Moving: The Paperwork Checklist

The boxes take care of themselves. The paperwork does not. Work through these roughly in this order.

Two weeks or more before:

• USPS mail forwarding at usps.com. Forwarding starts on the date you pick and runs 12 months for most mail. It is a bridge, not a substitute for updating senders.
• Utilities: stop or transfer electricity, gas, water, internet. Book internet installation early, since appointment lead times are the usual cause of an offline first week.
• Insurance: update or replace renters or homeowners coverage effective the day you get keys, and tell your auto insurer, because the address changes the premium.

Move week:

• Photograph the old place after it is empty, and the meters, for the deposit and final bills.
• Give the old landlord a forwarding address in writing. Deposit deadlines often run from it.

Within the first weeks after:

• Driver's license and vehicle registration: states require updates on a deadline, commonly 30 days, sometimes as few as 10. Fines apply.
• Voter registration: moves do not transfer it automatically across counties or states. USA.gov routes you to your state's process.
• Banks, employer payroll, IRS (Form 8822 or just your next return), Social Security if you receive benefits, and every subscription that ships anything.
• Health insurance: a move can be a qualifying event that opens a special enrollment period, and moving states usually requires a new marketplace plan. The window is short, typically 60 days.

Mail that arrives forwarded with a yellow label is your running to-do list of senders still holding the old address. Update each one as it appears and the list empties itself within a couple of months.