Moving your stuff and moving your life are two different jobs. This is the practical guide to the services layer: what a relocation package actually includes — home search, school search, visa and immigration support, settling-in — how it differs from a moving company, what it realistically costs, who pays, and how to vet a provider so the advice is genuinely on your side. Unbiased, never paid placement.
A moving company handles your belongings; a relocation service handles you — home search, school search, visa coordination and settling-in (bank account, SIM, utilities, licence, TM30). Packages are modular: corporate moves are employer-funded and comprehensive, while self-funded expats usually buy just a home search and a settling-in day. Get an itemised, written quote, confirm whether the fee is fixed, hourly or commission-offset, and pick a provider that’s independent of any single landlord so the advice is on your side.
The single most useful distinction to make before you spend a baht: a moving company solves a logistics problem — packing, freight, customs and delivery of your physical belongings. A relocation service solves a settling problem — finding you a home, securing the lease, getting the kids into school, coordinating your visa and work permit, and handling the dozens of small administrative tasks that turn an address into a life. Many international firms offer both, but they are priced and scoped separately. Work out which problem you actually have — or whether you have both — and you’ll buy the right thing instead of an expensive bundle you don’t need. For the logistics half, see our companion guide on shipping household goods to Thailand.
Packages are modular — you assemble the components you need rather than buying a fixed block. The common building blocks are:
A relocating executive might take all of it; a self-funded expat might buy only a home-search day. Ask for the scope in writing so you know exactly what each line covers.
For the majority of self-funded movers, home search is the part worth paying for. A good service starts from your budget, commute, schools and lifestyle, shortlists suitable properties, arranges efficient back-to-back viewings, and then negotiates and sanity-checks the lease — deposit terms, the break clause, who pays for what. Crucially, the value depends on independence: a relocation home-search consultant who is paid to represent you will steer you differently from a listing agent paid by a landlord. Either can be fine, but you should know whose side the person across the table is on. Pair this with our guides on where to live in Thailand and understanding your Thai lease.
If you are moving with children, school placement is often the hardest-deadlined part of the whole move — popular international schools have application windows, assessments and waitlists that don’t bend around your shipping schedule. A relocation school-search service matches your children to suitable schools by curriculum, location and fees, manages the applications and assessments, and coordinates timing so a place is confirmed before term. Start this early; it frequently drives the rest of the timeline, including which neighbourhood you should be searching for a home in. See international schools in Thailand for the groundwork.
Relocation providers coordinate your visa and work-permit process, but the licensed filing work is usually done by a visa agent or immigration lawyer they partner with. That’s the right structure: you want the relocation firm managing timelines and documents, and a properly licensed specialist handling the actual submissions. Be clear about which visa you are on — a corporate hire on a Non-Immigrant B and work permit has very different paperwork from a retiree, a DTV holder or an LTR applicant — and confirm whether the immigration fees are inside the relocation quote or billed separately by the agent. Our visa guides explain each route in plain English.
Settling-in services cover the chores that are trivial for a local and maddening for a newcomer — and they gate everything else:
Without a bank account and a registered address, much of your administrative life in Thailand stalls — which is why a settling-in half-day is often the best-value single thing a self-funder can buy. The DIY versions are in opening a Thai bank account and your first 30 days.
Cost scales with scope, so think in components, not a single figure:
If your move is employer-sponsored, ask HR for the relocation policy and approved provider before engaging anyone. If you’re self-funding, you control the spend — buy only the components that genuinely save you time or mistakes, and always get the fee in writing with the basis (fixed, hourly, per-service or commission-offset) spelled out.
Two different insurance questions come up. For the physical move, marine/transit insurance is bought through the mover and is genuinely worth it on an ocean shipment. For the relocation service itself, what protects you is a clear written contract: an itemised scope, a defined fee basis, what happens if a home search doesn’t find a place within the agreed days, and confirmation that any immigration work is handled by a licensed agent or lawyer. Read the cancellation and substitution terms, and never pay a large sum against a vague “all-inclusive” promise with no itemised scope behind it.
Move into a furnished residence while you search for your long-term home — then take your time getting the lease, the school and the bank account right.
General information only — not legal, tax, immigration or financial advice. Relocation package scopes, fees and what each provider includes vary widely and change over time; immigration filings should be handled by a licensed visa agent or lawyer. Always obtain a written, itemised quote and confirm the fee basis before engaging any provider. BAANLYY never takes paid placement and is independent of any single landlord or developer.