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Moving? Here’s how to transfer internet service, hassle free
Moving is always a blend of stress and new-house excitement. Planning out the new home layout can be fun, but everything that comes first — packing and labeling everything to make sure nothing gets lost — can make for a chaotic few weeks.
One thing you don’t want to save for the eleventh hour is your internet service. Let’s be honest: S day without a stable internet connection can feel like an eternity, so don’t risk gaps in your service by putting it off. Transferring your connection to your new home can be both painless and lightning quick if you tackle the process in the right way (and at the right time).
Setting up an internet contract after moving doesn’t need to be another big stressor, even if you prefer your current provider. Let’s get into it.
You may be lucky enough that a simple transfer could be all you need. No new contracts, no waiting for installations, and definitely no days without email. Otherwise, you’ll want to make sure you do as much preparation as possible to make sure you’re good to go when moving day rolls around.
So, as you transition from one chapter of your life to the next, this is how you can ensure your internet is up and running properly, all ready and waiting for you at your new address. Because, sure, change is good, but sometimes constants like a fast and reliable internet connection make it so much better.
1. Contact your internet service provider
When you’re planning a move, you should contact your internet service provider, or ISP, well in advance. Notifying the company about your relocation is important so you don’t have any gaps in your internet service. It can help you avoid unexpected charges, too.
You’ll get the opportunity to have a representative check if your new address falls within your provider’s service area. If it does, the company can advise you on the best way to transfer your service. This might involve setting up an appointment for a technician to come out and set up service at your new residence or even being wired for service where none exists.
If your new address isn’t in your current ISP’s coverage area, you’ll be able to have plenty of time to talk about contract termination processes (if they apply) and any fees you might have to pay. You won’t have to rush to find last-minute deals on a new provider, either. Don’t be afraid to pick up the phone and ask all the questions you need. It’s a new commitment, after all.
If your internet service provider is listed below, you can get help transferring service by calling or going directly to their websites for detailed instructions (links provided):
2. Set up a transfer date
Setting up a transfer date with your ISP is an important step when you want to make sure you can move to your new home without interrupting your internet service. This date will act as a bridge between discontinuing service at your old address and starting it at your new one.
By setting a date, you give your ISP a timeline to arrange a technician, equipment (if applicable), and any discounts or promotions that might be available. It also ensures that you won’t get a bill for two services at two houses at the same time or end up paying for days when you aren’t using your services.
It’s just good practice to set a concrete transfer date, too. That way you can be sure that when you start unpacking and getting ready to live in your new house, your internet is already good to go. This can be super helpful if you use it for remote work, online school, or even just coordinating other parts of your big move. You’ve got to use the internet for nearly everything these days. Make sure it’s up and running as soon as possible.
3. Make sure your equipment is functioning properly
Before it’s time to leave, if you’ll be using the same internet equipment, make sure it’s working. Check your modems, routers, and any connected devices. Do any updates you need to finish up and make sure everything works the way it should. Having everything charged and in tip-top shape means that once you’re at your new location, no problems should come from your equipment.
Moreover, if there’s any wear and tear or performance issues with your equipment, addressing them before your move gives you time to either repair or replace the necessary components. Remember, sometimes, merely relocating can exacerbate an existing minor issue with a device.
4. Have your new internet service activated at your new address
Having your new internet service installed and activated before you fully settle into your new home is a great way to be proactive. It can save you a ton of hassle to activate your internet first, so make sure everything is set up and working ahead of time instead of at the last minute.
Starting the installation process in advance has several benefits. Mainly, it reduces your internet downtime. You’ll have instant access to the internet as you move in, and you won’t have to rely on your phone or free WiFi to pay bills, watch streaming content, or find the answers to questions about anything.
In addition, while the technician is there, you can discuss the placement for your equipment, making sure that you get the best signal coverage possible. This can be helpful in larger homes or those with thick walls or specialized designs where normal routers may not cut it.
5. Disconnect your old service a few days before moving out
Turning off your old internet service a few days before moving out may not make sense. You’re still living there! While that may be, the final days before a move are usually pretty busy. You’re packing, organizing, and addressing last-minute details. The likelihood of you needing to use the internet as often is pretty low. If nothing else, you could use your mobile internet or handle whatever is needed at a friend or family member’s home.
By disconnecting in advance, you get to save a little cash. Scheduling a disconnect when you have a new install already completed will keep you from having to pay extra fees. You may pay less on your bill for companies that prorate your service. You also get to pack up all your equipment nicely to make sure that none of it is damaged in the move.
Plus, giving your ISP advanced notice about the disconnection helps to make a smoother transition. Sometimes, disconnecting service might mean you have to return any rented equipment or pay any outstanding bills. You can take care of all of these things before you turn out the lights in your old home for the last time and be worry-free with your new service.
