Moving between states / Alaska

Flag of TennesseeTennesseetoFlag of AlaskaAlaska, RN or LPN

Moving from Tennessee to Alaska as a registered or practical nurse

What a registered or practical nurse licensed in Tennessee has to do to work in Alaska, what the move does to your pay, and who in Alaska is hiring from out of state.

Endorsement needed. Alaska is not in the Nurse Licensure Compact, so your Tennessee 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 Tennessee licence stays valid for compact states.

What the move does to your paycheck

Neither Tennessee nor Alaska taxes wages, so the move changes nothing on the state line of your paycheck.

SalaryTennessee state taxAlaska state taxDifference a year
$40,000$0$0$0
$60,000$0$0$0
$90,000$0$0$0

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: Tennessee to Alaska

Transfers by reciprocity. Your Tennessee certificate stays on the Tennessee 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.

Electrician: Tennessee 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 Tennessee licence comes from the Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors, a state body, which is what a reciprocity application needs: ask it for a verification letter before you move.

CDL: Tennessee to Alaska

Transfers at the DMV. A commercial driver's licence transfers like any licence: within 30 days of becoming a Alaska resident you surrender the Tennessee 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.

  • 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.

Openings filed in Alaska

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

Your own route from Tennessee 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 Alaska

Same move, by trade

CNA: Tennessee to Alaska · Electrician: Tennessee to Alaska · Truck driver: Tennessee to Alaska · All licences: Tennessee to Alaska

From Tennessee to the states next to Alaska

To Alaska from the states next to Tennessee

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

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