A 1099 travel nurse in Louisiana pays a flat 3% state tax on net profit, stacked on federal income tax and the 15.3% self-employment tax a W-2 employer would have split with you. Louisiana moved to a flat 3% under its 2025 reform, replacing the old three-bracket schedule, and every dollar of licensure, scrubs and duplicated housing you document on Schedule C cuts all three bills at once.