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Protect Your Tax-Free Stipends

The IRS can take back $10,000–$30,000+ in stipend income if you can't prove your tax home. This tool helps you document everything.

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Tax Home Risk Score
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Months Tracked
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Days at Home (This Year)
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Documented Expenses
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Assignments Logged
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What the IRS Looks For

To receive tax-free housing and meals stipends, you must maintain a tax home — a permanent residence where you incur living expenses and return to regularly between assignments. The IRS evaluates three main factors:

  1. Regular place of abode: You maintain a real home (not just a P.O. box or family member's spare room)
  2. Duplicate expenses: You pay for living at your tax home AND at your assignment location simultaneously
  3. Regular return: You return to your tax home between assignments and spend meaningful time there

This tool helps you document all three. The more complete your records, the stronger your position in an audit.

Your Tax Home

Enter details about your permanent residence. This is the address the IRS considers your tax home.

Permanent Address

Residence Details

Community Ties

Check each tie you maintain at your tax home address. More ties = stronger claim.

Monthly Tax Home Expenses

Track what you pay each month at your permanent address. This proves you maintain duplicate living expenses.

Category Amount Date Paid Documented?
Monthly Total $0

Year-to-Date Summary

Assignment Log

Log every travel assignment. The IRS requires each to be temporary (under 12 months) for your stipends to remain tax-free.

Days at Tax Home

Check each day you were physically present at your tax home. Consistent returns strengthen your IRS claim.

0 days this month
0 days this year

Tip: There's no IRS minimum, but tax professionals generally recommend spending at least 30 days per year at your tax home. More is better. Document trips between assignments, weekends home, and any extended stays.

Documentation Checklist

Track which documents you've gathered. If audited, these are what the IRS agent will ask for.

Audit-Ready Summary

Generate a printable summary of all your tax home documentation. Share with your CPA or keep on file.

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Why You Need a Tax Home Documentation Tracker

Travel nurses and allied health travelers receive tax-free housing and meals stipends — often worth $15,000 to $30,000 or more per year. But these stipends are only tax-free if you maintain a legitimate tax home: a permanent residence where you incur living expenses, maintain community ties, and return to regularly between assignments.

If the IRS audits you and you can't prove your tax home, they can reclassify all your stipend income as taxable — and charge back taxes plus penalties. The Tax Home Documentation Tracker helps you build an organized, audit-ready record of everything the IRS may ask for.

What counts as a tax home?

Under IRS rules (IRC §162(a) and Rev. Rul. 73-529), your tax home is generally your regular place of business or, if you have no regular place of business, your regular place of abode. For travel nurses who work temporary assignments in multiple locations, the tax home is your permanent residence — the place you return to between assignments and where you maintain real, ongoing financial ties.