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In addition to patient care skills, a good bedside manner, and medical knowledge, travel nurses also need to be well-versed in financial matters if they want to maximize their earnings and survive tax season. Because of the “blended” rate that many travel nurses earn – which combines taxable and non-taxable income – it can be tricky to know which deductions are and are not allowed when it comes time to file your return.
The fact is, even though some agencies offer what seems to be a substantial amount of tax-free compensation, you may still qualify for further tax deductions.
Below, we break down some of the key tax deductions that travel nurses should look into.
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Before you can even think about tax deductions, it’s important to understand the IRS’ main rule when it comes to travel nursing, that being, you must have a “tax home.” A tax home is defined as a permanent residence for which you incur expenses while you’re working in another location. Having a tax home means that you pay a mortgage on a home or rent an apartment, and also have ties to that address that go beyond the bills. For instance, your driver’s license should be for your home state, you should be registered to vote there, and that should be your permanent mailing address.
If this is your first year as a travel nurse, or you’re considering the career, it might be a wise idea to speak with a tax professional to fully understand the concept of a tax home, and if you meet the qualifications. If you do, then you can take advantage of the tax-free income; if not, you can still be a travel nurse, but all of your income may be subject to tax.
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Once you confirm your tax home status, there are some additional expenses that might be tax deductible for travel nurses. The key is to figure out how much your agency is already paying you in non-taxable income, and then determine if your qualified expenses go beyond that.
Start with these categories:
Many travel nursing agencies pay a daily rate to cover room and board, meals, incidentals, travel expenses, and more. This is what is usually referred to as a daily stipend, or per diem rate. This portion of your paycheck is not taxed. The General Services Administration of the United States Government (GSA) determines what the maximum daily lodging and meals and incidental expenditures (M&IE) is by location. Although some agencies go by those figures, others pay less than that amount. The IRS says that if that’s the case, you are allowed to deduct any additional expenses you pay out of pocket up to the maximum allowance – assuming you have a valid tax home, and keep meticulous records of your expenses.
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The minute you hit the road toward your first travel nursing job, you can begin tracking your travel expenses. This includes airfare, driving your car, and other modes of transportation. Just be sure you deduct any reimbursement that the agency is already paying you for travel from your total expenses.
For drivers, the IRS says to use the 2017 standard mileage allowance of 53.5 cents a mile. So a 1,000-mile trip would mean you can deduct $535 in deductions. Other than that, you can also deduct tolls, parking costs, cab fare to and from airports, car maintenance, etc.
You can also count the expenses incurred when you travel back home when your assignment is over. As for the travel you do during the actual weeks in your new location, it’s likely that your agency is already paying you for that, but talk to your tax accountant to be sure.
As you know, nurses are required to keep up with their continuing education and keep state licenses up to date. The good news is that you can usually deduct any professional expenses that involve maintaining your skills and professional credentials. Some of them include:
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Once you get the hang of how travel nursing tax deductions work, you’ll come to realize that the tax benefits will be worth your time and effort.
Nursing is currently and will continue to be one of the professions in high demand over the coming years. Because there is so much need for highly skilled RNs, travel nursing is growing as well.
Travel nurses work as contractors through an agency, taking on assignments for a few weeks at a time. They are sent to areas to help fill the talents gaps at hospitals and other medical facilities. What started as a way to help health care facilities in smaller cities and rural areas fill their talent gaps has grown into a thriving niche career for RNs.
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Over the last few years, travel nursing has become an attractive option for those who wish to take their patient care skills on the road. Travel nurses who line up well-paying jobs throughout the year can earn salaries that are comparable to that of hospital staff RNs. They also enjoy other perks including having their travel and living expenses paid for. Add to that the ability to make your own schedule, and you can see why travel nursing is an appealing option for some people.
Take a look at some of the major trends impacting the travel nursing industry over the last couple of years, along with predictions as to what’s in store for travel nurses in the future.
If you’ve done any research into the profession, you’re probably aware that there is a shortage of nursing professionals, and it’s likely to get worse. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, through 2022, there is expected to be 1 million job vacancies for registered nurses. This mostly has to do with a workforce that is reaching retirement age, and not enough younger nurses to take their place.
However, it also has to do with the demographics of the country, and its changing health care needs. The aging population has more senior citizens than ever before, many of whom will develop one or more chronic health conditions. As per U.S. Census data projections, by 2050, there will be 88.5 million people over the age of 65.
