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• On February 1, 2022
• In Salaries in Canada

Travel Nurse Salary Canada: How Much Do They Make?

Did you recently obtain your nursing degree and are wondering where to begin your career? Well, you might want to consider taking part in travel nursing. Today, the COVID-19 pandemic led to a much greater need for this type of professional, and their salaries have grown significantly.

If you’re looking for a good travel nursing Canada salary and you enjoy seeing new places, then consider becoming a traveling nurse in Canada. Read our guide below to learn all about how you can start a career as a traveling nurse in Canada and what you can earn doing it. Let’s get started!

What is a Travel Nurse?

Travel nursing first became a common occurrence due to staffing shortages at hospitals in Canada. It also took place in other parts of the world, as traveling nurses can be found in many nations.

Places like clinics and hospitals that have unfilled positions often hire traveling nurses. These positions can help improve patient safety by filling those staff shortages and making sure other nurses and healthcare professionals are not overworked.

Furthermore, travel nurses come from different backgrounds with more variety in terms of their education. With different perspectives and experiences, travel nurses bring more to patient care and the hospital work environment.

Do Travel Nurses Make Good Money?

A travel nursing Canada salary is, on average, $92,193 per year. However, the salaries of travel nurses differ greatly depending on the type of specialty you choose. For example, an RN travel nurse makes an annual salary of $76,380 while a travel nurse practitioner makes $107,540 per year.

In addition, a travel nurse recruiter can make $55,920 per year on average while a pediatric travel nurse gets an annual salary of $67,670 on average. In general, travel nurses do make a good salary in Canada.

Typical Salary of Travel Nursing Professionals in Canada

The standard travel nursing Canada salary is $48.85 per hour on average, according to Indeed. Most importantly, the salary of a travel nurse is much higher than other registered nurse roles in Canada.

For example, the salary of registered nurses in emergency rooms is $38.71 per hour on average while home health registered nurses make $36.48 per hour.

How Much Do Travel Nurses Make in Ontario?

Travel nurses in Ontario can make a good salary, but it does differ based on the city you’re in. The travel nursing salary in Toronto, Ontario, is $62.09 per hour while the salaries of travel nurses in Grey, Ontario, is $43.32.

Nonetheless, Ontario-based travel nurses make more money than some of the local nursing staff.

How Do I Become a Travel Nurse in Canada?

You can become a travel nurse with the minimum requirement of being a registered nurse with an Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN), according to the Nurse Journal . You’ll also need to be licensed in nursing.

However, the majority of recruiting agencies prefer the travel nurses within their system to have a Bachelor of Science degree in nursing (BSN). Likely, you will also need to have a certification in Basic Life Support and Advanced Cardiac Life Support.

This number of qualifications should be enough for entry-level jobs as a travel nurse. However, if you want to work in certain specialties, then you’ll likely need more certifications.

Can I Be a Travel Nurse in Canada?

If you don’t live in Canada but want to become a travel nurse in this country, then there are a few other steps to complete, such as:

• Obtaining a passport and a work visa, which a recruiting agency can assist with
• Getting extra immunizations you may need
• Learning French or English better depending on the region in Canada you’ll operate
• Studying diseases that are common in the particular Canadian region

Once you complete these steps, you should be able to become a travel nurse in Canada.

Contract Length

As a travel nurse, you will find that you have much more control over your schedule. You can choose either short-term contracts or long-term contracts. That way, you get to decide how long you will stay in a particular region. You can even choose to take a break between contracts and stay in a beloved part of Canada.

Whatever the length of your contract, you will need to get one signed before you can apply for a work visa. Now, you’ll need to submit the paperwork necessary for a work permit visa. Lastly, you’ll want to undergo a medical exam and get key immunizations.

Most of the time, travel nurses work with recruitment agencies and recruiters who act as third parties, communicating between employers and the hired nurses. A recruiter can find you the right job in terms of your skills and your preferences.

Most recruiting agencies require you to have one year of experience working as a registered nurse locally before becoming a traveling nurse. Before you pick a recruitment agency, do your research and ask other nurses for references to ensure you find an honorable agency that meets your needs.

Travel Nursing Benefits in Canada

There are numerous benefits that a traveling nurse can gain from this type of career, such as:

• Improving one’s nursing skills
• Facing multiple different healthcare environments and positions
• Gaining a stronger professional network
• Obtaining no-cost online education courses

Furthermore, as a traveling nurse, you will enjoy exploring new locations throughout Canada, such as Montreal, Quebec, or Toronto. You can also have more control over your schedule with this type of career.

