FY2027 GSA Per Diem Rates for Elgin, Illinois
These are the federal per diem rates for Elgin for fiscal year 2027 (1 October 2026 – 30 September 2027). They set the ceiling on how much of your pay package an agency can pay as a tax-free housing and meal stipend rather than as taxable wages.
GSA sets this rate for the Chicago locality (Cook / Lake County), which covers Elgin and nearby areas. A locality usually spans more than the city it is named after.
Lodging (peak month)
$238/night
Weekly housing ceiling: $1,666/week Low season: $1,036/week
Meals & Incidentals (M&IE)
$92/day
Weekly meals ceiling: $644/week Already includes incidentals — nothing to add on top.
Combined ceiling
$2,310/week
The most a compliant stipend package can total in Elgin, for a traveller with a qualifying tax home.
Elgin lodging changes by 4 seasons — a $630/week difference
GSA does not set one rate per city. It sets a rate per month, and in Elgin the difference between the highest and lowest month is $90/night — $630/week in how much of your package can legally be tax-free. A stipend that is compliant in dec–mar may exceed the ceiling in apr–jun.
| Months | Lodging / night | Housing ceiling / week | + M&IE = total / week |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr–Jun peak | $238 | $1,666 | $2,310 |
| Sep–Nov | $232 | $1,624 | $2,268 |
| Jul–Aug | $213 | $1,491 | $2,135 |
| Dec–Mar lowest | $148 | $1,036 | $1,680 |
What to do with this: check the months your contract actually runs, not the headline rate. A 13-week assignment starting in Apr is governed by a different ceiling than the same contract starting in Dec. If a recruiter quotes a stipend near the top of this table, confirm which months it applies to before you sign.
How travel nurse stipends use these caps
Agencies normally split a package into a lower taxable hourly rate plus tax-free stipends for housing and meals. The IRS expects those stipends to stay within the per diem limits for the assignment location. Pay above the ceiling does not become illegal — it becomes taxable wages, and it is your return that has to account for it.
In Elgin the ceiling is $1,666/week for housing at peak, and $1,036/week in the lowest months , plus $644/week for meals and incidentals.
Two things travellers most often get wrong about this number. First, it is a maximum, not a target — a package paying well under it is common and not necessarily a bad offer, but a package paying over it has a tax consequence nobody may have mentioned. Second, the stipend is only tax-free if you genuinely maintain a tax home you are duplicating expenses for; without one, the whole stipend is taxable regardless of what GSA publishes.
One detail that catches people out: the first and last day of travel are reimbursed at 75% of the M&IE rate, not the full day rate. On a 13-week contract that is a rounding error; on a string of short assignments it adds up.
Find housing for this stipend
See whether the stipend actually covers furnished housing in Elgin. If it does not, you are subsidising the assignment out of pocket.
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Where these numbers come from
Published by the U.S. General Services Administration for fiscal year 2027, retrieved 2026-09-28. Rates change each 1 October. Always confirm against GSA.gov. This page is an educational tool, not tax advice — see our methodology.