Frequently Asked Questions
Straight answers to the questions travel nurses ask us most — about pay, contracts, licensing, and getting started. Don’t see your question? Reach out and we’ll give you a real answer, fast.
Pay & Stipends
How much do travel nurses make per week?
Total weekly pay for travel RNs commonly ranges from $1,900 to $2,800 in 2026, depending on specialty, location, and shift. ICU, ER, and OR positions sit at the higher end. Every job on the CK Medical Staffing job board shows the full weekly pay number upfront.
How much does a travel ICU nurse make per week?
Travel ICU RN pay typically ranges from $2,200 to $2,800 per week in 2026, depending on location, shift, and facility. Current ICU positions at CK Medical Staffing pay between $2,300 and $2,550 weekly, including a tax-free GSA-based housing and meals stipend.
What is a GSA stipend?
The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) publishes daily lodging and meal rates for every U.S. county. Travel nurse agencies use these public rates to calculate the maximum tax-free stipend a traveler can receive for their assignment location. Because stipends aren’t taxed, take-home pay is significantly higher than an equivalent staff wage. Read the full breakdown in our guide: How Travel Nurse Pay Works.
Why is a travel nurse's taxable hourly rate so low?
The taxable rate covers only the wage portion of a travel pay package. Housing and meal stipends are paid separately, tax-free, up to the GSA cap for the assignment city. Judge a contract by total weekly pay and take-home — not the hourly rate alone.
Is the housing stipend really tax-free
Yes — provided you maintain a legitimate tax home and are duplicating living expenses by working away from it. Without a qualifying tax home, stipends become taxable income. We recommend consulting a tax professional who works with travel clinicians.
Contracts & Assignments
How long are travel nurse contracts?
The standard travel nursing contract is 13 weeks, though contracts range from 8 to 26 weeks. Extensions at the same facility are common and typically run another 13 weeks. Most nursing contracts specify 36 hours per week (three 12-hour shifts).
Can I extend my contract if I like the facility?
Usually, yes — if the facility still has the need. Extensions are common, and many travelers stay at one facility for six months or more through back-to-back extensions. Your recruiter will start the extension conversation around week 9 or 10 of your contract.
What happens if the hospital cancels my shifts?
It depends on the guaranteed-hours language in your contract, which is why we walk through every contract line by line before you sign. Ask any agency — including us — exactly how cancelled shifts are handled before accepting an assignment.
Do travel nurses choose where they go?
Yes — you choose which contracts to apply for. Available locations depend on which facilities have open needs at any given time, which is why travelers who are flexible on location tend to land contracts faster.
Licensing & Requirements
How much experience do I need to become a travel nurse?
Most facilities require at least one year of recent acute-care experience in your specialty, and many prefer two years. ICU, ER, OR, and L&D roles typically enforce experience requirements more strictly than med-surg.
What is a compact nursing license?
The Nurse Licensure Compact (NLC) allows nurses whose primary residence is in a member state to practice in 40+ other member states under one multistate license. Kansas and Texas are both compact states. Non-compact states, like California, require their own separate license — plan ahead, as processing can take weeks to months.
Working With CK Medical Staffing
How do I apply for a job with CK Medical Staffing?
Browse open positions on our job board — every listing shows the full weekly pay upfront. Apply directly on any listing, and a recruiter will reach out to walk you through the position, the pay breakdown, and next steps. Most applications take under five minutes.
How fast can I start an assignment?
Once your profile is complete — license, certifications, references, and health records — you can typically be submitted to open positions within days. Facility onboarding usually takes one to three weeks from offer to first shift, depending on the facility.
What makes CK Medical Staffing different from larger agencies?
Full pay transparency and a single point of contact. Every job we post shows the complete weekly pay calculated from real GSA data for that location — no teaser rates. And you work with the same recruiter from first call through your last shift, not a rotating call center.
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