Moving back to Sweden will be easier if you begin your preparations in good time. Depending on how long you’ve been stationed abroad, it’s wise to prepare yourself for a more or less long and complex adjustment period when you move home. You and your family will have changed during the time you’ve lived abroad, and been affected by the environment you’ve lived in.
Sometimes, children find that none of their new friends are interested in listening to their tales of their unusual experiences abroad. Schoolmates may even become irritated and think that your child is trying to draw attention to themselves. Even if you were looking forward to moving back to Sweden, there can be days when things aren’t as you expected and hoped.
There are lots of practical matters to attend to – you may not have your own home to return to, for example, and feel that this has to be sorted out before you can apply for preschool and school places for the children. As an accompanying partner, you may also have to begin looking for a job.
Even if you are not sure whether you will be moving to a new posting or home to Sweden, remember that applications for preschool and school places for the autumn term need to be made early in the year. Stockholm City, for example, starts planning the autumn term preschool places as early as February. You thus stand a better chance of obtaining a place at your preferred preschool if you apply at the start of the year.