1099 vs W-2 for Locum Tenens
The same headline number describes two very different jobs. What the employer half of FICA, unpaid weeks, self-funded cover and lost unemployment eligibility are actually worth.
Employment status · 12 min read
Guides
Thirteen guides written for locum tenens physicians, PAs, NPs and CRNAs on 1099 contracts — not for travel nursing or travel therapy, where the tax structure is completely different. Every factual claim is sourced to the Internal Revenue Code, the IRS, the SSA or a state revenue department. We take no agency money.
Self-Employment Tax Explained for Locum Physicians
Why 15.3% is not really 15.3%, what the 92.35% multiplier is doing, where the Social Security base stops and why your marginal cost per shift falls mid-year.
Taxes · 11 min read
LLC for Locum Tenens: Do You Actually Need One?
It changes your federal tax by exactly $0, and it will not stop a malpractice claim reaching you personally. What it does do, what a PLLC is, and when it is worth the fee.
Business structure · 12 min read
Should a Locum Form an S-Corp?
The mechanism in one paragraph, the real saving in numbers, the reasonable-compensation problem, and the states where the election costs more than it saves.
Business structure · 14 min read
Estimated Quarterly Taxes for Locums
Four dates, two safe harbours, and the reason a perfectly-settled April balance can still carry an underpayment penalty.
Taxes · 11 min read
Locum Tenens Tax Deductions
Every deduction a 1099 locum can claim, the 50% meals limit, the per diem substitution rule, the tax-home requirement and the deductions that will not survive an audit.
Taxes · 13 min read
Locum Tenens Malpractice Insurance & Tail Coverage
Occurrence versus claims-made, who buys the tail, what it costs, and the contract clause that leaves you personally exposed years after the assignment ends.
Risk · 12 min read
Do You Need Your Own Locum Malpractice Policy?
When a locum should carry their own policy, what actually sets the premium, broker versus carrier, and why a risk retention group has no guaranty fund behind it.
Risk · 12 min read
Highest-Paying States for Locum Physicians 2026
One identical $336,000 contract run through all 51 US tax codes for 2026. The full table, and why the spread is smaller than the recruiter pitch suggests.
Market data · 10 min read
Locum Tenens State Taxes: Filing in Every State You Worked
Which nonresident returns you owe, how the resident credit works, why you always pay the higher of two state rates, and why reciprocity agreements do not cover a 1099 locum.
Taxes · 12 min read
How to Read a Locum Tenens Contract
Sixteen clauses worth arguing about before you sign, from cancellation windows and travel caps to restrictive covenants and the malpractice schedule.
Contracts · 14 min read
Solo 401(k) vs SEP-IRA for Locums
2026 limits, the 20%-of-net-profit arithmetic that trips everyone up, and why the solo 401(k) usually wins for a locum who does not work all year.
Retirement · 12 min read
The Locum Tenens Benefits Gap
Health cover, own-occupation disability and retirement, priced honestly against what an employed contract includes — and why deducting the disability premium is a mistake.
Benefits · 12 min read
Start with the numbers
Every guide here points back to the same place: the locum tenens take-home calculator. Put your own contract rate in and see what it is worth after 2026 self-employment tax, federal and state income tax and the expenses you carry.