ARCHIVED – Medical expense tax credit (METC) – Cosmetic procedures

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1. What will change with respect to the METC?
2. Do I have to obtain a statement from a medical practitioner certifying that the procedure is required for medical or reconstructive purposes?
3. Could you provide me with some examples of eligible and ineligible expenses?
4. Where can I get more information?

1. What will change with respect to the METC?

The budget proposes that expenses incurred after March 4, 2010 for purely cosmetic purposes, including any related services and other expenses such as travel, be ineligible for the METC. Both surgical and non-surgical procedures aimed purely at enhancing one's appearance will be ineligible.

An expense will continue to qualify for the METC if it is required for medical or reconstructive purposes, such as surgery to address a deformity related to a congenital abnormality, a personal injury resulting from an accident or trauma, or a disfiguring disease.

2. Do I have to obtain a statement from a medical practitioner certifying that the procedure is required for medical or reconstructive purposes?

You do not have to obtain a certification from your medical practitioner before making a claim for the METC. However, if your claim is selected for review, the CRA may request that you provide a statement from your medical practitioner.

Note: If you are filing a paper income tax return, include your receipts and supporting documents with your tax return. Receipts must support all amounts claimed and contain the following information: name of the patient, date of payment, amount of payment, purpose of payment/type of procedure, and show the name of the company or individual to whom the payment was made. If you are filing electronically, keep all of your documents in case the CRA asks to see them.

3. Could you provide me with some examples of eligible and ineligible expenses?

Examples of expenses that will generally be ineligible include:

• augmentations (such as chin, cheek, lips);
• body modifications (such as tongue splits);
• body shaping, contouring or lifts (such as, body, breasts, buttocks, face, and stomach);
• botulinum injections;
• chemical peels;
• implants (such as jewellery implanted into an eye or a tooth, or microdermal, transdermal, and subdermal cosmetic implants);
• filler injections (for removal of wrinkles);
• hair removal procedures;
• hair replacement procedures;
• laser treatments (skin resurfacing and removal of age spots);
• liposuction;
• reshaping procedures (such as rhinoplasty and otoplasty);
• rib removal;
• tattoo removal;
• teeth whitening; and
• tooth contouring and reshaping.

These expenses will continue to qualify for the METC:

• breast implant and related procedures for reconstructive purposes after a mastectomy;
• breast reduction to reduce back and shoulder pain;
• dental braces, if required to correct a misaligned bite;
• dental veneers to correct decayed or misaligned teeth;
• gastric bypass surgery or gastric stapling;
• laser eye surgery; and
• removal of excess skin after rapid weight loss due to a risk of infection.

4. Where can I get more information?

The CRA encourages taxpayers to check our Web site often. All new forms, policies, and guidelines will be posted there as soon as they become available.

Date modified:

2015-07-15