Most relocation content starts after the decision to move is made. This is the page for families still upstream of that decision, weighing whether to accept the international posting in the first place. We won't make the call for you. We will give you a structured framework for thinking through the parts that matter most, and point you at the resources that take each strand deeper.
What to map first
Five strands deserve real time before you decide: the children's school options in the destination, the trailing partner's career, family-of-origin proximity and support, the financial package (not just the gross number), and the realistic length of the posting. Most families get the first three right and underweight the last two.
School options: the unavoidable question
The school question dominates for most families. If you have children, you cannot decide whether to relocate without first knowing whether your destination has schools that can take them at the right year group, at a fee tier you can sustain, with an academic profile that doesn't derail their trajectory. Start with our city guides and our five-minute school finder quiz to scope what realistic looks like.
The trailing partner question
The single most common reason for early relocation failure is the trailing partner's career or psychological adjustment. If one partner is moving for work and the other is suspending or pivoting a career, time spent before the move on what that partner's daily life will look like is the highest-yield investment you can make. See our writing on trailing partners with school-aged children.
The financial package: real numbers
Most family relocation decisions are made on gross salary numbers without the full housing, schooling, tax and repatriation maths run end to end. Our cost calculator models the complete package across cities. Use it before you negotiate.
Posting length
Two-year postings rarely work for families with school-age children, because the disruption-to-stability ratio is wrong. Five-plus-year postings are usually viable. The middle ground (three to four years) is judgment-dependent. If you can negotiate length at offer stage, do.
Where to go next
- Relocation hub with calculators, checklists and city deep-dives
- Real family relocation case studies
- City versus city comparisons
- Talk to the editorial team