Advantage RN Travel - too good to be true?

[stavem]

I'm just starting as a traveler, and Advantage RN has offered me a pretty lucrative position. However they use that Tax Advantage plan, where you are only taxed so much of your pay, not the whole dollar amount.

Does anyone use this tax plan? I know there are several agencies out there that use it, and how is it? And has anyone worked for Advantage before? how are they?

:monkeydance:

[suzanne4, RN]

I'm just starting as a traveler, and Advantage RN has offered me a pretty lucrative position. However they use that Tax Advantage plan, where you are only taxed so much of your pay, not the whole dollar amount.

Does anyone use this tax plan? I know there are several agencies out there that use it, and how is it? And has anyone worked for Advantage before? how are they?

:monkeydance:

No such thing that is not taxed is the housing if you maintain a legal residence in another state. The Federal Government allows you to take so much money per day for living expenses, same that any business traveller can do, and it should never be considered untaxed income from your work, but it is something that you can deduct. Some agencies like to include it with your pay, but it should not be done that way...............it is not pay at all and should not be considered same, they want it to look like they are paying you more, when they are not.

Suggest that you check with your tax provider.

[suzanne4, RN]

Rule One of Travel Nursing:

If it sounds to good to be true, it usually is. And not always even legal. If you are not sure, consult your tax professional, or your lawyer, depending on what is offered.

And if it is not written in the contract, it does not exist. Your recruiter can promise you anything, but if not written and signed off by management of the agency, it will not be honored if there are any issues later on.

[rdaven]

It is hard to say without seeing the figures. If you want you can send me the numbers and I can crunch them to tell you if they are good or bad. I will need to know what city the contract is for too. Of course this all depends on you having a tax home. If you do not know then send me your home living details and I can tell you if it is a legal tax home or not.

[moonrose2u]

do i have this right? if i keep my condo in the state where i have my driver's license, i cannot lease it out without losing the tax exempt status? even if i am 1000 miles away from my original home base?

all this is confusing, especially to one who doesn't do well with numbers.:smackingf

[CRNA2BKY]

I have to disagree slightly with Suzanne. She says, "Some agencies like to include it with your pay, but it should not be done that way...............it is not pay at all and should not be considered same, they want it to look like they are paying you more, when they are not."

I have worked in the airline industry for many years, and without fail, every single major airline in the United States includes the non-taxable per diem pay in their regular pay check!!! It falls in the "EARNINGS" column, but is labled Per Diem (non-taxable) on that line, followed by the amount. Income is ANYTHING in the world that you have coming in....as the name states quite clearly. However, some types of income are in fact, non-taxable, as every airline has been paying us pilots in this way for many decades. Our total pay check reflects, among other thing, income that is taxed as regular earnings, and income that is non-taxed in the form of per-diem. Either way, the money all goes into my bank account, and that is really the bottom line, isn't it?