Moving between states / Kansas

Flag of Rhode IslandRhode IslandtoFlag of KansasKansas, Electrician

Moving from Rhode Island to Kansas as a journeyman electrician

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

Licensed by the city. Kansas has no state electrician licence; the City and county building departments decide what card you need, and it can differ between cities. No state electrician licence; Wichita, Topeka, Kansas City and most counties license locally and many reciprocate with each other. Ask the contractor hiring you which municipality the first job is in and apply to that one. Your Rhode Island state licence is evidence of hours, not a licence there.

What the move does to your paycheck

On a $60,000 salary Kansas leaves you roughly $172 a year more than Rhode Island does, because Kansas's rate is lower.

SalaryRhode Island state taxKansas state taxDifference a year
$40,000$1,677$1,562+$115
$60,000$2,516$2,344+$172
$90,000$3,774$3,515+$259

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: Rhode Island to Kansas

Transfers by reciprocity. Your Rhode Island certificate stays on the Rhode Island Department of Health, Nursing Assistant licensing; to work in Kansas you apply to the Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services, 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: Rhode Island to Kansas

Works on day one. Both Rhode Island and Kansas are in the Nurse Licensure Compact. A multistate RN or LPN licence from Rhode Island is valid in Kansas the day you arrive. Once Kansas is your primary residence, apply there for a Kansas multistate licence; most boards allow 30 to 60 days.

CDL: Rhode Island to Kansas

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

  • Choose Topeka: up to $15,000. For people who take a job in Shawnee County or move there as remote workers; the employer matches part of it.
  • Rural Opportunity Zones: student loan repayment up to $15,000 over five years, plus an income tax waiver in some counties. For graduates moving to one of the designated rural counties.

Openings filed in Kansas

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

Your own route from Rhode Island to Kansas

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 Kansas employers.

Plan my move to Kansas

Same move, by trade

CNA: Rhode Island to Kansas · RN or LPN: Rhode Island to Kansas · Truck driver: Rhode Island to Kansas · All licences: Rhode Island to Kansas

From Rhode Island to the states next to Kansas

Nebraska (progressive, top rate 5.2%) · Missouri (progressive, top rate 4.7%) · Oklahoma (progressive, top rate 4.75%) · Colorado (flat 4.4% state income tax)

To Kansas from the states next to Rhode Island

Connecticut · Massachusetts

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

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