Understand Your Travel Therapy Pay Package
Travel therapy pay is split into a taxable hourly wage and stipends for housing, meals and incidentals, and the IRS leaves a stipend out of your taxable wages when it is no more than the federal per diem rate for the area. That holds only while you are working away from a tax home you keep, so offers with the same weekly total can leave you with different take-home pay depending on how each is split.
How Pay WorksHow Travel Therapy Pay Works
Unlike a permanent job where you get a single salary, travel therapy compensation is split into multiple components. The facility pays your staffing agency a single hourly rate for your work. The agency takes its margin to cover operating costs and profit, and the remainder becomes your total pay package.
Your pay package is then divided between a taxable hourly wage and non-taxable stipends (housing, meals and incidentals, and travel reimbursement). This split structure is what makes travel therapy financially advantageous — the tax-free stipends significantly boost your take-home pay compared to a permanent position at the same total compensation.
Components of Your Pay Package
Taxable Hourly Wage
Your base hourly rate. This is taxed like normal income. The IRS has ruled that recharacterizing taxable wages as tax-free allowances fails its accountable plan rules, so an agency can’t move pay out of the wage and into stipends.
Housing Stipend
Tax-free payment for temporary housing. Based on GSA per diem lodging rates, up to GSA's lodging rate for the locality where you sleep on the contract. Keep the difference if you spend less. Learn more →
Meals & Incidentals
Tax-free daily allowance for food and small expenses. GSA M&IE rates range from $68–$92/day (FY2027) ($476–$644/week). Fixed amount — spend less, pocket more. Learn more → To see these lines on an offer of your own, ask a recruiter: Find my next contract.
Travel Reimbursement
One-time payment per assignment for getting to your assignment location. May cover gas, flights, or mileage.
Benefits
Health insurance, 401(k), CEU reimbursement, licensure fee coverage. Value varies widely between agencies. These affect total compensation even though they don't show up in your weekly check.
Bonuses
Some agencies offer completion bonuses, extension bonuses, or referral bonuses. These are taxable but can add to what a contract pays.
What Impacts Your Pay
Location matters most. High-cost cities have higher GSA rates (bigger stipends) and often higher facility rates. But rural and underserved areas sometimes offer premium rates to attract travelers.
Setting affects pay. Pay differs by setting; compare an offer with the current medians by setting on pay by discipline. Specialized settings may command higher rates.
Your agency's margin matters. The facility pays the same total regardless of which agency fills the position. The difference in your paycheck comes from how much the agency keeps. Ask each agency how its package is split and compare written offers for the same job.
Discipline differences exist. PT, OT, and SLP pay varies by market demand and by setting. You can compare median weekly pay by discipline, state, and setting on the Travel Therapy Pay Index.
Frequently asked questions
Are stipends reported as wages on my W-2?
The IRS says: “If your allowance is less than or equal to the federal rate, the allowance won’t be included in box 1 of your Form W-2.” Source: IRS Publication 463 (2025), Travel, Gift, and Car Expenses, read October 4, 2026.
What happens to reimbursements under an accountable plan?
The IRS says: “If you meet the three rules for accountable plans, your employer shouldn’t include any reimbursements in your income in box 1 of your Form W-2.” Source: IRS Publication 463 (2025), Travel, Gift, and Car Expenses, read October 4, 2026.
What is the federal per diem rate?
The IRS says: “The regular federal per diem rate is the highest amount that the federal government will pay to its employees for lodging and M&IE (or M&IE only) while they are traveling away from home in a particular area.” Source: IRS Publication 463 (2025), Travel, Gift, and Car Expenses, read October 4, 2026.
What does an accountable plan ask of me?
Among the IRS rules for an accountable plan: “You must adequately account to your employer for these expenses within a reasonable period of time.” “You must return any excess reimbursement or allowance within a reasonable period of time.” Source: IRS Publication 463 (2025), Travel, Gift, and Car Expenses, read October 24, 2026.
When does an assignment count as indefinite?
The IRS says: “An assignment or job in a single location is considered indefinite if it is realistically expected to last for more than 1 year, whether or not it actually lasts for more than 1 year.” Source: IRS Publication 463 (2025), Travel, Gift, and Car Expenses, read October 24, 2026.
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