Claim Spa Medical Deduction
If your doctor gives you a written recommendation for frequent swims or soaks, you can claim your Spa or pool as a Medical Deduction.
Claim Spa Medical Deduction
If you are suffering from a medical condition such as Arthritis and your doctor has suggested that you could find relief via soaks in a hot tub, spa, or pool, but the expense of such a project makes it difficult, there is hope. The Internal Revenue Service might end up giving you a helping hand. The cost of a Spa when used for medical reasons is a possible valid medical deduction from your income taxes.
There are a few catches, of course. The spa or pool must be used primarily for a verified medical purpose for either you or one of your dependents. This does not mean that others may not use and even enjoy using it, but the primary purpose has to be for a medical reason. The deduction will be for the initial cost of installation and for maintenance. The maintenance amount is deductible year after year. When figuring the cost of the installation, the IRS will only allow the basic and most simple costs. In other words, if you decide on something that is fancy and non-standard like imported Italian tile, the extra cost will be deducted from the allowable deduction amount.
It is also important to be aware of the availability of a similar public Spa or pool in your immediate area. If one that could be used just as easily is near by, the IRS might disallow the deduction. You also have to be aware of any increase to the value of your home by the addition of the pool or spa. If a pool costs $25,000, for example, and raises the assessed value of your home by $10,000, only $15,000 would be allowed as a deduction.
Another consideration is the total of your other medical expenses. The IRS uses a deductible that works much like your medical insurance policy. It will not allow deductions that do not exceed 7.5% of your adjusted gross income. So, this figure must be calculated when viewing the feasibility of a pool or spa that is going to be financed, in a sense, by the tax savings.
Although a hot tub, pool, or spa can be an enjoyable addition to your home and one that can be used by the entire family, it might also be considered a medical treatment for one or more of the members of the family. If this is the case, and your doctor is willing to put his recommendation into writing, you should consider the possibility of underwriting a large portion of the cost by using it as a legitimate medical deduction of your Income Tax return.