In this position, you can also travel inexpensively since you’ll be getting paid well when working. Some recruiting agencies will even cover your moving and housing costs. When compared to local staff nurses, a traveling nurse’s salary is higher (see also PSW salary ) As a traveling nurse, you’ll get higher pay, expense reimbursements, and even bonuses.

Now that you have learned all about the traveling nurse role in Canada, you can begin the process of starting this career. Before you know it, you’ll be enjoying a walk through the Royal Ontario Museum after working a shift at a Canadian hospital.

Avlin is passionate about helping aspirants become better personal support workers. He is an entrepreneur and runs a clinic in Toronto.

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Travel nurses' gold rush is over. Now, some are joining other nurses in leaving the profession altogether.

Working as a travel nurse in the early days of the Covid pandemic was emotionally exhausting for Reese Brown — she was forced to leave her young daughter with her family as she moved from one gig to the next, and she watched too many of her intensive care patients die.

“It was a lot of loneliness,” Brown, 30, said. “I’m a single mom, I just wanted to have my daughter, her hugs, and see her face and not just through FaceTime.”

But the money was too good to say no. In July 2020, she had started earning $5,000 or more a week, almost triple her pre-pandemic pay. That was the year the money was so enticing that thousands of hospital staffers quit their jobs and hit the road as travel nurses as the pandemic raged. 

Two years later, the gold rush is over. Brown is home in Louisiana with her daughter and turning down work. The highest paid travel gigs she’s offered are $2,200 weekly, a rate that would have thrilled her pre-pandemic. But after two "traumatic" years of tending to Covid patients, she said, it doesn’t feel worth it.

“I think it’s disgusting because we went from being praised to literally, two years later, our rates dropped,” she said. “People are still sick, and people are still dying.”

The drop in pay doesn’t mean, however, that travel nurses are going to head back to staff jobs. The short-lived travel nurse boom was a temporary fix for a long-term decline in the profession that predates the pandemic. According to a report from McKinsey & Co., the United States may see a shortage of up to 450,000 registered nurses within three years barring aggressive action by health care providers and the government to recruit new people. Nurses are quitting, and hospitals are struggling to field enough staff to cover shifts. 

Nine nurses around the country, including Brown, told NBC News they are considering alternate career paths, studying for advanced degrees or exiting the profession altogether. 

“We’re burned out, tired nurses working for $2,200 a week,” Brown said. People are leaving the field, she said, “because there’s no point in staying in nursing if we’re expendable.”

$124.96 an hour

Travel nursing seems to have started as a profession, industry experts say, in the late 1970s in New Orleans, where hospitals needed to add temporary staff to care for sick tourists during Mardi Gras. In the 1980s and the 1990s, travel nurses were often covering for staff nurses who were on maternity leave, meaning that 13-week contracts become common. 

By 2000, over a hundred agencies provided travel contracts, a number that quadrupled by the end of the decade. It had become a lucrative business for the agencies, given the generous commissions that hospitals pay them.  A fee of 40 percent  on top of the nurse’s contracted salary is not unheard of, according to a spokesperson for the  American Health Care Association , which represents long-term care providers. 

Just before the pandemic, in January 2020, there were about 50,000 travel nurses in the U.S., or about 1.5 percent of the nation's registered nurses, according to Timothy Landhuis, vice president of research at Staffing Industry Analysts, an industry research firm. That pool doubled in size to at least 100,000 as Covid spread, and he says the actual number at the peak of the pandemic may have far exceeded that estimate.

By 2021, travel nurses were earning an average of $124.96 an hour, according to the research firm — three times the hourly rate of staff nurses, according to federal statistics. 

That year, according to the 2022 National Health Care Retention & RN Staffing Report from Nursing Solutions Inc., a nurse recruiting firm, the travel pay available to registered nurses contributed to 2.47% of them leaving hospital staff jobs.

But then, as the rate of deaths and hospitalizations from Covid waned, the demand for travel nurses fell hard, according to industry statistics, as did the pay.

Demand dropped 42 percent from January to July this year, according to Aya Healthcare, one of the largest staffing firms in the country. 

That doesn’t mean the travel nurses are going back to staff jobs.

Brown said she’s now thinking about leaving the nursing field altogether and has started her own business. Natalie Smith of Michigan, who became a travel nurse during the pandemic, says she intends to pursue an advanced degree in nursing but possibly outside of bedside nursing.

Pamela Esmond of northern Illinois, who also became a travel nurse during the pandemic, said she’ll keep working as a travel nurse, but only because she needs the money to retire by 65. She’s now 59. 

“The reality is they don’t pay staff nurses enough, and if they would pay staff nurses enough, we wouldn’t have this problem,” she said. “I would love to go back to staff nursing, but on my staff job, I would never be able to retire.” 