Looking ahead: As a result of the continuing nursing shortage, it could very well end up that medical centers begin to rely more and more on travel nurses and other contracted workers to meet this demand. In many cases, it is more cost-effective for them to bring in nurses as needed as opposed to hiring full-time staffers.
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According to the US Department of Health and Human Services, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) resulted in 20 million people gaining health insurance coverage. As a result, with the passing of this legislation, health care institutions and hospitals needed to pivot quickly, and travel nursing is one of the ways they were able to accommodate more patients.
Keiser Health News even attributed a 20-year high demand for travel nurses directly to the ACA.
Looking ahead: There’s no telling what will become of the ACA once President-Elect Trump takes office. He has promised to dismantle Obamacare, but any changes will likely happen incrementally over time. That being said, he has stated that he plans to keep the parts of ACA that have welcomed formerly uninsured people into the system. This policy includes making sure that those with preexisting conditions have access to healthcare, and allowing young adults up to age 26 to remain insured on their parent’s policies if needed.
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As medical organizations look to reduce costs, they are turning more and more to advanced nursing professionals (such as nurse practitioners) to take on larger roles so that fewer physicians are needed. Hiring or contracting more nurses can also help save money in the long run by reducing readmissions and costly medical errors.
Once again, bringing in travel nurses who are trained in a specific area – such as those with credentials to treat a specific condition like cancer, or who work exclusively with pediatric patients – has provided a solution for improving patient care.
Looking ahead: As more specialty nursing responsibilities emerge, top institutions will seek to find professionals who have the most up-to-date skills and certifications. It’s not just about filling job vacancies; it’s about finding the right professionals who have the exact skill sets needed. For some employers, working with a travel nursing agency helps simplify the recruiting process. In some cases, such as in Florida when senior citizens flock down during the winter months, travel nurses are the perfect solution to meet seasonal demand.
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Overall, there probably won’t be any monumental shakeups in the travel nursing industry in the coming year. However, based on potential changes to the healthcare system, as well as the aging workforce, older population, and greater reliance on RNs and nurse practitioners, travel nurses will continue to find great opportunities to work across the country.
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If you’re an RN and thinking of taking your work on the road as a travel nurse, you’re in good company. Travel nursing is a popular option among nursing professionals today, allowing you to seek interesting opportunities, competitive salaries, and the chance to visit different parts of the country.
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Travel nurses are hired to fill positions in high-demand areas or when a specific type of specialization is needed. As such, these positions are desirable for RNs who want to have a variety of nursing experiences in different settings.
But travel nursing wasn’t always as popular as it is today. Take a look at how this nursing specialization began, and the major milestones that have helped propel it into the lucrative career track that it is today.
It is believed that the first area to hire contracted nurses that were brought in from other parts of the country was New Orleans in the late 1970s. With a large number of patients to deal with during the busy Mardi Gras week, hiring travel nurses for a few weeks helped fill the need for more staffing.
The idea took off in a more widespread way during the 1980s as a temporary solution to a national nursing shortage, according to the American Society of Registered Nurses website. As more and more healthcare organizations hired temporary nurses, more agencies opened to help place RNs who could fill in for short-term work.
Another common reason that travel nursing took off was to meet seasonal demand in areas of the country that attract larger numbers of travelers and retirees during winter seasons, such as in Florida and Arizona. According to a 2011 study by accounting firm KPMG, 45 percent of hospitals surveyed said busy seasons led them to hire traveling nurses.
Travel nursing has definitely grown in popularity as shortages continued, and it became a viable option for RNs who were looking for another career avenue.
One of the things that contributed to the growth was the growth of the internet and mobile technology. These advances have made it easier for travel nurses to move around and still maintain their connections to a home base. In addition, it is easier to find out about travel nursing jobs and make industry connections with the internet, not to mention that agencies have an easier time finding candidates and conducting interviews.
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Healthcare in general has seen a surge in demand over the last decade or so as the population ages and life expectancy gets longer. In fact, as pointed out by the National Institute of Nursing Research, approximately 80% of people age 65 and older have at least one chronic illness, such as heart disease, diabetes, or arthritis, and that the number of older adults with multiple chronic illnesses is substantial.
Those changing demographics have made nursing professionals more important than ever, and travel nurses have helped fill in the gaps when short-staffed healthcare institutions haven’t been able to keep up.
