Reviewed by: MyTaxRebate Team on 10 Mar 2026 | Authority: s.469 TCA 1997
Quick Answer
You can claim health expenses tax relief for any person whose qualifying medical costs you paid. This includes your spouse, children, parents, and anyone else - there is no restriction to immediate family. The person who paid is the person who claims.
If you have been paying medical costs for family members across multiple years, MyTaxRebate pools the full household claim, identifies every qualifying expense, and submits the backdated refund for you - at no upfront cost. The qualifying family members include spouses, civil partners, children under 18, and other dependants. There is no income threshold applied when claiming for a dependant.
What This Page Covers
- ✓Yourself
- ✓Your spouse or civil partner
- ✓Your children (any age)
- ✓Parents and other relatives
- ✓Any person whose qualifying costs you paid
- ✓Each person claims only what they personally paid
- ✓Multiple siblings can each claim their share of nursing home costs
- ✓Higher-rate taxpayers should pay nursing home costs to maximise marginal rate relief
Key Facts at a Glance
- ✓You can claim for any person whose qualifying medical costs you paid - your spouse, children, parents, in-laws, or any other individual. No family restriction applies under s.469 TCA 1997.
- ✓The person who paid is the person who claims - not the person who received the treatment. Two people cannot both claim the same expense.
- ✓Nursing home fees for a parent qualify at your marginal tax rate - up to 40% for higher-rate taxpayers, not the standard 20%.
- ✓Where multiple siblings share a parent's nursing home costs, each sibling claims their own share at their own marginal rate independently.
- ✓To maximise a nursing home claim, the highest-rate taxpayer in the family should pay the largest share - routing payments correctly can significantly increase the total refund.
- ✓Qualifying expenses for a deceased person can be claimed against their estate's tax liability for the year the costs were incurred.
- ✓Claims can be backdated up to four years - 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025 are all currently open.
Who can you claim medical expenses for?
Under section 469 of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997, you can claim income tax relief on qualifying medical expenses you paid for yourself and for any other person. The relief is not restricted to your immediate family - it applies to any person whose health care costs you personally paid, provided those expenses have not been reimbursed by a third party such as a health insurer.
In practice, the most common situations involve claiming for a spouse or civil partner, for children, for parents or parents-in-law, and for other dependants or relatives. Each situation is treated consistently: the claimant is the person who paid, and the relief is calculated on what they actually paid out of pocket.
Claiming for a spouse or civil partner
If you paid qualifying medical expenses on behalf of your spouse or civil partner, you include those costs in your own health expenses claim. There is no requirement for the expenses to be related to a joint condition or a shared household decision - the test is whether you paid for the care and were not reimbursed. This means you can claim for your spouse's GP visits, consultant fees, prescribed medications, physiotherapy (where GP-referred), and all other qualifying expenses you paid.
Where both spouses pay medical expenses from a shared account, it is generally simplest for one spouse to claim all qualifying costs. Under s.4.6 of Revenue's Part 15-01-12 guidance, where more than one person contributes to qualifying health care, each individual can claim the portion they personally paid. So if you and your spouse each pay from separate accounts, you each claim your own portion.
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Splitting costs among multiple payers
Section 4.6 of Revenue's Health Expenses guidance specifically addresses situations where more than one person contributes to the cost of health care. In these cases, each person can claim relief only on the portion they personally paid. This frequently arises when multiple siblings contribute to a parent's nursing home costs, or when a married couple pays jointly for a family member's medical treatment.
To maximise the combined relief, it is worth considering which family member has the higher income tax rate. Nursing home fees in particular are relieved at the marginal rate, so the higher-rate taxpayer should ideally be the one making the payment - or at minimum, the one making the largest contribution - to maximise the tax benefit. MyTaxRebate can advise on the most tax-efficient arrangement when submitting family claims.
Insurance reimbursement: what this means for family claims
You cannot claim tax relief on any portion of medical expenses reimbursed by a health insurer, including VHI, Laya, Irish Life Health, or Aviva. This applies whether the insurance was in your name, your spouse's name, or in the name of the person receiving the treatment. If your insurer covered €200 of a €300 consultant fee, only the €100 you paid out of pocket is qualifying. Keep both the consultant's invoice and the insurer's payment record when preparing your claim.
Claiming for a deceased person
Section 469(3)(b) TCA 1997 provides that amounts paid out of the estate of a deceased person in respect of qualifying health expenses may be claimed against the deceased person's tax liability. The executor or administrator of the estate can submit this claim. Any deferred nursing home loan payments under the Fair Deal scheme that are settled from the estate after death are also claimable in this way - they are treated as having been paid by the deceased person immediately before death.
How to claim for family members in your Revenue record
When claiming health expenses for a family member in your Revenue record, you enter all qualifying costs under your own tax return - you do not create a separate return for the family member. Under Health Expenses, enter the total qualifying amount you paid for all persons combined, or itemise by person if you prefer for your own records. Revenue does not require you to list each family member separately on the online form, but you should retain receipts for each person's expenses for six years.
