Server in Pennsylvania: licence, certification and what employers require (2026)

Pennsylvania does not license servers: no licence; an alcohol server permit is required in many states. This page says what a server licensed or working in another state has to do to work in Pennsylvania, in the order to do it, and what goes wrong when the order is reversed.

How the transfer works

Nothing is licensed. Many states require an alcohol server permit (a short course such as TIPS or the state's own) within a set time of hire, and it does not transfer between states. A food handler card is also required in most states.

What to have ready before you move

• Food handler and alcohol server certificates, to redo in ${STATE} if required

Start the paperwork before you give notice. There is no Pennsylvania licence to wait for, so the only clock is the employer's.

What people get wrong

• Comparing wages without the tip credit; the tipped minimum wage differs enormously between states

Who hires servers in Pennsylvania

Servers in Pennsylvania are hired by restaurants, bars, hotels, resorts and event venues. The metros with the most of that work are Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Allentown, Erie and Harrisburg. Employers who could not hire locally and have filed with the Department of Labor are on the Pennsylvania openings page.

For the money side: the median server in Pennsylvania earned $30,300 a year ($15 an hour) in May 2024 across 82,920 jobs, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and Pennsylvania has a flat 3.07% state income tax. What that leaves you after tax is its own page.

Everything about Pennsylvania, on one page

The Pennsylvania page has the registries and boards, the income tax table, the programs that pay you to come and the openings filed this month. If you know which state you are leaving, the move pages compare the two directly. Creating a free Workmerica profile with your trade and your destination puts you in front of Pennsylvania employers hiring from out of state.