Perhaps no single milestone has affected the growth of travel nursing than the passing of the Affordable Care Act. It’s estimated that an additional 8 million people signed up for health insurance in 2014. In fact, Keiser Health News reports that the demand for travel nursing has reached a 20-year high as a result.
At the same time, other factors have been in play, including the aforementioned aging population, shortages in healthcare staffing, regulatory changes, and an improving economy, says AMN Healthcare, a travel-nurse agency. Its CEO, Susan Salka, says requests from hospitals for travel nurses have doubled or tripled in recent years. This has been especially true for hospitals that have seen their profits rise thanks to an expansion of Medicaid.
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Although the nation has been through a nursing shortage before, it’s only expected to get worse in the coming decade. As per the Bureau of Labor Statistics, it is expected that there will be 1.2 million vacancies for registered nursing jobs between 2014 and 2022 as older nurses retire. With fewer nurses and more need for them, something has got to give.
It could very well end up that medical centers begin to rely more and more on travel nurses and other contracted workers since it’s a cost-effective solution for them.
Only time will tell, but for anyone considering going the travel nursing route, these trends are worth watching.
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Those two little letters – RN – have a lot of meaning behind them. It stands for Registered Nurse, but what it really means is that you’re a professional who has earned a nursing license, and therefore can practice as a nurse in your state. As of 2014, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there were 2,751,000 registered nurses in the United States.
Thinking of joining that elite group? If so, read on to learn more about what it takes to get a nursing license and become an RN.
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First things first, you need to know exactly what a nursing license is. The short answer is that it gives you the right to work as an RN, but there’s more to it than that. Stated more officially by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing: “Licensure is the process by which boards of nursing grant permission to an individual to engage in nursing practice after determining that the applicant has attained the competency necessary to perform a unique scope of practice.”
The key here is that a nursing license shows you’ve got what it takes to make it in this challenging profession because you’ve been educated in nursing courses given by nursing educators, practiced hands-on clinical healthcare settings for the required number of hours, and rigorously tested by a standardized national exam.
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To earn your nursing license, you basically have to complete your approved nursing education program of choice, and then pass the national licensing exam called the NCLEX-RN.
School Days
There is actually more than one path you can take in order to begin working as an RN. In fact, there are three: a bachelor’s degree in nursing; an associate degree in nursing; or a diploma program. You must choose a program that is approved by a board of nursing, and complete it in order to sit for the licensing exam.
Obviously a bachelor’s degree is the longest path, taking four years, but the additional education can provide a competitive edge for higher paying or more desirable positions. Still, many people choose the quicker associate or diploma routes so they can start working in the field sooner. Often, these RNs do end up going back to school to continue their education at some point in order to advance their careers.
Test Time
Before you can register for the NCLEX-RN, you have to graduate from your nursing program. As Kaplan, the test preparation company, explains, the exam judges test takers on how they will use their nursing school knowledge and critical thinking skills to make nursing judgments and decisions. It is given as an interactive CAT (computer adaptive test) format, meaning the questions you get are based on your responses you give to prior questions. In other words, no two students will take exactly the same test. The exam results are not scored, but instead it is determined if you passed or failed. You’ll receive notification of your results within 2-4 weeks from your State Board of Nursing. If you do not pass, you can retake the exam after 45 days.
Once you pass the NCLEX-RN, the final hurdle before receiving your nursing license is that you may have to pass a criminal background check. This requirement will vary by state.
You can find each State Board of Nursing here to learn more about the specific requirements for licensure in your state.
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Once you earn your nursing license, you can begin working in the state in which it was issued. But what happens if you decide to move, or wish to work in a neighboring state, or as a travel nurse? Even though you passed the NCLEX-RN, which is a national exam, each state board of nursing has its own set of rules called the Nursing Practice Act. Therefore, you may have to transfer your nursing license in order to work in a new state, and/or follow a slightly different set of rules.
Nursing license reciprocity
The good news is that you are not required you to take any additional exams if you already have your nursing license elsewhere since you already passed the nationally recognized exam. Most times, with a valid license and a clean record, you can apply for a new state license. Reciprocity comes into play in that it allows you to practice using a temporary permit (usually 90 days) while you await your new license application to be processed. Note that fees and requirements vary by state, and you’ll be expected to familiarize yourself with the new state’s Nursing Practice Act.
