Moving between states / Minnesota

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Moving from Colorado to Minnesota as a journeyman electrician

What a journeyman electrician licensed in Colorado has to do to work in Minnesota, what the move does to your pay, and who in Minnesota is hiring from out of state.

Reciprocity likely. Minnesota licenses electricians at state level through the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry, and reciprocity with a group of states for journeymen licensed by exam who worked a year in the trade. Your Colorado licence comes from the Colorado State Electrical Board (DORA), a state body, which is what a reciprocity application needs: ask it for a verification letter before you move.

What the move does to your paycheck

On a $60,000 salary Minnesota takes roughly $1,497 a year more than Colorado does.

SalaryColorado state taxMinnesota state taxDifference a year
$40,000$1,760$2,758-$998
$60,000$2,640$4,137-$1,497
$90,000$3,960$6,206-$2,246

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. Property and sales tax are not in it.

CNA: Colorado to Minnesota

Transfers by reciprocity. Your Colorado certificate stays on the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies, Nurse Aide Registry; to work in Minnesota you apply to the Minnesota Department of Health, Nursing Assistant Registry 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: Colorado to Minnesota

Endorsement needed. Minnesota is not in the Nurse Licensure Compact, so your Colorado multistate licence does not work there. Apply to the Minnesota Board of Nursing for licensure by endorsement before you move; it commonly takes six to twelve weeks. Your Colorado licence stays valid for compact states.

CDL: Colorado to Minnesota

Transfers at the DMV. A commercial driver's licence transfers like any licence: within 30 days of becoming a Minnesota resident you surrender the Colorado CDL at a Minnesota 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 Minnesota. Your driving record follows you through the federal CDLIS system.

  • Harmony new-home rebate: $5,000 to $12,000. For anyone building a new home in the city of Harmony.

Openings filed in Minnesota

72 open positions filed with the Department of Labor by Minnesota employers who could not fill them locally.

Your own route from Colorado to Minnesota

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 Minnesota employers.

Plan my move to Minnesota

Same move, by trade

CNA: Colorado to Minnesota · RN or LPN: Colorado to Minnesota · Truck driver: Colorado to Minnesota · All licences: Colorado to Minnesota

From Colorado to the states next to Minnesota

North Dakota (progressive, top rate 2.5%) · South Dakota (no state income tax) · Iowa (flat 3.8% state income tax) · Wisconsin (progressive, top rate 7.65%)

To Minnesota from the states next to Colorado

Wyoming · Nebraska · Kansas · Oklahoma · New Mexico · Arizona · Utah

Everything about working in Minnesota · All moves between states · All 50 states

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