The coronavirus exacerbated issues that were already driving health care workers out of their professions, Landhuis said. “A nursing shortage was on the horizon before the pandemic,” he said.

According to this year’s Nursing Solutions staffing report, nurses are exiting the bedside at “an alarming rate” because of rising patient ratios, and their own fatigue and burnout. The average hospital has turned over 100.5% of its workforce in the past five years, according to the report, and the annual turnover rate has now hit 25.9%, exceeding every previous survey. 

There are now more than 203,000 open registered nurse positions nationwide, more than twice the number just before the pandemic in January 2020, according to Aya Healthcare.

An obvious short-term solution would be to keep using travel nurses. Even with salaries falling, however, the cost of hiring them is punishing.

LaNelle Weems, executive director of Mississippi Hospital Association’s Center for Quality and Workforce, said hospitals can’t keep spending like they did during the peak of the pandemic.

“Hospitals cannot sustain paying these exorbitant labor costs,” Weems said. “One nuance that I want to make sure you understand is that  what a travel agency charges the hospitals  is not what is paid to the nurse.”

Ultimately, it’s the patients who will suffer from the shortage of nurses, whether they are staff or gig workers. 

“Each patient added to a hospital nurse’s workload is associated with a 7%-12% increase in hospital mortality,” said Linda Aiken, founding director of the University of Pennsylvania’s Center for Health Outcomes and Policy Research.

Nurses across the country told NBC News that they chose the profession because they cared about patient safety and wanted to be at the bedside in the first line of care. 

“People say it’s burnout but it’s not,” Esmond said about why nurses are quitting. “It’s the moral injury of watching patients not being taken care of on a day-to-day basis. You just can’t take it anymore.”

Jean Lee is an associate reporter with NBC News’ Social Newsgathering team in Los Angeles. She previously reported for the NBC News consumer investigative unit.

Travel Nursing from Canada!

Your international travel nursing ticket to the usa.

Want to join fellow Canadian nurses working in the USA?

Travel nursing from Canada to the US is easier than you might think. At Aya Healthcare, we handle the paperwork so you can focus on what you do best: taking care of patients. We’ll take care of everything else.

And we mean EVERYTHING! We don’t think coming to the USA should cost you a lot of time or money. That’s why we offer this concierge service to make things as easy as possible.

Become a Canadian Nurse Working in the USA

International travel nursing can be intimidating. That’s why we walk you through each step of the process.

What’s the timeline for travel nursing from Canada? The short answer is around six months (with Aya). That’s around half the time it would take you to do it on your own or go through other Canadian travel nursing agencies. Our experts walk you through the process and review your paperwork for errors before you submit. We get you there faster by removing the barriers that slow your application.

As a Canadian nurse moving to the USA, here’s what you’ll need:

VisaScreen certification through CGFNS

CGFNS evaluates your education/credentials and verifies that you can work in the US by granting the VisaScreen certification. If you qualify for our licensure project (see right) we'll reimburse your $540 application fee once you start working. And more good news ... we can take care of the following requirements simultaneously. Again, the ENTIRE process should only take six months.

US State License

You’ve applied for VisaScreen certification. Great job! Now you need a US state license (we’ll pay for this too if you qualify). This can take anywhere from 4-12 weeks to be issued. Again, we can work on your license while you’re waiting for your VisaScreen certification.

Book a travel nursing job!

Now, you’re ready to go. Because you’re smart, you’re working with an experienced Canadian travel nursing agency. As we say in the US, “this isn’t our first rodeo.” We have deep relationships with facilities across the country. We know which healthcare facilities will book you with some of the paperwork pending.

Border crossing documentation

Congrats! You got a job and it’s time to join your fellow Canadian travel nurses in the USA! We’ll walk you through what you need to bring. Gather that documentation and cross the border within 10 days of your contract start date. Request TN Status (AKA the TN Visa for Canadian nurses) at the border. Again, we’ll help with this!

Apply for a US Social Security Number

Once you’re in the US, it’s time to apply for your social security number. This number allows you to work in any state. You should get your social security card in the mail in 4-8 weeks. This won’t affect your timeline. You can work at certain facilities while waiting for your social security card.

(Offices are currently closed due to COVID-19. This doesn't affect your ability to work.)

If any of this sounds complicated, don’t worry! We send you detailed instructions for each step of the process, track the status of your application and provide updates along the way. We have an expert licensing team dedicated to Canadian nurses. They can answer questions and provide guidance. Contact them anytime!

Start Travel Nursing in the US Today!

