The transfer process of vertical stress of strata is affected by local soil arching effect, to address the limitation of differential soil layer method in overestimating the transferred stress, a method for calculating average vertical stress based on stress transfer ratio was proposed. This approach integrates numerical simulation results on the relationship between the rotation angle of principal stress and the average vertical compressive and shear stresses. Additionally, the shear stress distribution and the transmission behavior of vertical stress in both the equal settlement zone and the arching zone were verified. The results indicate that the stress transfer ratio can be used to define the boundary between the equal settlement plane and the soil arching zone of the tunnel. As the final stress transfer ratio increases, the path of principle stress gradually evolves into a closed arch trace, the proportion of transition before the peak of the average vertical stress curve decreases, while both the inflection point of the stress curve and the boundary of the equal settlement zone shift upward, and the transferred stress of strata with unit thickness increases accordingly. The transferred stress increases with gradual rotation of the principal stress, once the principal stress path forms a closed arch, the stress transfer function exhibits a sharp rise. The rate of change of the stress transfer ratio also increases in tandem with the rotation angle of the principal stress. These findings reveal the vertical stress transfer mechanism in the local soil arching zone and clarify the influence of the principal stress path on this process.