How do I claim tax relief on medical expenses in Ireland?

Ireland allows income tax relief on unreimbursed health and medical expenses paid during the year. The relief is given at the standard rate of 20% for most expenses.

What qualifies?

You can claim relief on expenses including:

• GP and consultant visits (private and public)
• Prescribed medicines and drugs (with a doctor's prescription)
• Hospital and clinic costs
• Physiotherapy, speech therapy, and occupational therapy
• Hearing aids, glasses/contact lenses, and orthotics
• Kidney dialysis costs
• Dental: only non-routine dental work qualifies (crowns, veneers, orthodontic treatment, surgical extractions). Routine dental care (checkups, fillings, extractions) does not qualify.

Nursing home costs qualify for relief at the higher rate (40%), making this one of the few 40% reliefs available to individuals.

You cannot claim:

• Expenses that were covered by health insurance, the NTPF, or any other scheme
• Cosmetic surgery (unless medically necessary)
• Routine dental check-ups and fillings

How to claim:

PAYE taxpayers claim through myAccount on revenue.ie under 'Health Expenses' in the PAYE Services section. You enter the details of each expense and Revenue adjusts your tax credit or processes a refund. You do not submit receipts upfront but must keep them for six years in case Revenue requests them.

Self-assessed taxpayers include health expenses on their Form 11 in the health expenses section.

You can claim on behalf of others: You can claim relief on medical expenses you paid for your spouse, children, or other family members — the expenses do not have to be your own. Expenses paid for non-family members can also qualify if you paid them voluntarily.