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When can you deduct medications or treatments (medical expenses)?

Deducting extraordinary expenses

Updated this week
Banner: Medical expenses: When are they deductible?

Medical expenses are tax-deductible if they meet certain requirements. The key factor is that they exceed your individual reasonable burden.

Requirements for deductibility:

  1. Necessity: The costs must be medically necessary (e.g. proven by a medical prescription or expert opinion). This can also include a "prescribed medical treatment."

  2. Personal contribution: The costs must not be reimbursed by health insurance or another insurer.

  3. Exceeding the reasonable burden: Medical expenses are only deductible if they exceed your individual reasonable burden. The amount of your reasonable burden depends on your income, marital status, and the number of your children.

Which costs are deductible?


✅ Prescription medications
✅ Medical treatments & therapies
✅ Dental treatments & prosthetics
✅ Glasses & contact lenses
✅ Aids (e.g. hearing aids, prostheses)
✅ Travel expenses to doctors or treatments
✅ Spa and rehabilitation measures (with medical prescription)

Not deductible:


❌ Preventive check-ups (as they do not count as extraordinary expenses)
❌ Over-the-counter medications without a doctor’s prescription
❌ Cosmetic procedures without medical necessity


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