Moving between states / Oregon

Flag of TennesseeTennesseetoFlag of OregonOregon

Moving from Tennessee to Oregon for work

What moves with you from Tennessee to Oregon: your licence, your take-home pay, and the programs that pay people to come. Every line below is computed from the two states' rules.

What the move does to your paycheck

On a $60,000 salary Oregon takes roughly $4,158 a year more than Tennessee does, because you are leaving a state with no income tax on wages.

SalaryTennessee state taxOregon state taxDifference a year
$40,000$0$2,772-$2,772
$60,000$0$4,158-$4,158
$90,000$0$6,237-$6,237

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.

CNA: Tennessee to Oregon

Transfers by reciprocity. Your Tennessee certificate stays on the Tennessee Department of Health, Nurse Aide Registry; 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.

RN and LPN: Tennessee to Oregon

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

Electrician: Tennessee 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 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 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 Tennessee 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 Tennessee 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

CNA: Tennessee to Oregon · RN or LPN: Tennessee to Oregon · Electrician: Tennessee to Oregon · Truck driver: Tennessee to Oregon

From Tennessee 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 Tennessee

Kentucky · Virginia · North Carolina · Georgia · Alabama · Mississippi · Arkansas · Missouri

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

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