Tax aspects of caring for an elderly individual

The purpose of this item is to discuss the tax aspects of taking on the care of an elderly or incapacitated individual. In many cases, tax benefits may be available which can ease the financial burden.

1. Dependency exemption. You may be able to claim the cared-for individual as your dependent, thus qualifying for an exemption. To qualify, (a) you must provide more than 50% of the individual's support costs, (b) he must either live with you or be related, (c) he must not have gross income in excess of the exemption amount ($2,450 in 1994, adjusted annually), (d) he must not himself file a joint return for the year, and (e) he must be a U.S. citizen or a resident of the U.S., Canada, or Mexico. If the support test ((a), above) can only be met by a group (several children, for example, combining to support a parent), a "multiple support" form can be filed to grant one of the group the exemption, subject to certain conditions.
2. Medical expenses. If the individual qualifies as your dependent, you can include any medical expenses you incur for him along with your own when determining your medical deduction. If he doesn't qualify as your dependent only because of the gross income or joint return test ((c) and (d), above), you can still include these medical costs with your own.
3. Filing status. If you are not married, you may qualify for "head of household" status by virtue of the individual you're caring for. If the person you're caring for (a) lives in your household, (b) you cover more than half the household costs, (c) he qualifies as your dependent, and (d) he is a relative, you can claim head of household filing status. If the person you're caring for is your parent, he need not live with you, as long as you provide more than half of his household costs and he qualifies as your dependent.
4. Dependent care credit. If the cared-for individual qualifies as your dependent, lives with you, and physically or mentally cannot take care of himself, you may qualify for the dependent care credit for costs you incur for his care to enable you and your spouse to go to work.

If your situation qualifies you for any of the above tax benefits, discuss this matter with your CPA. In some cases, fairly simple tax planning moves, such as having a parent not file jointly on his own return, can result in family tax savings.