6. Test your service at your new address and run a speed test
Running a speed test is important to make sure you’re getting what you’re paying for. Sure, your technician may have done it, but real-world performance can sometimes differ from expectations.
Once your internet service is set up in your new home, connect all your wired and wireless devices. Whether it’s via Wi-Fi or a wired connection, get all your gadgets, like smartphones, laptops, or smart TVs, connected. If there’s no problem, that’s great — you’re on the right path.
After confirming the connection, running a speed test is the next step. There are a variety of reliable speed tests online, and they’ll measure your internet’s performance for free. Each tool will report back with the download and upload speeds your connection is getting. The results align with the package you’re paying for. Did you sign up for a 100 Mbps plan? Your speed test should (but not always) be close to that range.
Numbers will vary, of course, but if your speed test results are significantly lower than what you should be getting, you could have issues like weak WiFi signals in certain areas of the house or potential problems with your line or equipment. You may need to contact your ISP again to help.
Otherwise, if everything works correctly, and you’re connected without issue, that’s all you need to do. Congratulations! You just successfully transferred your internet service. Wasn’t that easy?
Do I have to change internet providers if I move?
If your new address isn’t in your current Internet Service Provider’s (ISP) coverage area, it means that they won’t be able to provide you with internet service at your new location. If that happens, you’ll need to terminate your contract with your current ISP. Be sure you check out the terms of your contract (if you have one) to see if there are any fees or penalties associated with ending your service early.
Once you’re free of your former provider’s contract, you’ll need to research new internet services that operate in your new area. As you explore your options, be sure you check out all the available plans, speeds, prices, and customer reviews to pick the new provider that works best for you. Then, you can just schedule an installation date to get internet service at your new residence. If this is the process you have to go with, be sure you get started a few weeks early so you can be ready for your move-in date. Internet install appointments can often take some time to establish and complete.
How do you choose a new internet service provider?
Choosing a new ISP can be a bit difficult, but sometimes it’s necessary.
Once you’ve found who’s available in the area, consider factors such as speeds, potential data caps, and how much you’ll pay each month.
Contract terms are equally important. Some ISPs may offer promotional rates that rise after an introductory period, or they might have contracts that include termination fees. Ensure you’re aware of the length of the contract and any associated conditions.
Further, the type of connection on offer, like DSL or cable, will affect the speed and reliability of your internet connection. Depending on what’s available in your new area and your online activities, you might decide that one is better than the other.
Don’t forget to check how prompt customer service is as well. It can be frustrating if technical support or customer service fails you when you need them the most. Check online reviews or ask around to see what friends and family think.
Can you use your modem and router with you at your new address?
When moving to a new house, you can take your modem and router with you. But whether they’ll actually work at the new location depends on a few things. If your new address will be using a different Internet service provider, you’ll need to make sure that your modem is compatible with their network. Some ISPs may require you to use specific modem models, while others are more flexible. It’s the same for your router, but routers usually have broader compatibility.
If you’re moving to a location where a higher internet speed is available, you should check if your current modem and router can handle those speeds. If not, it might be time to upgrade. It’s always a good idea to reach out to the ISP that services your new address ahead of time. They can answer all your questions about your equipment and what you need to do with it when you move.
CBS News
Tajikistan nationals with alleged ISIS ties removed in immigration proceedings, U.S. officials say
When federal agents arrested eight Tajikistan nationals with alleged ties to the Islamic State terror group on immigration charges back in June, U.S. officials reasoned that coordinated raids in Los Angeles, New York and Philadelphia would prove the fastest way to disrupt a potential terrorist plot in its earliest stages. Four months later, after being detained in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facilities, three of the men have already been returned to Tajikistan and Russia, U.S. officials tell CBS News, following removals by immigration court judges.
Four more Tajik nationals – also held in ICE detention facilities – are awaiting removal flights to Central Asia, and U.S. officials anticipate they’ll be returned in the coming few weeks. Only one of the arrested men still awaits his legal proceeding, following a medical issue, though U.S. officials speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive proceedings indicated that he remains detained and is likely to face a similar outcome.
The men face no additional charges – including terrorism-related offenses – with the decision to immediately arrest and remove them through deportation proceedings, rather than orchestrate a hard-fought terrorism trial in Article III courts, born out of a pressing short-term concern about public safety.
Soon after the eight foreign nationals crossed into the United States, the FBI learned of the potential ties to the Islamic State, CBS News previously reported. The FBI identified early-stage terrorist plotting, triggering their immediate arrests, in part, through a wiretap after the individuals had already been vetted by U.S. Customs and Border Protection, law enforcement sources confirmed to CBS News in June.
