No, you generally can't include in medical expenses the amount you pay for procedures such as facelifts, hair transplants, hair removal (electrolysis), and liposuction. You probably already know that charitable deductions are tax-deductible. But what about the cost of caring for your pet? Or your son's clarinet lessons? In some cases, the IRS has allowed taxpayers to deduct unconventional expenses on their tax returns. For example, these costs may be a qualified medical expense or are an ordinary and necessary business expense of an entrepreneur.
That means it could be more difficult for filers to claim unconventional itemized deductions on their returns. You generally can't collect a tax exemption for cosmetic surgery. The Tax Court allowed an exception in the case of Cynthia S. Hess, then an exotic freelance dancer in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
She tried to get a tax exemption for depreciation on implants, declaring them a deductible business expense. The IRS initially blocked the deduction, stating that the implants were a personal cost. However, the Tax Court found that they were a business expense and ruled in favor of Hess. In 1990, the Tax Court ruled in favor of John and Joana French, who tried to cancel their 1984 taxes on a private plane that they used to check their rental apartment.
The French were based in San Jose, California, and their condo was in Mammoth Lakes, California. The two had the option of driving more than six hours or taking the only commercial flight available to take care of their property. The IRS had argued that the family enjoyed flying to Mammoth Lakes and that they skied and swam during their visits, so the trips were actually vacations. On the other side of the spectrum, if you have a service animal or guide dog, you can deduct the cost of buying, training and maintaining it.
This would count as a medical expense. Finally, if your pet becomes an Internet sensation, you may be able to deduct related costs such as business expenses, Greene-Lewis said. The IRS has a nine-part test to help you make the determination, addressing the time and effort spent making your business profitable and whether you maintain accurate books and records. The same goes for weight-loss aids that your doctor prescribes to treat a particular illness.
May be deductible, but only to the extent that it is not covered by insurance. In 1962, the IRS added a provision allowing a tax deduction for clarinet classes based on an orthodontist's recommendation that the woodwind instrument could help correct a child's overbite. Do you have a confidential information tip? We want to hear from you. Get this in your inbox and learn more about our products and services.
You can't include the amounts you pay to lose weight UNLESS the weight loss is a treatment for a specific disease diagnosed by a doctor (such as obesity, hypertension, or heart disease). You generally can't include in medical expenses the amount you pay for procedures such as facelifts, hair transplants, hair removal (electrolysis), and liposuction. If you have lost your hair as a result of a medical condition such as alopecia, or medical treatment such as chemotherapy, the law is on your side. As always, you cannot include membership fees in a gym, health club, or spa as medical expenses, but you CAN include separate charges that are charged in the same place for specific weight loss activities (again, if you have a doctor's diagnosis), but not the cost of joining in order to participate in weight activities of loss.
People with hair loss due to a medical condition such as alopecia or cancer treatments, such as chemotherapy, can deduct the cost of a wig. .
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