Moving between states / Alaska
Moving from Oklahoma to Alaska as a CDL holder
What a CDL holder licensed in Oklahoma has to do to work in Alaska, what the move does to your pay, and who in Alaska 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 Alaska resident you surrender the Oklahoma CDL at a Alaska 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 Alaska. Your driving record follows you through the federal CDLIS system.
What the move does to your paycheck
On a $60,000 salary Alaska leaves you roughly $1,995 a year more than Oklahoma does, because Alaska has no state income tax on wages.
| Salary | Oklahoma state tax | Alaska state tax | Difference a year |
|---|---|---|---|
| $40,000 | $1,330 | $0 | +$1,330 |
| $60,000 | $1,995 | $0 | +$1,995 |
| $90,000 | $2,993 | $0 | +$2,993 |
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: Oklahoma to Alaska
Transfers by reciprocity. Your Oklahoma certificate stays on the Oklahoma State Department of Health, Nurse Aide Registry; to work in Alaska you apply to the Alaska Board of Nursing (Certified Nurse Aide program) 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: Oklahoma to Alaska
Endorsement needed. Alaska is not in the Nurse Licensure Compact, so your Oklahoma multistate licence does not work there. Apply to the Alaska Board of Nursing for licensure by endorsement before you move; it commonly takes six to twelve weeks. Your Oklahoma licence stays valid for compact states.
Electrician: Oklahoma to Alaska
Reciprocity likely. Alaska licenses electricians at state level through the Alaska Department of Labor, Mechanical Inspection, and State certificate of fitness for journeymen; Alaska takes part in the western reciprocity group, so a journeyman card from a partner state can be endorsed. Your Oklahoma licence comes from the Oklahoma Construction Industries Board, a state body, which is what a reciprocity application needs: ask it for a verification letter before you move.
Does Alaska pay you to come?
- Permanent Fund Dividend: roughly $1,000 to $1,700 a year. For every resident after a full calendar year in the state; not a relocation grant, but paid every year.
Going the other way? Oklahoma has Tulsa Remote. See moving from Alaska to Oklahoma.
Openings filed in Alaska
11 open positions filed with the Department of Labor by Alaska employers who could not fill them locally.
- Fish Roe TechnicianNorth Pacific Seafoods, Inc. · Kodiak · $20.62 to 37/hr
- Shop HelperInterior Alaska Roofing, Inc. · Fairbanks · $21.43 to 30/hr
- Surimi and Roe TechnicianPremier Pacific Seafoods, Inc. · Bering Sea and North Pacific · $21.31/hr
- Surimi and Roe TechnicianWestward Seafoods, Inc. · Unalaska · $24.65 to 40/hr
- Pollock Roe TechnicianWestward Seafoods, Inc. · Unalaska · $18.23/hr
- Assistant Store Manager Aurora CenterAT&T · Fairbanks
Your own route from Oklahoma to Alaska
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 Alaska employers.
Plan my move to AlaskaSame move, by trade
CNA: Oklahoma to Alaska · RN or LPN: Oklahoma to Alaska · Electrician: Oklahoma to Alaska · All licences: Oklahoma to Alaska
From Oklahoma to the states next to Alaska
To Alaska from the states next to Oklahoma
Kansas · Missouri · Arkansas · Texas · New Mexico · Colorado
Everything about working in Alaska · All moves between states · All 50 states