Compact states
This whole process is simplified if your original license was earned in one of the 25 states that adhere to the Nurse Licensure Compact Agreement, and you wish to practice in another compact state. That legislation basically allows nurses to practice in member states without having to recertify. Essentially, you’ll hold a multi-state nursing license, for which all of your information and work history will be kept in a database that can be accessed by anyone hiring nurses in participating states. In other words, less paperwork, red tape, and fees all around for compact state nurses.
If your primary residence or the new state you’d like to work in is not a compact state, however, the application process will be somewhat more lengthy and costly. You can view a list of compact states here.
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Earning a nursing license does take a lot of work, as it should given the huge amount of responsibility that RNs handle everyday. Once you earn it, however, that accomplishment will open doors for the rest of your nursing career.
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It’s impossible to think back even a few years ago and not be able to identify how some significant technology upgrade has changed the way you live, work, or play. The same is true for those who work in the healthcare industry, especially for those who are on the front lines of patient care – Registered Nurses (RNs). Technology advancements have significantly changed the way that RNs administer patient care, has helped improve workflow and limit human error, and is even making the job safer and less physically challenging.
Take a look at 7 technology enhancements that are slowly being adopted in the nation’s top hospitals and health care facilities that have changed the nursing profession for the better.
Some hospitals are incorporating advanced Communication Systems, in which nurses and other members of the health care team can text message, speak, and receive patient alarms through their smart phone devices using specialized apps. This concept replaces antiquated paging systems, and helps the whole nursing unit stay in touch and work more efficiently with each other.
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Soon, the days of endless paperwork, filling out patient charts, and having doctors fax over medical records will be gone for good as more and more hospitals and facilities convert to EHR, which allows healthcare providers to access patient information with a few keystrokes. With an extensive patient history easily accessible and all in one place, it cuts down on human error, alerts nursing staff to possible drug interactions, and keeps track of diagnostic test results.
Just as GPS tracking has revolutionized the way we travel, a system of tagging and tracking medical equipment can increase hospital efficiency. That’s been the case at Texas Children’s Hospital, which was named the “Most Wired Innovator” by Hospitals and Healthcare Networks, the publication of the American Hospital Association, in part because of its real time locating systems (RTLS). Using radiofrequency identification tags, ultrasound, and/or infrared, the system helps nursing staff locate the nearest blood pressure machine, for example. While this seems simple enough, being able to centrally monitor equipment helps tremendously with bed management and patient care routines, a big RN responsibility, as explained in an article by AmercianNurse.org.
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It makes everyone’s life easier – both RNs and patients – when diagnostic exams can be performed non-invasively. Thanks to new technologies, there are more options available now to perform minimally invasive tests and treatments. This helps lower risk of infection, and over time, is more cost effective. Some examples include nanotechnology like handheld biosensors that can detect a range of diseases from miniscule body specimens. Another example is Texas Children’s Hospital’s use of ultrasound technology to place peripheral IV (PIV).
According to research by Purdue University Global, many hospitals are implementing drug delivery systems in the form of implantable devices that release medication into patients. This aids RNs since they can schedule complex dosing to ensure patients get the medications they need in the right amounts and at exactly the right moment. Not only does this reduce human error, but it allows nurses to focus on other aspects of patient care.
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Walk into any hospital, and you’ll hear the constant beeps and alarms coming from various patient rooms, keeping nurses constantly walking the floors to respond. Oftentimes, the alarms are false, which ends up causing “alarm fatigue.” It also takes the nursing staff’s attention away from more pressing patient matters. To combat this problem, smart alarm technology can better monitor a variety of patient vital signs all through one system, including blood pressure, pulse rate, etc. By having one single integrated system to measure physiological indicators, the alarm system will be more streamlined and efficient.
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Here’s a scary stat, but one that if you’re an RN, will probably not surprise you: VA records showed that more than 2,400 of its nursing staff suffer debilitating injuries every year from lifting patients, as reported by NPR. As such, the VA committed to a program back in 2008 to transform all of its 153 hospitals to help prevent nursing staff from getting hurt. A few years later, and the VA has spent more than $200 million on what it calls “the safe patient handling program,” says the article. The centerpiece of these upgrades include patient lifting technology that takes the back-breaking task of moving patients out of nurses’ hands. While many hospitals have such technology in various units, VA hospitals are trying to make the technology the norm for every patient room. Since the implementation of the program in the VA hospitals, they report a 40 percent reduction in nursing injuries from moving patients.
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Although ever-evolving technology requires RNs to stay up-to-date with the latest innovations, doing so will not only make their jobs more efficient, but also help them maintain a competitive edge for career advancement.
