Virginiato
Iowa, Truck driverMoving from Virginia to Iowa as a CDL holder
What a CDL holder licensed in Virginia has to do to work in Iowa, what the move does to your pay, and who in Iowa is hiring from out of state.
Transfers at the DMV. A commercial driver's licence transfers like any licence: within 30 days of becoming a Iowa resident you surrender the Virginia CDL at a Iowa 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 Iowa. Your driving record follows you through the federal CDLIS system.
What the move does to your paycheck
Virginia and Iowa take about the same from a $60,000 salary; the difference is under $150 a year either way.
| Salary | Virginia state tax | Iowa state tax | Difference a year |
|---|---|---|---|
| $40,000 | $1,610 | $1,520 | +$90 |
| $60,000 | $2,415 | $2,280 | +$135 |
| $90,000 | $3,622 | $3,420 | +$202 |
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: Virginia to Iowa
Transfers by reciprocity. Your Virginia certificate stays on the Virginia Board of Nursing, Certified Nurse Aide registry; to work in Iowa you apply to the Iowa Direct Care Worker Registry (Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing) 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: Virginia to Iowa
Works on day one. Both Virginia and Iowa are in the Nurse Licensure Compact. A multistate RN or LPN licence from Virginia is valid in Iowa the day you arrive. Once Iowa is your primary residence, apply there for a Iowa multistate licence; most boards allow 30 to 60 days.
Electrician: Virginia to Iowa
Reciprocity likely. Iowa licenses electricians at state level through the Iowa Electrical Examining Board, and reciprocity with a list of states for journeymen who passed an equivalent exam. Your Virginia licence comes from the Virginia Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation, Board for Contractors, a state body, which is what a reciprocity application needs: ask it for a verification letter before you move.
Does Iowa pay you to come?
- Newton Housing Initiative: up to $10,000 toward a newly built home. For anyone building or buying a new home in Newton; a construction incentive rather than a hiring one.
Openings filed in Iowa
52 open positions filed with the Department of Labor by Iowa employers who could not fill them locally.
- Truck DriverRoger Groth · Battle Creek · $21.04/hr
- Agricultural Equipment OperatorFarson Farms LLC · Hedrick · $19.52/hr
- Farmworkers/ LaborersLauritsen Cattle Company · Exira · $14.96/hr
- Farm WorkerHippen Farms · Aplington · $19.52/hr
- Ag Equipment OperatorBuffington Ag LLC · Swea City · $18.87/hr
- Farmworkers/LaborersWard Family Farms LLC · Walker · $14.96/hr
Your own route from Virginia to Iowa
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CNA: Virginia to Iowa · RN or LPN: Virginia to Iowa · Electrician: Virginia to Iowa · All licences: Virginia to Iowa
From Virginia to the states next to Iowa
Minnesota (progressive, top rate 9.85%) · Wisconsin (progressive, top rate 7.65%) · Illinois (flat 4.95% state income tax) · Missouri (progressive, top rate 4.7%) · Nebraska (progressive, top rate 5.2%) · South Dakota (no state income tax)
To Iowa from the states next to Virginia
Maryland · West Virginia · Kentucky · Tennessee · North Carolina
Everything about working in Iowa · All moves between states · All 50 states