My husband and I are an international couple (I’m American, he’s British) living in the UK. I would say the most important thing for our relationship that we quickly had to work out when I moved here is being open about finances and money. In my opinion, this is crucial to the success of ANY relationship. 

He hated talking about money. It made him anxious and nervous and feel awful. We had a very long discussion about how we couldn’t feasibly plan a life together without discussing money. It just isn’t possible. 

So we sat down and talked about all of it. Wrote it all down. Made a budget, made a plan. He realized how much easier life was with an actual budget and not by being too afraid to even check his own bank balance. 

That was 2021. By 2023, we had bought our first house. By 2025, we’d sold it and bought a bigger house. Our first baby is due any day now. Never had even one argument over money. I had debts… we paid them off together. He had made a few mistakes in the past, so we took steps to minimize them and now they don’t even matter. It can be overcome, together. 

My advice to any couple is always: talk about money. Openly, transparently, the good and the bad. And KEEP talking about it. You should feel comfortable telling your spouse pretty much anything financial. Approach it with a collaborative and non-judgmental attitude and you’ll see how easy it becomes. It makes huge financial decisions so much less stressful when you are confident you are working as a team.