Moving between states / Oregon

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Moving from Minnesota to Oregon for work

What moves with you from Minnesota to Oregon: your licence, your take-home pay, and the programs that pay people to come. Every line below is computed from the two states' rules.

What the move does to your paycheck

Minnesota and Oregon take about the same from a $60,000 salary; the difference is under $150 a year either way.

SalaryMinnesota state taxOregon state taxDifference a year
$40,000$2,758$2,772-$14
$60,000$4,137$4,158-$21
$90,000$6,206$6,237-$31

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 Oregon: Portland metro adds local taxes on higher incomes. Property and sales tax are not in it.

CNA: Minnesota to Oregon

Transfers by reciprocity. Your Minnesota certificate stays on the Minnesota Department of Health, Nursing Assistant Registry; to work in Oregon you apply to the Oregon State Board of Nursing, Certified 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: Minnesota to Oregon

Endorsement needed. Neither Minnesota nor Oregon is in the Nurse Licensure Compact. You apply to the Oregon Board of Nursing for licensure by endorsement: verification of your Minnesota licence through Nursys, a fingerprint background check and the fee. Start before you give notice; six to twelve weeks is normal.

Electrician: Minnesota to Oregon

Reciprocity likely. Oregon licenses electricians at state level through the Oregon Building Codes Division, Electrical and Elevator Board, and reciprocity with a short list of western states for general journeymen. Your Minnesota licence comes from the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry, a state body, which is what a reciprocity application needs: ask it for a verification letter before you move.

CDL: Minnesota to Oregon

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

No statewide program in Oregon 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.

Going the other way? Minnesota has Harmony new-home rebate. See moving from Oregon to Minnesota.

Openings filed in Oregon

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

Your own route from Minnesota to Oregon

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 Oregon employers.

Plan my move to Oregon

Same move, by trade

CNA: Minnesota to Oregon · RN or LPN: Minnesota to Oregon · Electrician: Minnesota to Oregon · Truck driver: Minnesota to Oregon

From Minnesota to the states next to Oregon

Washington (no state income tax) · Idaho (flat 5.3% state income tax) · Nevada (no state income tax) · California (progressive, top rate 13.3%)

To Oregon from the states next to Minnesota

North Dakota · South Dakota · Iowa · Wisconsin

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

Moving for a job? Start with your state.

Licence transfer, what the state takes from your pay, and who pays you to come. Free, no account.

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