Here’s what it takes to qualify for Aya’s licensing project:

• RN degree from a Canadian nursing program
• At least 2 years of experience in your specialty
• Proof you passed the NCLEX

If you don't fit these criteria, don't be discouraged. Get in touch with us, we're still happy to help any way we can.

Meet travel nurses in the USA

Aya Healthcare is the preferred supplier at multiple facilities in North Carolina, New York, Minnesota, Washington and Texas. We can get you licensed quickly in those states. While you’re working your first contract (which will likely last 13 weeks or longer) we’ll help you get licensed in any state of your choosing!

We have a deep understanding of the units we staff and of fluctuations in census across the country. Essentially, we know when facilities will need RNs. We can book you assignments months in advance and ensure the units you choose are a good fit for your skill set and personality. These career planning services are just part of the package you get with Aya Healthcare.

Aya is your travel insurance policy.

International travel nursing opens the door to many wonderful experiences, but anytime you travel you may encounter bumps in the road. Things happen. When they do, we’ll be there.

We have 9,000+ open RN assignments across the country. (If you ever have an assignment cancelled, we’ll find you another #JobSecurity!) If you miss your flight and get stranded at the airport, if you have a clinical issue on the job, if you’re sick and can’t make a shift … never fear. We’ll be here. 24/7. We’ll send you an emergency contact number so you can reach us at all hours of the day or night.

Don’t want to go it alone? No problem. Bring a friend (or friends). If you ever get lonely as a Canadian nurse working in the USA, refer someone! With our smooth, easy process for getting you ready to work stateside, feel free to entice as many Canadian RNs as you’d like to join you on your journey.

Frequently Asked Questions

If you skipped the top of this page you may not know, so we’ll say it again … absolutely! Apply now and we’ll help get you started.

Pretty easy if you stick with us. We’ll walk you through the process and make sure everything goes smoothly. We have an expert team who’ve helped hundreds of Canadian nurses working in the USA. They can help you too.

In general, you’ll make more as a travel nurse in the United States than as a permanent nurse in Canada. Pay depends on where you go: states and specialties pay differently. Your recruiter (we’ll assign you one when you apply) can help you maximize your pay!

Good question! That’s up to you. You can either choose housing that we provide or take a housing stipend and find a place on your own. If you prefer the stipend, our housing team can provide you with resources that should make your search easy and, dare we say, enjoyable?

We’d love to! We bet we’ve answered a lot of your questions higher up on this page. But, if you have a question that isn’t answered on this page or would just like to talk things through, contact us and we’ll be in touch.

Aya Healthcare will provide your TN letter if you book an assignment with us. Travel nursing in the US here you come!

We might be biased, but we think you’ve found us. 😊 Check out our reviews if you’re looking for external corroboration that we’re one of the best travel nursing agencies for Canadian nurses.

You’ll have an entire Aya support team to help with each step of your journey. Your recruiter is your first point of contact (he or she is your guru, your guide.) We’ll also assign you housing , payroll and licensing experts — plus a travel experience specialist to make sure you’re happy with everything, down to the tiniest details of your assignment.

There are many reasons Canadian nurses work in the USA. Some are looking to expand their clinical skill set by working in new facilities, others want to travel to new and exciting places and some are looking to make great money. Some want all the above! Whatever your reasons for international travel nursing, we’re more than happy to help.

Start Your USA Travel Nursing Adventure

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Travel Nurse Salary Guide | 2024

What is a travel nurse.

Travel nurses are registered nurses who work short-term contracts to fill the needs of hospitals, clinics, long-term facilities, and other healthcare institutions. Travel nurses can help when there are nursing shortages. However, it is not always a long-term solution.

Travel nursing is very enticing to those who want increased flexibility within the nursing sector, which traditional bedside nursing might not offer.

Looking for open travel nurse assignments? Speak with a recruiter today!

How Much Do Travel Nurses Make?

Travel nurse salaries vary depending on location and specialty. Most recently, travel nurses have seen a decline in salaries compared to several years ago. The COVID-19 pandemic dramatically increased wages for travel nurses, and many left the bedside in order to travel the country and cash in on the big paychecks. While now the salaries are not as large for contracts, there are still many contracts available at a competitive wage across the country.

ZipRecruiter.com reports the national average for travel nurses is $101,132 per year. The highest-paying states are New York , Vermont, and California , while the lowest reported salaries are in Florida and Arkansas. Even though Florida has the lowest travel nurse salary, the annual travel nurse salary is still $5,000 more than the $86,070 national average for staff nurses according to the BLS .

But don’t forget other ways to make money as a travel nurse, such as earning points or miles on all the travel that you already have to do. We now have travel nursing credit cards just for nurses to earn while they travel.

