Moving between states / Wisconsin

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Moving from New York to Wisconsin for work

What moves with you from New York to Wisconsin: 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

On a $60,000 salary Wisconsin leaves you roughly $1,365 a year more than New York does, because Wisconsin's rate is lower.

SalaryNew York state taxWisconsin state taxDifference a year
$40,000$3,052$2,142+$910
$60,000$4,578$3,213+$1,365
$90,000$6,867$4,819+$2,048

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 New York: New York City adds up to 3.876%. Property and sales tax are not in it.

CNA: New York to Wisconsin

Transfers by reciprocity. Your New York certificate stays on the New York State Nurse Aide Registry (administered by Prometric for the Department of Health); to work in Wisconsin you apply to the Wisconsin Nurse Aide Registry (Department of Health Services) 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: New York to Wisconsin

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

Exam required. Wisconsin licenses electricians through the Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services and does not reciprocate with any state. Your New York hours count toward eligibility, so get them certified in writing by the City and county building departments before you move and book the Wisconsin exam early.

CDL: New York to Wisconsin

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

No statewide program in Wisconsin 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 Wisconsin

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

Your own route from New York to Wisconsin

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 Wisconsin employers.

Plan my move to Wisconsin

Same move, by trade

CNA: New York to Wisconsin · RN or LPN: New York to Wisconsin · Electrician: New York to Wisconsin · Truck driver: New York to Wisconsin

From New York to the states next to Wisconsin

Michigan (flat 4.25% state income tax) · Minnesota (progressive, top rate 9.85%) · Iowa (flat 3.8% state income tax) · Illinois (flat 4.95% state income tax)

To Wisconsin from the states next to New York

Vermont · Massachusetts · Connecticut · New Jersey · Pennsylvania

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

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