Moving between states / Ohio

Flag of MassachusettsMassachusettstoFlag of OhioOhio, Truck driver

Moving from Massachusetts to Ohio as a CDL holder

What a CDL holder licensed in Massachusetts has to do to work in Ohio, what the move does to your pay, and who in Ohio 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 Ohio resident you surrender the Massachusetts CDL at a Ohio 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 Ohio. Your driving record follows you through the federal CDLIS system.

What the move does to your paycheck

On a $60,000 salary Ohio leaves you roughly $1,530 a year more than Massachusetts does, because Ohio's rate is lower.

SalaryMassachusetts state taxOhio state taxDifference a year
$40,000$2,000$980+$1,020
$60,000$3,000$1,470+$1,530
$90,000$4,500$2,205+$2,295

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 Ohio: most cities add a 1 to 2.5% municipal income tax. In Massachusetts: plus 4% on income above about $1 million. Property and sales tax are not in it.

CNA: Massachusetts to Ohio

Transfers by reciprocity. Your Massachusetts certificate stays on the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, Nurse Aide Registry; to work in Ohio you apply to the Ohio Department of Health, Nurse Aide 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: Massachusetts to Ohio

Endorsement, six to twelve weeks. Massachusetts is not in the compact, so your Massachusetts licence is single-state. Apply to the Ohio 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 Ohio 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: Massachusetts to Ohio

Licensed by the city. Ohio has no state electrician licence; the Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board (contractors) and city building departments decide what card you need, and it can differ between cities. Electrical contractors are state-licensed; journeyman cards are issued by cities where required. No state reciprocity for the contractor exam. Ask the contractor hiring you which municipality the first job is in and apply to that one. Your Massachusetts state licence is evidence of hours, not a licence there.

  • Hamilton Talent Attraction Program: student loan reimbursement paid over several years. For recent graduates moving to Hamilton, Ohio; check the current round.

Openings filed in Ohio

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

Your own route from Massachusetts to Ohio

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 Ohio employers.

Plan my move to Ohio

Same move, by trade

CNA: Massachusetts to Ohio · RN or LPN: Massachusetts to Ohio · Electrician: Massachusetts to Ohio · All licences: Massachusetts to Ohio

From Massachusetts to the states next to Ohio

Michigan (flat 4.25% state income tax) · Indiana (flat 3% state income tax) · Kentucky (flat 4% state income tax) · West Virginia (progressive, top rate 4.82%) · Pennsylvania (flat 3.07% state income tax)

To Ohio from the states next to Massachusetts

New Hampshire · Vermont · New York · Connecticut · Rhode Island

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

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