Travel Nurse Salary by State

Salaries and stipends vary by state and city , as do housing and cost of living. Here’s a breakdown of travel nurse salaries and hourly wages for all fifty states, going from highest to lowest.

Source: ZipRecruiter.com

Find available, high-paying travel nurse opportunities.

Wages for travel nurses involve more than just a straight hourly rate. Travel nurses can receive non-taxed stipends for housing and living expenses, and those stipends are paid on top of your hourly rate. Other benefits may include, depending on the staffing agency:

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• 401K investment options
• Sign-on, completion, and referral bonuses
• Free continuing education courses
• License Reimbursement
• Weekly/Bi-weekly Pay
• Tax Advantage Plan
• Life Insurance
• Liability Insurance, Disability Insurance, and Worker’s Compensation
• 24/7 Support

It’s important to remember that travel nurses are paid (and taxed) differently than staff nurses . Travel nurses are paid through agencies, not the hospital, so you need to look at your total pay. This includes your hourly base pay + your non-taxable stipends, which are things like housing and meals.

What Does a Travel Nurse Package Include?

Travel nurse packages will vary depending on the company and the individual. For example, one travel nurse may take a housing stipend while another might take the company-provided houses. These small differences are important to remember when investigating travel nurse contracts and also speaking to your peers.

Furthermore, some travel nurse companies will have exclusive contracts with healthcare institutions, and packages will look different based on the exclusivity.

There are three major components to all pay packages:

• Taxable hourly pay
• Housing Stipend
• Meal and Incidentals Stipend

Taxable Hourly Rate

The hourly pay is the dollar per-hour amount for each hour worked. It is the taxable portion of the pay package, which is important to remember. The actual amount you are paid will vary depending on the agency. Travel nurse agencies will want to pay you the least amount hourly as possible in order to make the whole pay package look attractive. The larger the hourly wage, the more taxes are taken out, which results in less weekly income.

Housing, Meal, and Incidental Stipends

This portion of the pay package is tax-exempt since non-taxable money is not considered income. This is the most alluring part of a travel nurse pay package and where travel nurses will make the most money. This money is directly determined by the travel nurse company .

These stipends will also vary depending on whether you decide to take housing provided by the company or find your own. If you decide to take company-provided housing, you will not receive a housing stipend. Many travel nurses decide to take the housing stipend and then find their own living arrangements. This can help nurses take home extra non-taxable pay. But be careful; it can also be harmful.

For example, if the housing stipend is $1,200 and you find an apartment for $1,000, you will get to keep the extra $200. Unfortunately, if the housing cost is more than the housing stipend provided by the company, you are responsible for the difference.

Pro tip: Look at housing costs before signing your contract!

As an example, a standard total pay package could look something like this:

*Assumes $20 per hour at 40 hours per week, minus taxes

Understanding Your “Tax Home”

To qualify for these non-taxable stipends or reimbursements, one must maintain what the IRS calls a “tax home.” A tax home is your place of residence that you maintain and pay for (either by rent or mortgage) while you are out on your travel assignment. Ideally, the IRS would like a travel nurse to take an assignment somewhere and then return to their tax home, where they maintain a PRN or full-time nursing job.

Travel nurses who have a tax home will need to keep proof of this. It’s important to keep all receipts that prove you are paying to maintain your primary residence (e.g., house sitters, utilities, and home maintenance expenses).

Per IRS Publication 463 , three factors are used to determine if a location/residence qualifies as a tax home. These are:

• You perform part of your business in the area of your main home and use that home for lodging while doing business in the area.
• You have living expenses at your main home that you duplicate because your business requires you to be away from that home.
• You have not abandoned the area in which both your historical place of lodging and your claimed main home are located; you have a member(s) of your family living at your main home; or you often use that home for lodging.

Most travel nursing agencies will have you sign a form stating that you do have a tax home. If you do not have a residence that you are planning on maintaining when you are traveling, you will be referred to as an itinerant worker. As an itinerant worker, you will be required to pay taxes on all income earned, including stipends and reimbursements. When applying with different travel agencies, make sure they are aware of your itinerant status. You can get more information about tax homes here .

Itinerant status is not ideal for someone looking to make the most money and will cause a big difference in take-home pay. It can be confusing to navigate the difference between tax home and itinerant status. Speaking to a financial planner and/or accountant specializing in travel nurse pay is helpful. As a best practice, travel nurses are encouraged to return to their permanent residence between contracts.

What Factors Affect Travel Nursing Pay?

There are numerous factors that can affect travel nursing pay. Some will be in your control, and others will not. These include:

1. Location

The specific location of the assignment most heavily influences travel nurse pay. Simply put, pay rates often reflect the cost of living in the area and also regional trends. Historically speaking, the highest-paying states for travel nurses include California , Washington , and New York .

