Moving between states / Pennsylvania
Californiato
Pennsylvania, Truck driverMoving from California to Pennsylvania as a CDL holder
What a CDL holder licensed in California has to do to work in Pennsylvania, what the move does to your pay, and who in Pennsylvania is hiring from out of state.
Transfers at the DMV. A commercial driver's licence transfers like any licence: within 30 days of becoming a Pennsylvania resident you surrender the California CDL at a Pennsylvania driver licence office, pass the vision test, pay the fee, and your endorsements carry over. A hazmat endorsement needs a fresh TSA threat assessment in Pennsylvania. Your driving record follows you through the federal CDLIS system.
What the move does to your paycheck
On a $60,000 salary Pennsylvania leaves you roughly $3,744 a year more than California does, because Pennsylvania's rate is lower.
| Salary | California state tax | Pennsylvania state tax | Difference a year |
|---|---|---|---|
| $40,000 | $3,724 | $1,228 | +$2,496 |
| $60,000 | $5,586 | $1,842 | +$3,744 |
| $90,000 | $8,379 | $2,763 | +$5,616 |
Rough figures for a single filer: exact in the flat-rate and no-tax states, approximated at 70% of the top bracket in the progressive ones. In Pennsylvania: municipalities add an earned income tax, 1% in most places and 3.75% in Philadelphia. In California: plus a 1.1% payroll tax for disability insurance. Property and sales tax are not in it.
CNA: California to Pennsylvania
Transfers by reciprocity. Your California certificate stays on the California Department of Public Health, Aide and Technician Certification Section; to work in Pennsylvania you apply to the Pennsylvania Nurse Aide Registry (Pennsylvania Department of Education, administered by Credentia) for reciprocity. It accepts an active certificate in good standing from another state; there is no retest if your record is clean. Most registries list you within two to six weeks.
RN and LPN: California to Pennsylvania
Endorsement, six to twelve weeks. California is not in the compact, so your California licence is single-state. Apply to the Pennsylvania board for licensure by endorsement (Nursys verification, fingerprints, the board's fee); six to twelve weeks is normal, so start before you give notice. Because Pennsylvania is a compact state, ask for the new licence to be issued as a multistate licence: from then on it works in every compact state.
Electrician: California to Pennsylvania
Licensed by the city. Pennsylvania has no state electrician licence; the City and county building departments decide what card you need, and it can differ between cities. No state electrician licence; Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and many municipalities license locally. Ask the contractor hiring you which municipality the first job is in and apply to that one. Your California state licence is evidence of hours, not a licence there.
Does Pennsylvania pay you to come?
No statewide program in Pennsylvania pays people to move in. Towns sometimes list an offer through MakeMyMove, and employers in short-staffed trades pay relocation themselves; ask for it in writing before you accept.
Openings filed in Pennsylvania
85 open positions filed with the Department of Labor by Pennsylvania employers who could not fill them locally.
- Credit Support Associate II/III- Commercial CreditBank of America · Philadelphia
- Market Financial Center Manager - Philadelphia MarketBank of America · Philadelphia
- Relationship Banker - PA North MarketBank of America · Allentown
- FarmworkerBrian Campbell Farms · Berwick · $14.4/hr
- FarmworkerRivendale Farms Pittsburgh, LLC · Bulger · $14.4/hr
- Farmworkers, Farm & Ranch AnimalsYoung Apiaries Inc · Cogan Station · $18.45/hr
Your own route from California to Pennsylvania
Tell us your trade and your licence. We write the steps for your case, check the job offer for scams, and keep your resume ready for Pennsylvania employers.
Plan my move to PennsylvaniaSame move, by trade
CNA: California to Pennsylvania · RN or LPN: California to Pennsylvania · Electrician: California to Pennsylvania · All licences: California to Pennsylvania
From California to the states next to Pennsylvania
New York (progressive, top rate 10.9%) · New Jersey (progressive, top rate 10.75%) · Delaware (progressive, top rate 6.6%) · Maryland (progressive, top rate 5.75%) · West Virginia (progressive, top rate 4.82%) · Ohio (progressive, top rate 3.5%)
To Pennsylvania from the states next to California
Everything about working in Pennsylvania · All moves between states · All 50 states