Guaranteed hours
Meaning: A stated floor for paid hours. “Subject to census” or exclusions can change its practical value.
Ask: How many hours are guaranteed, and which events do not count?
Free reference asset · updated August 2026
Travel Nurse Contract Red Flag Library
40 contract terms worth locating, understanding, and confirming in writing before you sign. This is a question library, not a verdict on any agency, facility, or contract.
How to use this library
Find the term in your offer, mark the question that applies, and ask for the answer in the written agreement. A term is not automatically harmful; its effect depends on the exact language, your assignment, and what is documented.
01 · Pay security
Does the weekly number hold when reality changes?
Low-census call-offs
Meaning: The facility may cancel shifts when volume falls.
Ask: Do cancelled shifts count toward the guarantee, and is there a cap?
Orientation pay
Meaning: Orientation may be paid at a different rate or have a different hour count.
Ask: What rate and how many paid orientation hours are guaranteed?
Overtime trigger
Meaning: The threshold and rate determine when additional hours change pay.
Ask: Is overtime daily, weekly, after 40 hours, or governed by a facility rule?
Callback minimum
Meaning: A callback can have a minimum paid block even if the work is short.
Ask: What is the callback minimum and which rate applies?
Holiday pay
Meaning: Not every facility holiday is paid the same way.
Ask: Which dates qualify, what rate applies, and must I work the shift?
Charge differential
Meaning: Charge duties may or may not include added pay.
Ask: Can I be assigned charge, and is a differential written into the offer?
Weekend requirement
Meaning: Weekend frequency affects schedule flexibility and sometimes eligibility for pay differentials.
Ask: How are weekends defined and how many are required?
02 · Cancellation and ending early
Who carries the cost when an assignment changes?
Facility cancellation
Meaning: The facility may end an assignment before its stated end date.
Ask: What notice, replacement support, or compensation applies?
Agency cancellation
Meaning: An agency’s agreement can separately describe when it may end the arrangement.
Ask: Which party can cancel and what written notice is required?
Traveler termination
Meaning: Leaving early may affect bonuses, reimbursements, or housing responsibility.
Ask: What happens if I resign for a documented safety or family reason?
Notice period
Meaning: Notice can be measured in days, shifts, or pay periods.
Ask: Is notice mutual, and how is it delivered?
Cancellation fee
Meaning: Some language shifts a stated charge to the traveler.
Ask: Is there any fee, how is it calculated, and when is it waived?
Completion bonus condition
Meaning: A bonus can depend on reaching an exact date or hours threshold.
Ask: What counts as completion if the facility ends early?
Extension language
Meaning: An extension should be a new written agreement, not an assumption.
Ask: Which rates, dates, and terms must be re-confirmed for an extension?
Termination for cause
Meaning: Broad or undefined terms can be difficult to interpret after the fact.
Ask: What process, notice, and documentation apply before termination?
03 · Housing and stipends
Separate the housing promise from the assignment promise.
Housing lease liability
Meaning: A lease can outlast the assignment that made it necessary.
Ask: Who is liable if housing is unused after a cancellation?
Housing deposit
Meaning: Deposits, cleaning fees, and damage terms may be separate from the offer.
Ask: Who pays each deposit and how is it returned?
Stipend proration
Meaning: Stipends may change for partial weeks, call-offs, absences, or early endings.
Ask: Exactly when are housing and M&IE prorated or stopped?
Stipend eligibility
Meaning: An offer cannot determine your tax-home eligibility.
Ask: What documentation does the agency require under its accountable plan?
Travel reimbursement
Meaning: Reimbursement can have receipts, mileage, dates, and repayment conditions.
Ask: What expenses qualify and what happens if the assignment changes?
Pet and utility charges
Meaning: Add-on costs can materially change a housing package.
Ask: Which utilities, parking, pets, furniture, and fees are excluded?
Housing change
Meaning: A mid-assignment unit change can create cost or commute disruption.
Ask: Can housing be changed, and who covers the moving cost?
Pay package change
Meaning: An amendment can change more than the headline weekly amount.
Ask: Can any component change after signing without my written acceptance?
04 · Schedule, scope, and safety
Make the actual work expectations visible.
Float language
Meaning: A float clause governs where you may be assigned.
Ask: Which units, patient populations, and competency limits apply?
On-call requirement
Meaning: On-call can affect availability and pay even without a callback.
Ask: How many hours, what rate, and what response time are required?
Mandatory overtime
Meaning: Facility policy may address extra hours differently from the offer.
Ask: When can overtime be required, and what rate applies?
Shift rotation
Meaning: Day/night rotation can be material even if the role title is unchanged.
Ask: Is the shift fixed, rotating, or subject to schedule changes?
Required certifications
Meaning: Expiration, renewal cost, and timing can affect start eligibility.
Ask: Which certifications are required, and who pays renewal expenses?
Patient ratio language
Meaning: Ratios may be governed by law, policy, or staffing conditions—not a simple promise.
Ask: What staffing escalation and assignment-refusal process applies?
Time-off approval
Meaning: Requested dates are not necessarily approved dates.
Ask: Which requested days are approved in the signed agreement?
Compliance deadline
Meaning: Late onboarding items can delay a start date or affect compensation.
Ask: What happens if facility onboarding delays the start through no fault of mine?
05 · Reimbursements, repayment, and fine print
Trace every promise that can become a deduction.
Reimbursement clawback
Meaning: A clause may require repayment if the assignment ends early.
Ask: Which exact expenses are repayable, and are exceptions written?
Sign-on bonus repayment
Meaning: Bonus terms may require full or partial repayment.
Ask: Is repayment prorated and what triggers it?
Credentialing costs
Meaning: Fingerprints, licensing, tests, and physicals can be allocated differently.
Ask: Which credentialing costs are reimbursed and when?
Payroll timing
Meaning: The first check can arrive after expenses begin.
Ask: What is the first pay date and which week does it cover?
Wage deductions
Meaning: Deductions should be disclosed and may be regulated by state law.
Ask: List every possible deduction and its authorization.
Non-solicitation language
Meaning: Limits on future work can be broad or narrowly defined.
Ask: Which employers, roles, places, and time period are covered?
Dispute resolution
Meaning: A contract can specify venue, arbitration, deadlines, or governing law.
Ask: What process applies if pay or cancellation terms are disputed?
Entire-agreement clause
Meaning: Verbal or email promises may not control unless added to the agreement.
Ask: Can each material promise be placed in the written contract or amendment?
Educational material only. RV Nurse Systems does not provide legal, tax, financial, employment, or accounting advice and does not review your contract. This library does not establish that any term is enforceable, unlawful, fair, unsafe, taxable, or appropriate for your circumstances. For advice about a specific agreement, consult a qualified professional.