Virginia travel nurse pay 2026: $100,264, compact state
Last reviewed: by Jayson Minagawa, BSN, RN
What travel nurses earn in Virginia
Travel RN contracts in Virginia post an average base of $100,264 annualised — 1% below the national travel average of $101,132, and 17th of 51 states and DC.
Posted base, not take-home: stipend calculator · pay calculator.
How Virginia compares for staff work
Staff RNs in Virginia average $93,850, 26th of 51 states and DC, against a $100,264 posted travel base — so the travel premium here is intact. Virginia salary guide.
Licensing for a Virginia assignment
Virginia is a Nurse Licensure Compact state. A multistate license from your primary state of residence starts a Virginia assignment with no separate application, which is why Virginia can take a contract beginning in two weeks. Without one, endorsement is the route. The Virginia Board of Nursing charges $190 and quotes 3–5 weeks.
Tax, stipends and your tax home
Virginia income tax: graduated to 5.75%, charged on wages earned in Virginia wherever your tax home is — so compare a Virginia contract on net, and check reciprocity if you are working near the Virginia state line.
Stipend rules are federal: tax home guide.
Where the contracts are
Virginia's travel markets are Virginia Beach, Richmond, Arlington. Regional price parity is 99.6 against a national 100, so Virginia costs run 0.4% below average, and its GSA-linked stipends move with it.
What drives Virginia demand
Northern Virginia DC-metro wage premiums contrast with Tidewater and Appalachian shortages; INOVA, VCU, and UVA anchor academic-medicine hiring.
Ratio law: Virginia has no statutory nurse-to-patient ratios, so staffing levels are set by each hospital rather than by statute. For a traveller that cuts both ways: there is no legal floor on the assignment you can be given, so the ratio you are quoted at interview is worth getting in writing, and it is worth asking what the unit runs at on nights and weekends rather than what the daytime policy says.
Timing a Virginia contract
What moves Virginia rates: negotiation cycles at the systems in Virginia Beach, Richmond, Arlington, and any stretch where one is short in a specialty. Crisis work runs well above Virginia's $100,264 posted average. Seasonality is national: travel nursing guide.
Before you sign a Virginia contract
Get the Virginia license cost, guaranteed hours and cancellation terms in writing. Red flags.
Common questions
How much do travel nurses make in Virginia?
About $100,264 annualised posted base, 1% below the national $101,132 and 17th of 51.
Do I need a Virginia license to travel there?
No — a multistate compact license covers Virginia.
Are Virginia travel stipends tax-free?
Only with a real tax home you are away from. See the tax guide.
Travel nursing in states bordering Virginia
North Carolina · Tennessee · Kentucky · West Virginia · Maryland · District of Columbia.
Related Virginia guides
Virginia RN salary · Virginia licensure · travel nursing quick start · agency comparison.