Nurse residency and sign-on contracts
Residency programs and sign-on bonuses often come with a bill if you leave early. What the state laws say.
Hospitals often tie new nurses to a residency program or a sign-on bonus with a repayment clause if they leave within one to three years. The two are treated differently.
Residency program costs
A residency is training for the job you were hired to do, so it counts as training, not tuition. Connecticut (from October 1, 2026), New York (from December 19, 2026) and California (contracts from January 1, 2027) void clauses making you repay it for leaving. Colorado allows only the reasonable cost of training beyond normal on-the-job training, going down month by month over two years.
Sign-on bonuses
Bonus clawbacks survive, on conditions. In New York you owe nothing if you're let go other than for misconduct; in California the bonus must shrink over no more than two years and you must have been offered the choice to take it at the end. More on sign-on bonuses.
This is general information, not legal advice. For your own contract, a lawyer or your state's labor department can tell you where you stand.
Sources
- C.G.S. § 31-51r, employment promissory notes, Connecticut General Assembly, read November 8, 2026.
- Trapped at Work Act, New York State Department of Labor, read November 8, 2026.
- AB 1697, chaptered text (Chapter 889, Statutes of 2026), California Legislative Information, read November 8, 2026.
- HB 22-1317, Restrictive Employment Agreements, Colorado General Assembly, read November 8, 2026.