Southern states like Mississippi and Alabama typically have lower living costs and, in turn, lower travel nurse pay. Destination locations, like Hawaii, typically do not have the most desirable pay packages because the locations are highly sought after. Companies know that there are many travel nurses excited about the surf and sand of Hawaii, so pay packages are reflective of that competition.

2. Specialty

The travel nurse’s specialty also impacts pay. Long-term care nurses and clinic nurses will see significantly lower rates than other specialties, but this is generally the case even for staff nurses. Increased certifications, credentials, and skills will command higher pay. Historically speaking, the top-paying travel nurse specialties are:

• Intensive Care Unit (ICU)
• Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU)
• Operating Room (OR)

Night shift assignments are generally more prevalent in the world of travel nursing. The increased need and the less desirable shift mean that many hospitals offer higher rates for their night shift assignments. Flexibility is key if you want to make the most money as a travel nurse.

Ready to start your adventure? Sign up today and start traveling next week.

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Don't miss out on your adventure..

What is a Travel Nurse? Everything You Need to Know

How to become a travel nurse.

• State Licensing
• Agencies & Recruiters
• Certifications
• A Travel Nurse's Journey
• Final Thoughts

The world of nursing is not confined to traditional hospital settings. For those seeking excitement, flexibility, and diversity in their nursing careers, travel nursing presents a unique and rewarding opportunity.

This guide will discuss  travel nurse requirements , essential steps, qualities, and perks of becoming a travel nurse, offering valuable insights into this exhilarating profession.

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Want to learn how to become a travel nurse ? The first step is obtaining the necessary education and licensure.

Aspiring nurses can choose to pursue an Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN) or a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) from an accredited institution. Opting for a BSN opens doors to a broader range of job prospects, including prestigious healthcare systems and trauma centers.

After completing their nursing education, nurses must pass the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX) to obtain their state nursing license, laying the foundation for their travel nursing journey.

As a travel nurse, certain certifications are commonly required and highly recommended to ensure the nurse’s readiness to handle various clinical situations and emergencies. The two critical certifications that travel nurses typically need are:

Basic Life Support (BLS): BLS certification by the American Heart Association is a fundamental requirement for all healthcare professionals. BLS training equips nurses with the skills to recognize and respond to life threatening emergencies such as cardiac arrest, choking, and respiratory distress.

Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS): ACLS certification by the American Heart Association is essential for nurses working in settings where they may encounter patients with cardiac issues or in critical care situations. ACLS skills build upon BLS skills and provide additional knowledge and techniques to manage cardiac arrest, stroke and other cardiovascular emergencies. 

Depending on your specialty and the requirements from the facility you wish to travel to, other certifications such as PALS, NRP, and Stable may be required, so be sure to ask your recruiter before applying to travel nursing positions. Additionally, it's important for nurses to keep their certifications up to date, as they typically require renewal every few years.

>> Related: What do Travel Nurses Do?

The most important element to becoming a travel nurse is experience. Most travel agencies and hospitals require nurses to have a minimum of two years of nursing experience prior to applying for travel nursing contracts.

>> Click here to see available high-paying travel nurse opportunities!

Navigating State Licensing as a Travel Nurse

Travel nurses frequently move between states, requiring them to research and understand each state's licensing requirements. Some states offer temporary "walk-through" licenses, enabling nurses to obtain short-term licenses swiftly. Familiarity with individual state licensing procedures and timelines is crucial for successful travel assignments.

Compact state licensure for travel nurses is a game-changer in the healthcare industry, streamlining the licensing process and making it easier for nurses to practice across state lines. By participating in the Nurse Licensure Compact (NLC), qualified nurses can hold a single multi-state license, granting them the privilege to work in any other NLC state without the need for additional licenses. 

This simplification not only reduces bureaucratic barriers but also addresses the growing demand for healthcare professionals in various regions. Travel nurses can now embark on new assignments swiftly, providing crucial medical support where it's needed most, and ultimately enhancing patient care across the nation.

Key Attributes of a Travel Nurse

Effective travel nurses possess a unique set of qualities that enable them to excel in diverse healthcare settings. These attributes include:

Adaptability and flexibility : The ability to quickly adjust to new environments and handle various patient populations and healthcare systems

Strong communication skills: Effective communication is essential for collaborating with different healthcare teams, patients, and families

Problem-solving and critical thinking : Travel nurses encounter new challenges regularly, necessitating strong problem-solving skills and critical-thinking abilities

Compassion and empathy: A genuine love for patient care and empathy are vital in providing exceptional nursing services as a travel nurse.

