Britain and New Zealand

I was asked by a few people, how hard it is to move to another country and what do you need to do that. For that I decided to write what I needed to NZ and now to UK.



First of all you need to sort everything in the country you're leaving. Mobile accounts, paying old bills all kinds of stuff similar to that.
Another thing is social and health insurance. For that I basically went to my insurance company I said when do I leave where am I going and for how long. Then I just filled out short form and that was it.
For the social stuff I went to employment office and said I'm leaving.
Since I wasn't insured in any counry I had to pay for a private insurance. In NZ I used NZ company for the whole time of my stay. In Britain I paid for the first month, because after you have a legal job, you're paying taxes, so you have acces to healthcare.
For UK though you don't have to cancel your czech insurance and buy a private one. There's another way, but I'm not sure how it works, so just ask in your own insurance company.
You might want to consider giving someone a full authority (?) so the person can take mail and do everything you might need, instead of you.
You'll obviously need a visa. Well... for UK you don't, but this is basic, so obviously look up what you need.
That's pretty much it. I guess.

Another things is obviously transport. Just buy a ticket and you're ready :)
You'll need accommodation at least for the first few days, and the most interesting option is probably Couchsurfing. Another option is simply hostel. Just find the cheapest one for two nights and then deal with the rest (and proably extend your stay after two days).
You'll of course need money to take care of yourself for the first few weeks. How many? Hard to say. It all depends on the country, on your expenses and how much you think it will take you to find a job. Be reasonable and borrow money just to be sure. After you have a job, you'll pay it of. I'd reccommend to have money to at least (!) a month of reasonable living, so that you can start cutting down the expenses after a week or two if you don't find anything.
Also it depends on your language skill...


So, now you're in the country. You got out of the airport to your place. You probably looked around town and maybe even enjoyed the first few days in nice and calm way.
Now, let's get to business.
First you probably need a sim card, unless you already bought it at the airport, which is a good idea. This shouldn't be that hard.
In NZ I needed bank account (took me 10 minutes :- ) and I needed IRD number to be able to work. That took me a while and it was a bit complicated, because I didn't have a driving licence, but I started working before I received it and no one cared. I got my first payment in cash and that's it.
In UK you need bank account (I don't have it yet, because I'm an idiot, but I don't really need it that much) and you'll need National Insurance Number (NIN), which I also don't have because I'm an idiot. But both things are quite easy to get.
All of that can be solved by either going to a bank, doing somethig online or calling somewhere. It's all pretty straightforward and they'll always tell you what you need to do.

These are the stuff you have to do no matter what.

After you have the basics all you need is job and a place to stay. As for the place just look up things online and call. Think about it before you do something. You'll proably need something cheap, but you might want to consider first finding out the transport to that location. For example I found a job and  then a place to stay, but only after that I realized there are no buses after midnight and I always finish work after midnight, so I was forced to buy a bike. Which is still the best option and I wanted to do it anyway, but just think about your options and needs and don't be afraid to take your time. Be clever about this.
Good idea is probably finding a place after you have a job, but the other way it might work too.

As for the job it's quite easy again if you're in situation similar to mine and you need any job.
What I did was looking up online everyday for the jobs that I could do and I was just randomly sending my CVs to everyone.
Important thing is: DO NOT count on the internet!
I'm serious. Do not think that you send three CVs one day and the next you'll get a job. Do not wait for answers. They'll most likely never come and if they do they'll  be mosly rejections anyway. Basically do not count on the internet!
If you can, always visit the place in person. If you can't, but you can call, then call. And if you can't do that, then send email.
I'm deadly serious about this, because giving your CV in person is much more effective and calling too.
Also, don't think that visiting five places in one day will get job. Even if they told they are looking for someone, keep looking untill you really have a job. This is important: keep looking!
For example I'll start looking for a job from monday too. Why? I don't like my job and I think I could find something better.

Looking up jobs online might take you longer time at first, but after that it should be only few minutes everyday on every website looking for the new offers.
Anyway, after you've done this you need to start giving out your CVs. Now it varies and it depends what you want to do and what you have experience with. I was trying to find a job as a cleaner (unsuccessfully), so I called some companies and asked if they're looking for anyone.
I was trying to find a job in hotels (again unsuccessfully), so I just went into several hotels in Liverpool and I gave them my CV saying that I'm looking for a job as a porter or waiting/cleaning staff.
And most importantly I was looking for a job as a waiter (successfully). In NZ I got really lucky, because Napier was small, there were many people looking for jobs, but it took me only about a week and I only went to maybe 10 restaurants/cafes. I got really lucky and I know it.
In Liverpool I went and I got rid of exactly 48 CVs and it took me about a week of looking.
I got one offer after I gave them my resumé in person, but the job I have, I found out because a manager of restaurant I came into is also manager of other places, so he started talking to me, asked me a few questions, and after few minutes I left he called me, and gave me number to another resaurant where they were looking for waiters.

These are jobs that require fluent english. If you don't have that then try something else. Try factories, some manual work (even better if you have experience). You can definitely find a job as a housekeeper/cleaner everywhere and I got one offer too (didn't work, because I didn't have NIN).
Whatever job you're looking for, the way is simple: go there in person with your resumé nicely dressed and say what you want. If you can't go there, then call. And if you can't do that then use email.
If you don't know where to start, look up some companies online that are doing what you want. Want to be a builder, electrician or a room painter then just look it up and then go there/call.
Same for the orchard/farmer work.

Obviously it helps if you're friendly and you make friends easily. If you can do that then ask everyone if they don't know about something. You never know who might help you. I found my picking jobs through a good friend (thanks again : ) and I stuck with it for a long time and I made good money.
And I repeat again, don't count on the internet. Don't believe when they say they'll call even just to say no and don't count on anything. Even if the place needs 5 new waiters still keep looking.


That's really it. It's really nothing hard and there's really nothing to worry about. Lot of people think it was courageous of me to go NZ alone. I can't agree, but even if I did, I can never say it was hard to live there and find a job there. Same goes with UK.
It really is this easy:
Sort out all the paperwork before and after arrival.
Have enough money for the first few weeks.
Walk around the town to find a job.
Go online to find a place to live.

And the best and last thing about all this:
Live freely the way you want to! :)