The International Schools Review Forum

I am wondering what documents do we need to bring/scan when living abroad?

Obviously we are bringing our passports, but should we bring or scan these:

vaccination records
US ID
US Credit Cards - yes I know we can use these, and may want to bring 1, but all of ours?
marriage certificate
birth certificates

Is there anything else you would recommend or delete from this list?

Also, once there, do you purchase a safe for these documents? Do you always keep your passports on you at all times? (I am moving to S.Korea)

Any tips on how what to bring and keep it safe is appreciated. Also, anything scanned I am passing on to our family in the states so they can have it just in case.

You dont bring originals of those. You bring apostiled copies of them. You keep copies as scans on a USB drive, Recordable CD, and online either to a drop box of just emailed to yourself.
I would add your social security card, and dont forget to scan your passport as well.

You want to have copies of your professional records as well: degrees, transcripts, teaching license, professional certifications, etc.

I dont carry my passport on me in other countries i bring a color copy of my ID and Visa page in my passport and carry my Passport card.

[quote="micki0624"]I am wondering what documents do we need to bring/scan when living abroad?

Obviously we are bringing our passports, but should we bring or scan these:

vaccination records
US ID
US Credit Cards - yes I know we can use these, and may want to bring 1, but all of ours?
marriage certificate
birth certificates

Is there anything else you would recommend or delete from this list?

Also, once there, do you purchase a safe for these documents? Do you always keep your passports on you at all times? (I am moving to S.Korea)

Any tips on how what to bring and keep it safe is appreciated. Also, anything scanned I am passing on to our family in the states so they can have it just in case.[/quote]

I would do both. Make copies but you may need the originals of US ID Cards or birth certificates as if you need to get a new passport, generally you need 1 of these. Personally, I bring all originals of them with me and keep them locked in a safe. You can always get replacements if lost/stolen but chances are, you will need originals at some point.

Bring all your credit cards for emergency purposes and keep 2 of them locked in a safe.

I've lived overseas so long I've got them all with me. Most in a file cabinet, some in a safe.
Others prefer the strategy of leaving them in the US, in a safe deposit box that a trusted person can access on your behalf.
Either way, take quality color scans of them all and have those scans in Dropbox or something similar, so you can access them anywhere in the world with just internet access and a password.
It's very important to make sure you have all those things gathered together in one safe location. So many times I've had colleagues who needed some document, and after several months or years away could not recall exactly which box it was in back home, so relatives had to comb through reams and piles and boxes. The relatives never seem happy about this, and the colleagues suffer great stress.
Include your school records in that list - transcripts, diplomas, teaching certificates.
Carry a quality color copy of your passport in your wallet. Lock the passport away unless you need it.
Credit cards are up to you. I'd bring them, but carry only one in my wallet. Lock the others up with the passport.

In addition to those documents, some of which you will use and some not, I have also created an excel file in which I keep track of bank accounts, SWIF codes, bank addresses, utility account user names and passwords etc.