Moving between states / Oregon

Flag of South CarolinaSouth CarolinatoFlag of OregonOregon, CNA

Moving from South Carolina to Oregon as a certified nursing assistant

What a certified nursing assistant licensed in South Carolina has to do to work in Oregon, what the move does to your pay, and who in Oregon is hiring from out of state.

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 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.

What the move does to your paycheck

On a $60,000 salary Oregon takes roughly $1,554 a year more than South Carolina does.

SalarySouth Carolina state taxOregon state taxDifference a year
$40,000$1,736$2,772-$1,036
$60,000$2,604$4,158-$1,554
$90,000$3,906$6,237-$2,331

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.

RN and LPN: South Carolina to Oregon

Endorsement needed. Oregon is not in the Nurse Licensure Compact, so your South Carolina multistate licence does not work there. Apply to the Oregon Board of Nursing for licensure by endorsement before you move; it commonly takes six to twelve weeks. Your South Carolina licence stays valid for compact states.

Electrician: South Carolina 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 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.

CDL: South Carolina 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 South Carolina 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.

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 South Carolina 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

RN or LPN: South Carolina to Oregon · Electrician: South Carolina to Oregon · Truck driver: South Carolina to Oregon · All licences: South Carolina to Oregon

From South Carolina 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 South Carolina

North Carolina · Georgia

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

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

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