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One of the most important things to take care of after having made the decision to emigrate half way round the world to Australia is to make sure you have adequate insurance to cover your move and the first stages of your time 'Down Under'.

The first kind of insurance you may need to take care of is insurance for the shipment of your possessions, which may leave the country a good few weeks before you do, depending on circumstances. There is a high chance that your goods will complete the journey without any problems at all, but to provide piece of mind and, of course, cover for the event of losses or damages, insuring your shipment is vital.

Generally, insurance for transporting goods is worked out on a percentage of the given value of your belongings. The insurance policy should be checked thoroughly to ensure that it covers your possessions from the moment they leave your door to when it is unpacked at your new home in Australia. The vast majority of shipping companies offer fairly basic insurance policies based on convenience to them. Therefore, if you have any items of particular value you should look to take out additional cover through an alternative insurer.

As well as your personal possessions, it is also important to ensure you insure yourself and your family adequately for the first period of your time in Australia. In general, most people will travel to the country as temporary visa holders and won't be eligible for Australia's healthcare system until your immigration visa is approved. Therefore, it is best to arrange emigration travel insurance to cover your flight as well as the first few weeks in the country. Try to calculate how long it will be until you have your immigration visa, then ensure that you have sufficient cover to last the duration of that period. There are a range of companies which provide such insurance; for example, cover for the one-way flight and the first 21 days after taking up residence.

Once in possession of your Australian immigration visa, it is important to go to visit the local Medicare office to enrol in the country's government-subsidised health care system. First, you must find out if you're eligible for Medicare so you must take your passport, permanent visa and all travel documents. If you meet the requirements you will receive a Medicare card number which can be used until the actual card arrives in the mail. This normally takes around three weeks.