Moving between states / Iowa

Flag of West VirginiaWest VirginiatoFlag of IowaIowa, Electrician

Moving from West Virginia to Iowa as a journeyman electrician

What a journeyman electrician licensed in West 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.

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 West Virginia licence comes from the West Virginia State Fire Marshal, Electrician Licensing, 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 Iowa takes roughly $256 a year more than West Virginia does.

SalaryWest Virginia state taxIowa state taxDifference a year
$40,000$1,350$1,520-$170
$60,000$2,024$2,280-$256
$90,000$3,037$3,420-$383

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: West Virginia to Iowa

Transfers by reciprocity. Your West Virginia certificate stays on the West Virginia Office of Health Facility Licensure and Certification, 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: West Virginia to Iowa

Works on day one. Both West Virginia and Iowa are in the Nurse Licensure Compact. A multistate RN or LPN licence from West 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.

CDL: West Virginia to Iowa

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

  • 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.

Going the other way? West Virginia has Ascend West Virginia. See moving from Iowa to West Virginia.

Openings filed in Iowa

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

Your own route from West Virginia to Iowa

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 Iowa employers.

Plan my move to Iowa

Same move, by trade

CNA: West Virginia to Iowa · RN or LPN: West Virginia to Iowa · Truck driver: West Virginia to Iowa · All licences: West Virginia to Iowa

From West 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 West Virginia

Ohio · Pennsylvania · Maryland · Virginia · Kentucky

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

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