Moving Out of Hong Kong: A Practical Checklist
A six-week timeline, how to decide what ships and what gets cleared, appliance disposal and a deposit-safe end-of-lease clearance. Updated September 2026.
Start about six weeks out. Book your freight mover early, decide what is shipping and what is staying behind, and book your clearance with us in good time so the flat is empty before the landlord's walkthrough. Regulated appliances can't go out with the rubbish, so include them in the clearance booking.
The six-week timeline
Week 6 — decisions
Get freight quotes and book a shipping survey. Book flights. Give your landlord written notice as your tenancy agreement requires. Then make three lists: what ships, what comes on the plane, and what stays behind.
Week 5 — book your clearance
Once you know what is staying behind, WhatsApp us photos of it with your floor and lift details. We give you a fixed, all-in quote and hold a date. For a whole flat, site visits are free. Booking early gives you the widest choice of dates, including the day or two before handover.
Week 4 — pack what's leaving Hong Kong
Your freight mover packs, or you do. Keep an essentials pile for the last few weeks. Anything you are not taking goes on the clearance list, so nothing gets forgotten at the end.
Week 3 — clear the bulky things early
Get large items out of the way before the final week: spare mattresses, an old sofa, exercise equipment, boxes from the storeroom. A mid-move pickup frees up space for packing and makes the last week much calmer.
Week 2 — utilities and admin
Schedule electricity and water disconnection for the handover date. Cancel broadband, TV and other subscriptions. Set up mail forwarding with Hongkong Post. Update your MPF, tax and bank details with a forwarding address.
Week 1 — handover clearance
This is where a full flat clearance earns its keep. On handover day the flat needs to be empty of everything that isn't a fixture, and tidy. Book the final clearance a day or two before the walkthrough, not on the day, so you have time to spot-clean and fix anything the landlord might flag.
Ship it or clear it: a simple way to decide
- Ship it if you will genuinely use it in your new home and it is worth the freight: sentimental pieces, art, and things that are hard to replace.
- Clear it if it won't fit your new home, won't survive the journey, or isn't worth the shipping cost. We take furniture, appliances and general household items in one visit: see furniture disposal and move-out clearance.
- Decide before you ask for a quote so the fixed price covers everything that is staying behind.
Appliances: don't put them in the freight container
Refrigerators, washing machines, TVs, computer monitors, air conditioners and computers are regulated electrical appliances in Hong Kong. They can't be left out with regular refuse. Moving them abroad rarely makes sense anyway, given voltage and plug differences.
Your options:
- Add them to your clearance: fridge disposal, washing machine disposal, TV disposal
- The government's statutory collection when you buy a new appliance: see our electrical appliance disposal guide
The deposit-safe cleanout
Standard HK tenancies let the landlord deduct the cost of removing items left behind and reinstating the flat, so anything you leave can eat into your deposit, and you don't get a say in who the landlord hires.
A pre-handover clearance keeps you in control: you get a fixed quote upfront and the flat is emptied before the walkthrough.
Common mistakes we see
- Booking the clearance too late. The days just before a handover fill up. Book as soon as you know your handover date.
- Waiting until handover day. A pickup on the day of the walkthrough leaves no time to fix anything the landlord spots.
- Not photographing the empty flat. Take date-stamped photos of every room after clearance for your deposit-return paperwork.