If you are using MyTaxRebate, provide us with the receipts and invoices for all family members whose costs you paid, and we will handle the claim preparation and submission on your behalf.
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MyTaxRebate can review your position and guide the next step.
Tax Scenarios
Parent claiming for the full household across four years
A parent has paid for the household's medical costs across 2022 - 2025 and has never claimed. The four-year total breaks down as: their own GP visits and prescriptions (€880), their spouse's physiotherapy on GP prescription (€760), and two children's combined GP, orthopaedic consultant, and prescribed medication costs (€2,140). Total qualifying family expenses: €3,780. All claimed in one session through your Revenue record under the one parent's Health Expenses. At 20%: €756 refunded across four separate year submissions.
Three siblings sharing a parent's nursing home costs at different tax rates
Three siblings each contribute €8,000 per year toward a parent's nursing home fees. Sibling A is a higher-rate taxpayer and claims €8,000 at 40%: €3,200 annual refund. Siblings B and C are standard-rate taxpayers: each claims €8,000 at 20%: €1,600 each. Total annual family refund: €6,400. If all three had instead routed the full €24,000 through Sibling A, the annual refund would be €9,600 - €3,200 more per year. Over four backdated years this difference is €12,800. Payment records demonstrating who actually paid are essential.
Adult child paying for an elderly parent's medical costs
An adult child manages and pays for a parent's private healthcare: two consultant appointments per year (€700), annual blood panel and diagnostic tests (€220), and ongoing prescription medication costs (€380 per year after the Drug Payment Scheme cap). Total qualifying costs paid by the adult child: €1,300 per year. They claim this in their own Health Expenses return, not the parent's. At 20%: €260 per year. Over four backdated years: €1,040 refunded to the adult child who actually paid the bills.
Common Mistakes To Avoid
- ✗Only claiming your own expenses and missing a spouse's, children's, or parents' qualifying costs - under s.469 TCA 1997, health expenses paid for any qualifying individual can be included in one claim.
- ✗Not knowing you can claim for any person whose costs you paid - the relationship does not need to be a direct blood relative. Revenue allows claims for "any individual" whose qualifying expenses you personally bore.
- ✗Missing the marginal rate opportunity on nursing home costs - nursing home fees qualify at the claimant's marginal rate, so structuring payment through the higher-rate taxpayer in the household maximises the refund significantly.
- ✗Splitting nursing home costs inefficiently between spouses - it is usually better for the higher-rate taxpayer to claim the full nursing home amount rather than splitting it, as marginal rate relief delivers 40% versus 20% for standard-rate taxpayers.
- ✗Not backdating for prior years - if you paid family medical costs in 2022, 2023, 2024, or 2025 and never claimed, all four years remain open for backdated claims through your Revenue record.
When This Does Not Apply
Key Takeaways
- ➤ ➤ Include all family members' qualifying costs in one submission - GP visits, dental, physio, prescriptions for everyone you paid for.
- ➤ ➤ Nursing home costs for a parent are claimed at your marginal rate - the higher your income tax rate, the more valuable this claim.
- ➤ ➤ Multiple siblings can each claim their portion of a parent's nursing home fees at their own marginal rates.
- ➤ ➤ MyTaxRebate pools qualifying expenses across your entire household - spouse, children, parents - and submits the complete backdated claim for all open years, at no upfront cost.
Check Your Claim
MyTaxRebate can review your position and guide the next step.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I claim for my spouse's medical expenses?
Yes. Medical costs you paid for your spouse or civil partner are included in your own health expenses claim under s.469 TCA 1997. Enter the qualifying amount under Health Expenses in your Revenue record. You do not need to file a joint claim - the paying spouse includes the costs in their individual Health Expenses return.
Can I claim for my children's medical costs?
Yes. Qualifying medical costs for your children - of any age - can be included in your claim. There is no age restriction for general medical expenses (though speech therapy and educational psychological assessments have an under-18 restriction).
Can I claim for a parent's medical or nursing home costs?
Yes. If you paid for a parent's qualifying medical costs - including nursing home fees - you claim the amount you paid as a health expense in your own return. Nursing home fees are relieved at your marginal rate, not the standard 20%.
What if both spouses have medical expenses?
Either spouse can claim for the costs they personally paid. Where both paid from a joint account, it is typically simplest for one spouse to claim the full amount. For nursing home fees and other high-value expenses, the higher-rate taxpayer should claim to maximise relief.
Can multiple siblings share a parent's nursing home claim?
Yes. Under Revenue's Part 15-01-12 s.4.6 guidance, each person can claim the portion of qualifying health care costs they personally paid. Where siblings share the cost, each claims their own contribution at their own marginal rate.
Can I claim for a deceased person's medical costs?
Yes. Qualifying health expenses paid from the estate of a deceased person can be claimed against the deceased's income tax liability for the year in which those expenses were incurred. The executor or administrator of the estate submits this claim by filing or amending the deceased's Form 11 or your Revenue record tax return for the relevant year.
