Please note that the following document, although believed to be correct at the time of issue, may not represent the current position of the CRA.
Prenez note que ce document, bien qu'exact au moment émis, peut ne pas représenter la position actuelle de l'ARC.
SUBJECT: Medical Expenses - Travel
Principal Issues: Whether the travel costs for a patient, residing at a mental health facility, to periodically visit his family would qualify for the medical expense credit.
Position: No
Reasons: The travel costs are not to obtain medical services.
XXXXXXXXXX 2004-009297
Shaun Harkin, CMA
January 20, 2005
Dear XXXXXXXXXX:
Re: Technical Interpretation Request: Travel Expenses
We are writing in reply to your letter requesting our view on whether travel costs incurred for travel between your home and the tertiary care mental health facility where your son resides, qualify as medical expenses under the Income Tax Act (the "Act").
In your letter, you explain that your son resides at a tertiary care mental health facility. Once a month you travel to pick up your son to bring him to your home for approximately three days and then you travel to return him to the facility.
Section 118.2 of the Act provides rules for determining the amount that may be claimed, as a tax credit, in respect of medical expenses. Subsection 118.2(2) of the Act contains a list of expenditures that qualify as medical expenses. Those parts of subsection 118.2(2) that are relevant to your situation are discussed below.
Travel expenses may qualify as medical expenses under paragraph 118.2(2)(h) of the Act if the individual travels at least 80 kilometres from the locality where the individual dwells to a place where medical services are received. In addition, the provision also allows travel expenses for transporting one individual who accompanies the patient provided that a medical practitioner has certified that the patient is incapable of travelling without an attendant. Paragraph (h) of the Act also requires a taxpayer to meet the following conditions in order for the amounts paid to qualify as medical expenses:
(i) substantially equivalent medical services are not available in the locality in which the patient resides,
(ii) the route travelled by the patient is, having regard to the circumstances, a reasonably direct route, and
(iii) the patient travels to that place to obtain medical services for himself or herself and it is reasonable, having regard to the circumstances, for the patient to travel to that place to obtain those services.
In our view, the travel costs to originally transport your son to the mental health facility and the final travel costs home, when your son no longer resides at the mental health facility, could qualify as medical expenses provided the above conditions are met. However, it is our view that the travel costs for a patient to visit his or her family while the patient is residing at a mental health facility would not be considered travel to obtain medical services. Accordingly, the periodic travel for your son to visit at your home would not qualify as a medical expense.
Please refer to IT-519R2 (Consolidated), Medical Expense and Disability Tax Credits and Attendant Care Expense Deduction, for more information in this regard.
The foregoing comments represent our general views with respect to the subject matter. As indicated in paragraph 22 of Information Circular 70-6R5, the above comments do not constitute an income tax ruling and accordingly are not binding on the Canada Revenue Agency. Our practice is to make this disclaimer in all instances in which we provide an opinion.
We trust the above comments are of assistance.
Yours truly,
Wayne Antle, CGA
for Director
Business and Partnerships Division
Income Tax Rulings Directorate
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