Leadership abilities: Travel nurses should be comfortable assuming leadership roles when needed and confidently handling responsibilities

• Love for adventure: A spirit of adventure and a curiosity to explore new places and cultures is essential.

Benefits of Travel Nursing

Apart from competitive pay, travel nurses often enjoy an array of benefits:

Non-taxed stipends: Additional stipends for housing and living expenses on top of hourly rates if you qualify

Healthcare insurance: Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage.

Retirement plans: 401K investment options for long-term financial planning

Bonuses: Sign-on, completion, and referral bonuses as incentives

Continuing education: Access to free courses for continuous professional development

License reimbursement: Support for renewing and maintaining licenses

Reliable pay: Weekly or bi-weekly pay schedules

Tax advantage plans: Tax-saving options for travel-related expenses

Insurance coverage: Coverage for life, liability, disability, and worker's compensation

Travel reimbursement to and from your assignment

Support: 24/7 support from the staffing agency. 

Travel Nurse Salary

The compensation for travel nurses varies significantly based on location, specialty, experience, and the chosen agency ZipRecruiter.com reports the national average for travel nurses is $118,400 per year.  While the pandemic and nursing shortage temporarily drove higher wages due to increased demand, these exceptional rates have not since been sustained post-pandemic. 

​​Travel Nurse Salary by State

Source: ZipRecruiter

Wages for travel nurses involve more than a straight hourly rate. They can receive non-taxed stipends for travel nurse housing and living expenses. Stipends are paid on top of the nurse’s hourly rate.  Other benefits for travel nurses, depending on the staffing agency,  include, 

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• 401K investment options
• Sign-on, completion, and referral bonuses
• Free continuing education courses
• License Reimbursement 
• Weekly/Bi-weekly Pay
• Tax Advantage Plan
• Life Insurance
• Liability Insurance, Disability Insurance, and Worker’s Compensation
• 24/7 Support

Additionally, you can increase your travel nurse salary through specialization or advancing your education. The average travel nurse practitioner salary is significantly higher than that of travel RNs.

What Are The Best Travel Nurse Agencies and How Do You Pick One?

Your travel nurse company and recruiter can make or break your experience, so this question should not be taken lightly. 

When you’re starting your travel nurse journey, one of the first steps you need to take is finding a travel nurse company and recruiter. This process might feel overwhelming because there are so many options out there. How do you know if you’ve found a good travel nurse company and a recruiter who has your best interest at heart?

When looking into travel nurse agencies, you should first make sure that they have these non-negotiables:

• A dedicated housing department of experts to help you find housing or do they give you a stipend to find your own housing
• Day 1 health, dental and vision insurance, and premium cost
• 401K that you can start contributing to immediately
• Travel reimbursement
• 24-hour customer support. Make sure to choose one with a clinical department that is available as a resource for you. 
• Have a variety and abundance of travel nursing jobs all over the country for your specialty.

Make sure to ask if they are Joint Commission credentialed. Agencies that obtain this certification must complete a strict qualification process, and it helps ensure that the company is upheld to the highest standards in the industry.

What to Look Out for When Working With Travel Nurse Recruiters

Travel nurse recruiters play a vital role in connecting nurses with suitable assignments. A skilled and honest recruiter advocates for the nurse's best interests, secures desirable contracts, and provides transparent and accurate information in a timely manner. 

Conversely, nurses should be cautious of unprofessional recruiters who submit them to assignments without consent or make false promises. In many cases, travel nurses build long-time friendships with their recruiters! You want to find a recruiter with whom you can connect quickly and establish a bond. They should be someone who helps put your mind at ease, has your back, and actively listens to what you want instead of pushing their agenda.

Don’t be scared to interview recruiters to find the right one. Working with a recruiter whose personality, values, and humor complement yours will make your travel nurse experience even more worthwhile.

We encourage you to work with travel nurse recruiters who have been vetted and highly recommended by fellow travel nurses or with our trusted partner, travelnursing.org.

Certifications for Travel Nurses

While there are no specific national nursing certifications for a Travel Nurse, having advanced RN certifications can make an individual look more desirable to hospitals. There are a plethora of nationally recognized certifications including, 

• CCCTM - Certified in Care, Coordination, and Transition Management
• CDN - Certified Dialysis Nurse
• CMSRN - Certified Medical Surgical Registered Nurse
• CNN - Certified Nephrology Nurse
• CNOR - Certified Nurse Operating Room
• CPAN - Certified Post Anesthesia Nurse

The most common certifications for travel nurses are,

• CPN - Certified Pediatric Nurse 
• CCRN - Certified Critical Care Nurse
• CEN - Certified Emergency Nurse

What Are the CEU Requirements for Travel Nurses?