Several months later, their removals following immigration proceedings mark a departure from the post-9/11 intelligence-sharing architecture of the U.S. government.
Now facing a more diverse migrant population at the U.S.-Mexico border, a new effort is underway by the Department of Homeland Security, Department of Justice and the Intelligence Community to normalize the direct sharing of classified information – including some marked top-secret – with U.S. immigration judges.
The more routine intelligence sharing with immigration judges is aimed at allowing U.S. immigration courts to more regularly incorporate derogatory information into their decisions. The endeavor has led to the creation of more safes and sensitive compartmented information facilities – also known as SCIFs – to help facilitate the sharing of classified materials. Once considered a last resort for the department, Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has sought to use immigration tools, in recent months, to mitigate and disrupt threat activity.
The immigration raids, back in June, underscore the spate of terrorism concerns from the U.S. government this year, as national security agencies point to a system now blinking red in the aftermath of the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas on Israel, with emerging terrorism hot spots in Central Asia.
A joint intelligence bulletin released this month, and obtained by CBS News, warns that foreign terrorist organizations have exploited the attack nearly one year ago and its aftermath to try to recruit radicalized followers, creating media that compares the October 7 and 9/11 attacks and encouraging “lone attackers to use simple tactics like firearms, knives, Molotov cocktails, and vehicle ramming against Western targets in retaliation for deaths in Gaza.”
In May, ICE arrested an Uzbek man in Baltimore with alleged ISIS ties after he had been living inside the U.S. for more than two years, NBC News first reported.
In the past year, Tajik nationals have engaged in foiled terrorism plots in Russia, Iran and Turkey, as well as Europe, with several Tajik men arrested following March’s deadly attack on Crocus City Hall in Moscow that left at least 133 people dead and hundreds more injured.
The attack has been linked to ISIS-K, or the Islamic State Khorasan Province, an off-shoot of ISIS that emerged in 2015, founded by disillusioned members of Pakistani militant groups, including Taliban fighters. In August 2021, during the U.S. military withdrawal from Afghanistan, ISIS-K launched a suicide attack in Kabul, killing 13 U.S. service members and at least 170 Afghan civilians.
In a recent change to ICE policy, the agency now recurrently vets foreign nationals arriving from Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and other Central Asian countries, detaining them while they await removal proceedings or immigration hearings.
Only 0.007% of migrant arrivals are flagged by the FBI’s watchlist, and an even smaller number of those asylum seekers are ultimately removed. But with migrants arriving at the Southwest border from conflict zones in the Eastern Hemisphere, posing potential links to extremist or terrorist groups, the White House is now exploring ways to expedite the removal of asylum seekers viewed as a possible threat to the American public.
“Encounters with migrants from Eastern Hemisphere countries—such as China, India, Russia, and western African countries—in FY 2024 have decreased slightly from about 10 to 9 percent of overall encounters, but remain a higher proportion of encounters than before FY 2023,” according to the Homeland Threat Assessment, a public intelligence document released earlier this month.
A senior homeland security official told reporters in a briefing Wednesday, that the U.S. is engaged in an “ongoing effort to try to make sure that we can use every bit of available information that the U.S. government has classified and unclassified, and make sure that the best possible picture about a person seeking to enter the United States is available to frontline personnel who are encountering that person.”
Approximately 139 individuals flagged by the FBI’s terror watchlist have been encountered at the U.S.‑Mexico border through July of fiscal year 2024. That number decreased from 216 during the same timeframe in 2023. CBP encountered 283 watchlisted individuals at the U.S.-Canada border through July of fiscal year 2024, down from 375 encountered during the same timeframe in 2023.
“I think one of the features of the surge in migration over recent years is that our border personnel are encountering a much more diverse and global population of individuals trying to enter the United States or seeking to enter the United States,” a senior DHS official said. “So, at some point in the past, it might have been primarily a Western Hemisphere phenomenon. Now, our border personnel encounter individuals from around the world, from all parts of the world, to include conflict zones and other areas where individuals may have links or can support ties to extremist or terrorist organizations that we have long-standing concerns about.”
In April, FBI Director Christopher Wray warned that human smuggling operations at the southern border were trafficking in people with possible connections to terror groups.
“Looking back over my career in law enforcement, I’d be hard-pressed to think of a time when so many different threats to our public safety and national security were so elevated all at once, but that is the case as I sit here today,” Wray, told Congress in June, just days before most of the Tajik men were arrested.
The expedited return of three Tajiks to Central Asia required tremendous diplomatic communication, facilitated by the State Department, U.S. officials said.
Returns to Central Asia routinely encounter operational and diplomatic hurdles, though regular channels for removal do exist. According to agency data, in 2023, ICE deported only four migrants to Tajikistan.
Robert Legare and
contributed to this report.
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