Skip to content
Move with confidence.
Destination  UK

Your first 30 days in the UK – the moving checklist, in the order that actually works

Last updated 25 September 2026Rules checked every MondayOfficial sourcesSources & methodology →

An eVisa, a National Insurance number, a GP, council tax and a bank account: moving to the UK means a string of separate sign-ups, and the order decides how quickly you settle. Here is your checklist for the first 30 days in the UK, with the rules that changed in 2025 and 2026.

Woman with a rolling suitcase tapping her phone at a train station ticket gate
Photo: Jorge Elizaquibel/Adobe Stock

If you are moving in 2026, your first 30 days in the UK look different from a few years ago. eVisas have replaced physical immigration documents, Home Office fees rose on 8 April 2026, and since 1 May 2026 private renting in England has followed the Renters' Rights Act. The logic of the first month is unchanged: status first, then a home, then everything that needs an address – your UKVI (UK Visas and Immigration) account, a National Insurance number, the council, a GP and a bank.

Before you travel: your status, eVisa and UKVI account

Unless you are British or Irish, you need permission to live here before you board. Irish citizens need no visa or permit under the Common Travel Area, while EU, EEA and Swiss citizens who were not living here by 31 December 2020 need a visa like everyone else – see part 2.

A granted visa comes as an eVisa, not a card, and you can only see it once you have linked it to a free UKVI account – one per person, including each child. Add the passport you will travel on: eVisas are checked at check-in and at the border, and a share code for travel, valid for 90 days, works as backup proof.

TaskWhat appliesWho it concerns
Visa decisionUsually 3–12 weeks, depending on the visaEveryone except British and Irish citizens
TB testChest X-ray at a Home Office-approved clinic; certificate valid 6 monthsComing for 6 months or more after recently living 6 months or more in a listed country
ETA (electronic travel authorisation)£20 since 8 April 2026 (was £16); visits only, no workVisitors – not people moving here
Household goodsNo import duty or VAT with Transfer of Residence relief, form ToR1You lived outside the UK for at least 12 consecutive months
PetsMicrochip, then rabies vaccination at least 21 full days before travelDogs, cats and ferrets entering Great Britain

Source: the Home Office, UKVI, HM Revenue & Customs and the Animal and Plant Health Agency, read 23 September 2026.

Carrying £10,000 or more in cash between Great Britain and a country outside the UK? Declare it to customs. In Northern Ireland the threshold is €10,000.

The first 30 days in the UK: what is the right order?

Once you land, each step unlocks the next. This order works:

StepWhatWhere
1Share code to prove your right to workYour UKVI account, then your employer
2National Insurance number, unless your eVisa already shows oneOnline, from inside the UK
3Right to Rent check – England onlyYour landlord
4Council tax registrationYour local council; in Northern Ireland, Land & Property Services
5GP registrationA surgery that covers your address
6Bank accountAny bank; the nine largest must offer a basic account
7School place for your children (England)Your local council
8Driving licence checkDVLA (Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency); in Northern Ireland, the Driver and Vehicle Agency

Source: UKVI, HM Revenue & Customs, the NHS, HM Treasury and the government guide School admissions, read 23 September 2026.

Week one: right to work, National Insurance number and a bank account

You must prove your right to work before you start. If you are not British or Irish, you choose between a share code and eligible immigration documents, and the employer cannot reject you for choosing a document. A share code lasts 90 days, can be reused and is checked together with your date of birth.

Your eVisa may already show a National Insurance number. If not, apply online from inside the UK and allow up to 4 weeks after proving your identity – you can start work before it arrives. Until your employer has your details, you may be taxed on an emergency code ending in W1, M1 or X; HMRC (HM Revenue & Customs) can take up to 35 days from your start to correct it. Part 3 has the details.

The nine largest current-account providers must offer a fee-free basic bank account, with no overdraft, to anyone legally resident in the UK without another suitable account – including people with no fixed address. The bank must open or refuse it within 10 business days of a completed application. A tenancy agreement, a council tax bill or a letter from HMRC or your employer are commonly accepted as proof of address; part 4 covers the rest.

Renting a home and registering for council tax

Private renting in England has followed the Renters' Rights Act 2025 since 1 May 2026. New tenancies roll on with no end date, 'no fault' section 21 evictions are gone, and a landlord cannot take rent before you sign or ask for more than one month's rent in advance. Deposits are capped at 5 weeks' rent (6 weeks if the annual rent is £50,000 or more) and must be protected in a government-approved scheme within 30 days. Landlords may not turn you away for having children or receiving benefits.

Right to Rent checks apply only in England: your landlord checks every tenant aged 18 or over, in the 28 days before the tenancy starts if your permission is time-limited. In Scotland a deposit can be at most two months' rent, in Northern Ireland one month's, and in Wales tenants are 'contract-holders' under the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016. View a property in person, or have someone you trust do it, before you pay.

When you move in, contact the local council to register for council tax. You usually pay from 18, and a full bill assumes two adults: live alone and you get 25 per cent off, but only if you apply. Households where everyone is a full-time student pay nothing. Wales has nine bands, Scottish bills usually include water and waste charges, and Northern Ireland charges domestic rates instead of council tax.

Healthcare and benefits: GP, NHS 111, 999 and NRPF

If you paid the Immigration Health Surcharge, you can use the NHS free of charge from the date your visa starts, though you still pay for prescriptions in England, dental treatment and eye tests.

Register with a GP (family doctor) surgery in week one, before you need one. In England it is free, takes about 15 minutes per person online, and needs no ID, proof of address, proof of immigration status or NHS number. You usually hear back within 5 days, and a refusal must be explained in writing within 14 days. In Northern Ireland, people arriving from outside the UK use form HSCR-1.

Call 111 or use 111 online (ages 5 and over) for urgent help, 999 in an emergency and 101 for non-emergency police. In England a prescription costs £9.90 per item, and the government announced it stays at £9.90 in 2026/27. Prescriptions are free for everyone in Northern Ireland, and prescriptions from a local GP are free in Scotland and Wales.

Most visas carry an NRPF (no recourse to public funds) condition: you cannot claim most benefits, including Universal Credit, Child Benefit, Housing Benefit and Council Tax Reduction. Part 9 explains what you can still get.

What to do now

StepWhatWhen
1Check which route lets you live here (part 2)Before you plan the move
2Create your UKVI account and add the passport you will travel onAs soon as your visa is granted
3Book a TB test if required, prepare pets and apply on form ToR1Before you travel
4Generate share codes for your employer and landlordBefore you start work or sign
5Apply for a National Insurance number if your eVisa shows noneIn your first week
6Register with a GP and contact the council about council taxIn your first week
7Open a bank account and check your driving licenceOnce you have proof of address

Source: UKVI, HMRC and the NHS, read 23 September 2026.

Official sources

The official pages this guide is based on, read 23 September 2026. Links open the authority’s own website.

Relocate in Europe provides general information, not legal or financial advice for your individual situation. Check with the authority named above before you act – rules change, and your case may differ.