Villagers will never move out unless you confirm with them first.

[Mello]

I've been cycling through a bunch of villagers and forwarding months, years (up to 40 years) at a time on some occasions and I've got a couple things to share that may give some people a bit of peace of mind.

Gone are the days of New Leaf, where you could miss someone's move-out ping and be greeted upon starting your town that a villager has moved away. New Horizons has instead opted for a system where villagers will now have a thought bubble over their head, accompanied by a thinking pose/slowed walking which indicates that they wish to discuss with you their moving plans. This is fantastic, but not only do villagers signify when they wish to move, but they are also incapable of moving until they confirm with you first.

Also, even if you haven't spoken to a villager in a while, they will still let you know that they want to move if it is their time. This means if you're TT'ing to cycle out a villager, you don't have to waste time talking to them first to refresh their dialogue.

Here, Maelle was also not spoken to in 40 years and she was still happy to let me know she planned to move out:

Edit: Some additional information that may help...

1.) Villagers are able to request to move out so long as you have at least 8 villagers.

2.) Villagers no longer have the authority, ability, or simply the audacity to play that game with you where they decide not to move out when you tell them to.

3.) You are not able to change a villagers mind if you tell them to move out.

4.) The bubble over a villagers head does not mean that they are moving out. They can request/or give you something instead. However if a villager is ready to move out, they will always have a bubble over their head.

 

[Feraligator]

Lol that first screenshot.

That's amazing to know, definitely something I hated from past games. When I was a kid and my favourite villager moved out I actually cried lol

 

[Xara]

that’s great to know - i’m planning to not time travel but it’s nice that villagers won’t leave unless they tell you first

 

[SetsuTheYena]

If this really true, it’s fantastic news!! Much easier to cycle unwanted villagers then, without having to worry you miss dreamies getting the silly idea to move and end up gone.

 

[Steampunk Mage]

That's good to know they won't move without your approval.

 

[Hesper]

Fantastic! I do plan to cycle most of the slots in my village, trying to meet new villagers, but Julian is too great and I've recently come to adore Bones, so it's good to know I won't lose 'em.

 

[Chris]

Glad to hear this! A big part of why I gave-up with New Leaf was because I don't have enough time/the right lifestyle to play video games daily and it was a hassle having to time travel backwards, create a second character, etc each time to check or prevent villagers hadn't moved away. By the time I'd messed around doing that I didn't feel like playing anymore.

 

[ForbiddenSecrets]

It's nice to know that if life gets away from me and I can't check my town for a while I won't get surprise move outs.

 

[Paperboy012305]

Wait, they can’t move out on their own!? This is a big game changer to those who have dreamies like me.

 

[kayleee]

This is such good news - I don't time travel much but now if I do I don't have to worry about my faves moving away! I always hated in New Leaf how the villagers that seemed like your best friends were always the first to randomly move out lol

 

[Spooky.]

Oh good. I always hated in new leaf how if I wanted a break, I still had to play constantly until someone asked to move and say 'no' just so that I can take a break.

 

[Noctis]

This is good to know. I just had a villager yesterday with a bubble and thought hey this might be it because I want him out. But it was quite different, he didn't give me a move out date as I've been seeing with certain people. so since I wasn't paying much attention after I told him it was cool for him to leave I thought he might've changed his mind. No this wasn't the case but I asked about this yesterday and I confirmed myself if they don't give a date, the next day they're already in boxes and gone the following day. It was killing me I had no choice to TT just to confirm this.

 

[Miss Misty]

That's good news! Like others said, it really helps me feel better if I get busy and can't play every day (not that I expect that any time soon)

I'm nowhere near villagers moving out, though, so can anyone confirm if they can change their minds? I know in past games that if someone wanted to leave and you said yes, there was a chance they'd say 'oh, I thought you'd miss me so jk I'm staying'. Can that still happen in NH?

 

[cheezu]

That's great to know.
I have just made a post inquiring about this a few hours earlier so thank you for answering.

Just some questions though -

1. Can you still make them change their mind if say, you don't read over the dialogue carefully, and somehow accidentally give them the okay to move (I mean on the same day. I know that you probably can't change their mind when they're in boxes).

2. Can they change their mind about moving even though you tell them to move? (I remember this would happen in NL sometimes and your option then was to quit without saving. However, with this game autosaving I'm assuming that wouldn't be possible.)

3. Is it always a speech bubble over them when they want to move?
Just asking because Hazel had a speech bubble above her head today but when I went to talk to her she gave me an item. Granted that I only have 5 villagers at this point so I was sure that she wasn't going to move.

4. How many villagers do you need on your island for them to start wanting to move? Is it 10 or less.

Thanks a lot for your help!

 

[Kurashiki]

that's amazing! i was always so scared to start playing again after a break out of fear of my villagers leaving

 

[Mairen]

This is really great news! It was always a sense of worry when I was time travelling in new leaf that I would end up losing one of my favorite villagers due to jumping one day too far ahead or something

 

[Mello]

I confirmed myself if they don't give a date, the next day they're already in boxes and gone the following day. It was killing me I had no choice to TT just to confirm this.

tbh, i have never seen a single villager give a move out date in this game. but you're 100% right, they definitely go into boxes the following day they ask you if they can move, and the day after that, they're gone.

also, glad this info helped you guys out. and as a side note, it's taken me 60~ years, but Admiral has finally asked me to move out. gosh, i'm not sure why he was so happy that he'd stick around that long when he was clearly unwanted, but he's finally leaving.. it's a huge weight lifted off my shoulders. see ya Admiral.

That's great to know.
I have just made a post inquiring about this a few hours earlier so thank you for answering.

Just some questions though -

1. Can you still make them change their mind if say, you don't read over the dialogue carefully, and somehow accidentally give them the okay to move (I mean on the same day. I know that you probably can't change their mind when they're in boxes).

I won't say no with 100% certainty, but in my 80+ times of telling someone to move, I have not personally had an option to talk them out of it.

2. Can they change their mind about moving even though you tell them to move? (I remember this would happen in NL sometimes and your option then was to quit without saving. However, with this game autosaving I'm assuming that wouldn't be possible.)

I have also never had someone change their mind and decide to stay when I asked them to leave, but perhaps I've just been extremely lucky.

3. Is it always a speech bubble over them when they want to move?
Just asking because Hazel had a speech bubble above her head today but when I went to talk to her she gave me an item. Granted that I only have 5 villagers at this point so I was sure that she wasn't going to move.

The bubble over their head doesn't always mean they want to move, but if they do want to move, they will always have a bubble over their head.

4. How many villagers do you need on your island for them to start wanting to move? Is it 10 or less.

I can't speak for any number less than 8, but I can confirm that they can ask to leave at 8.

Thanks a lot for your help!

 

[Corrie]

Thanks for sharing! I know once I go back to work I won't be playing everyday like I used to so it's nice to know nobody will move out without me knowing anymore.

 

[satine]

That's wonderful! I had no idea if this was something implemented or not but I had a sneaking suspicion that maybe it had been. I'm really relieved to know that. When I go back to regular schedule once this virus blows over I'm going to have to go plenty of days without playing, and I would be heartbroken to see that Bob or someone else I love has left while I was away and unable to justify playtime. I'm sure they did that with people with busy schedules in mind.

 

[moonbell]

This is amazing news! One thing that crosses my mind -

In New Leaf you could tell someone not to move and then if you saved and quit nobody would ever move until the next time you played because the next move out wasn't triggered yet. Is that what's happening here basically?