recognition if needed, and tax documents.
When am I a tax resident again?
It depends on criteria set by law and by the applicable treaty. That is a question for an adviser.