Continuing education is essential for all registered nurses, including travel nurses, to maintain their active licenses. Each state has specific continuing education requirements that nurses must fulfill to remain compliant.

Examples of continuing education requirements for RNs are as follows: 

• Washington - 8 contact hours every year
• Texas - 20 contact hours every 2 years
• Florida - 24 contact hours every 2 years
• California - 30 hours every 2 years
• Hawaii - 30 contact hours every 2 years 
• Arkansas -20 contact hours every 2 years
• Florida -24 contact hours every 2 years
• Illinois - 20 contact hours every 2 years
• Iowa -36 contact hours every 2 years
• Pennsylvania -20 contact hours every 2 years

Some states do not require CEUs to maintain an RN license. Examples include Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Indiana, Maine, and Maryland. Several states also require HIV/AIDS education such as New York, Minnesota, and Kentucky. It is important for nurses to check their state’s RN credentialing body for exact CEU requirements. 

Nurse.org has a comprehensive list of CEUs by state for RNs here .

Brandy Pinkerton's Journey to Becoming a Travel Nurse

Brandy Pinkerton shared with us why she decided to become a travel nurse and what her journey was like.

Why did I decide to become a travel nurse ? I was burned out in my staff job and needed to renew my passion for nursing. After finding a great company and a trustworthy recruiter, I embarked on my first assignment solo with my two doggies in tow and never looked back! 

Since pursuing a career as a travel nurse and completing over 15 assignments, I’ve had adventures in Florida , Colorado , Nevada , South Carolina , Texas , and Montana . Becoming a travel nurse was the best decision I could have made for myself! While I’m grateful I made the decision to become a travel nurse, I also know that there are a lot of logistics involved in getting started. I’ll tell you all there is to know about travel nursing, so that you can feel prepared to take the leap into this exciting, rewarding profession!

Here are a few things travel nursing has given me:

• A better compensation package with benefits. Because of this, I could pay most of my debt, and I no longer had to work two jobs. 
• More time off and flexibility with my schedule. You can imagine all the wonderful things that can happen when you have more time back.
• Experiences that I would never usually get to have. Through these experiences, I discovered what I like and some new hobbies.
• Less burnout – this is HUGE!
• New relationships and friendships all over the U.S.
• More confidence. I have grown both professionally & personally.
• The ability to build my resume. I’ve been able to try out so many hospitals and have great takeaways from them. Who knows? There are some I may go back to one day.

Final Thoughts on Travel Nursing

Becoming a travel nurse is a thrilling journey that promises adventure, personal growth, and unique experiences. From education and licensure to acquiring experience and embracing essential attributes, travel nurses embark on a profession that combines professionalism with exploration. With competitive salaries, a range of benefits, and the potential to make a meaningful impact on patients across various locations, travel nursing offers a gratifying and fulfilling career path like no other! 

Kathleen Gaines (nee Colduvell) is a nationally published writer turned Pediatric ICU nurse from Philadelphia with over 13 years of ICU experience. She has an extensive ICU background having formerly worked in the CICU and NICU at several major hospitals in the Philadelphia region. After earning her MSN in Education from Loyola University of New Orleans, she currently also teaches for several prominent Universities making sure the next generation is ready for the bedside. As a certified breastfeeding counselor and trauma certified nurse, she is always ready for the next nursing challenge.

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BECOME A WORKATION WARRIOR

INTERESTED IN WORKING IN REMOTE PRACTICE NURSING STATIONS? check it out here!

Our beautiful country offers so much to see and do. Each Province, each region and each community has its own adventure. Travel nursing opens the door to these amazing experiences.

Friendships

Nursing is such a great community and travel nursing connects you with others across Canada.

Build personal and professional friendships that can last your career or your lifetime.

If you want to grow in your career through different experiences, travel nursing connects you with healthcare teams across Canada. You can learn, grow and adapt, providing quality healthcare solutions.

TravelNurse  is your connection to thousands of nursing jobs across Canada.

TravelNurse offers you the freedom you need to make your travel dreams come true, without forcing you to leave your career or give up your income. With competitive wages, travel and housing paid for, it is finally possible for you to take advantage of this time in your life where you’re able to explore.

Interested in working in Remote Practice Clinics –  Our Clinical Department has put together a bit of information about what working in remote stations is like.   Check it out here!

TravelNurse offers you the freedom you need to make your travel dreams come true, without forcing you to leave your career or give up your income. With higher-than-average wages and travel and housing paid for, it is finally possible for you to take advantage of this time in your life where you’re able to explore.

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