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amounts paid to medical practitioners, dentists, nurses, and
certain other medical professionals. Note that for the cost of the
service by a medical practitioner to qualify as an allowable medical
expense, the person providing the service must be recognized as a
"medical practitioner" according to the laws of the
jurisdiction in which the service is provided. For instance,
a registered massage therapist (in BC, registered with the College
of Massage Therapists of BC) is recognized as a medical practitioner in
BC and Ontario, but at the time of this writing is not recognized as a medical practitioner in New
Brunswick or Nova Scotia.
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amounts paid to public or licensed private hospitals |
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payments made to organizations for medical services rendered by their
employees or partners. Examples are physiotherapy or homemaker
services rendered in the taxpayer's home. |
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eyeglass frames and lenses and contact lenses prescribed by a
medical practitioner |
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premiums paid to a private health services plan, such as
travel medical insurance, extended
health benefits or a dental plan, other than those fees paid by an
employer. Fees paid for a provincial or territorial health care plan
(medical or hospitalization) do not qualify. If a person is self employed, the premiums paid for
a private health services plan can be deducted from self employment
income, instead of being claimed as a medical expense. This
would result in greater (or at least equal) tax savings, and is a way to
provide a tax-free benefit to employees of a small business. See our
article on private health
services plans. |
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premiums paid for medical coverage during trips out
of the country |
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premiums paid under a provincial or territorial prescription
drug plan, such as the Québec Prescription Drug Insurance Plan and
the Nova Scotia Seniors' Pharmacare Program |
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transportation service costs, where the taxpayer has to travel at
least 40 km to the location where the required medical services are
provided, as long as substantially equivalent medical services are not
available in the taxpayers locality. If the taxpayer has been
certified by a medical practitioner to be incapable of travelling without
the assistance of an attendant, then the transportation service costs of
the attendant may also be claimed. If the taxpayer has
to travel at least 80 km (one way) for the medical services, then reasonable travel
expenses (meals, lodging, vehicle expenses including parking) may also be claimed.
The travel costs can be calculated by keeping all
receipts, or by using the CRA meal expense allowance
and vehicle cost per kilometre amounts. See the
CRA web page on travel
expenses for medical expense, which shows the per kilometre amounts
allowed for medical travel for each province. |
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costs of the following devices (Income
Tax Act s. 118.2(2)(i))
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artificial limbs |
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iron lungs |
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rocking beds for polio victims |
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wheel chairs |
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crutches |
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spinal braces or limb braces |
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ileostomy or colostomy pads |
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hernia trusses |
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artificial eyes |
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laryngeal speaking aids |
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hearing aids |
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artificial kidney machines |
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phototherapy equipment for treatment of psoriasis
or other skin disorders |
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oxygen concentrator - this includes CPAP
(continuous positive airway pressure) machine for sleep apnea |
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costs of diapers, disposable briefs, catheters, catheter trays, tubing or
other products required by the patient by reason of incontinence caused by
injury, illness, or affliction |
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costs of oxygen tent or other equipment for administering oxygen
or for insulin, oxygen, liver extract injectible for pernicious anemia or
vitamin B12 for pernicious anemia, for use by the patient as
prescribed by a medical practitioner |
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for blind or profoundly deaf patients, or those that have a severe
and prolonged impairment that markedly restricts the use of the patient's
arms or legs, the costs of an animal specially trained to assist the
patient with the impairment, including the costs of food and veterinary
care, reasonable travel expenses for the patient to travel to a facility
that trains such animals and individuals so impaired, and reasonable board
and lodging expenses of the patient while in full-time attendance at such
a facility |
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reasonable expenses incurred in respect of bone marrow or organ
transplants, including legal fees and insurance premiums to locate a
compatible donor and to arrange for the transplant, and reasonable travel,
board and lodging expenses of the donor (and one other person who
accompanies the donor) and the patient (and one other person who
accompanies the patient) |
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reasonable expenses relating to renovations or alterations to a
dwelling to enable a disabled patient to gain access to, or to be
mobile or functional within the dwelling. Note
that a hot tub is not an eligible medical expense,
even if it is prescribed by a medical
practitioner. The Income Tax Act [s. 118.2(2)(1.2) and
118.2(2)(1.21)] disallows home alterations or construction costs unless
the expenses
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are not of a type that would typically be expected
to increase the value of the dwelling, and
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are of a type that would not normally be incurred
by persons who have normal physical development or who do not have a
severe and prolonged mobility impairment.
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reasonable incremental costs related to the construction of the
patient's principal place of residence, to enable the disabled patient
to gain access to, or to be mobile or functional within the dwelling |
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costs of rehabilitative therapy, including training in lip reading and
sign language, incurred to adjust for the patient's hearing or speech
loss, as well as sign language interpretation services |
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reasonable moving expenses incurred for the purpose of a disabled
patient's move to a dwelling that is more accessible by the patient, or in
which the patient is more mobile or functional, to a maximum of $2,000 |
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reasonable costs for driveway alterations for the principal place
of residence of a patient with severe and prolonged mobility impairment |
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a portion of the cost of a van (up to $5,000) which has been adapted for
the transportation of a patient who requires the use of a wheelchair |
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costs of tutoring services for a person with a learning
disability or mental impairment. A medical practitioner must
certify that the services are required |
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prescription drugs that have been prescribed by a medical practitioner and
recorded by a pharmacist |
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costs of diagnostic procedures and services prescribed by a medical
practitioner or dentist |
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costs of dentures, dental services, and orthodontia services |
| costs of devices or equipment for use by the patient that are
prescribed by a medical practitioner, and are of a "prescribed"
kind as listed in the Income
Tax Act Regulation 5700, Medical Devices and Equipment. See
the Income
Tax Act Regulations Part LVII Medical Expense Tax Credit. Some of the prescribed equipment
includes wigs, needles and syringes, orthopedic shoes and inserts,
hospital beds, breast prostheses, and talking textbooks. |
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the cost of real-time captioning and similar
services used by persons with an impairment. |
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the incremental cost of purchasing gluten-free food
products for individuals with Celiac disease who require a
gluten-free diet. Those with Celiac disease should ensure they retain
itemized receipts for all gluten-free products. |
