Moving between states / Louisiana

Flag of South CarolinaSouth CarolinatoFlag of LouisianaLouisiana, Electrician

Moving from South Carolina to Louisiana as a journeyman electrician

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

Reciprocity likely. Louisiana licenses electricians at state level through the Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors, and The state licenses electrical contractors; journeyman cards come from parishes and cities. Reciprocity exists at contractor level with a few states. Your South Carolina licence comes from the South Carolina Contractor's Licensing Board and Residential Builders Commission, a state body, which is what a reciprocity application needs: ask it for a verification letter before you move.

What the move does to your paycheck

On a $60,000 salary Louisiana leaves you roughly $804 a year more than South Carolina does, because Louisiana's rate is lower.

SalarySouth Carolina state taxLouisiana state taxDifference a year
$40,000$1,736$1,200+$536
$60,000$2,604$1,800+$804
$90,000$3,906$2,700+$1,206

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: South Carolina to Louisiana

Transfers by reciprocity. Your South Carolina certificate stays on the South Carolina Nurse Aide Registry (Department of Health and Human Services, administered by Credentia); to work in Louisiana you apply to the Louisiana 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: South Carolina to Louisiana

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

CDL: South Carolina to Louisiana

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

No statewide program in Louisiana 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 Louisiana

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

Your own route from South Carolina to Louisiana

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 Louisiana employers.

Plan my move to Louisiana

Same move, by trade

CNA: South Carolina to Louisiana · RN or LPN: South Carolina to Louisiana · Truck driver: South Carolina to Louisiana · All licences: South Carolina to Louisiana

From South Carolina to the states next to Louisiana

Texas (no state income tax) · Arkansas (progressive, top rate 3.9%) · Mississippi (flat 4.4% state income tax)

To Louisiana from the states next to South Carolina

North Carolina · Georgia

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

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