How do you move a CALayer instantly (without animation)

You want to wrap your call in the following:

[CATransaction begin]; 
[CATransaction setValue: (id) kCFBooleanTrue forKey: kCATransactionDisableActions];
layer.position = CGPointMake(x, y);
[CATransaction commit];

You can also use the convenience function

[CATransaction setDisableActions:YES] 

as well.

Note: Be sure to read the comments by Yogev Shelly to understand any gotchas that could occur.

Swift 3 Extension :

extension CALayer {
    class func performWithoutAnimation(_ actionsWithoutAnimation: () -> Void){
        CATransaction.begin()
        CATransaction.setValue(true, forKey: kCATransactionDisableActions)
        actionsWithoutAnimation()
        CATransaction.commit()
    }
}

Usage :

CALayer.performWithoutAnimation(){
    someLayer.position = newPosition
}