# Nursing Home costs



## sherwooddavid (May 5, 2009)

If I pay the cost of putting my parents in a nursing home can I claim it on my income tax ?


----------



## stardancer (Apr 26, 2009)

No, you cannot.

Depending on the type of nursing home and assuming they live in Ontario, they (as a couple) can claim part of the cost as rent and part of the cost as medical expenses on one of their tax returns. Don't know about the other provinces.


----------



## OhGreatGuru (May 24, 2009)

Read CRA Guide RC4064. If parents qualify as your dependents, you may be able to claim their medical expenses, which would include a major part of their nursing home bill. (Line 331) You may also be eligible to claim an amount for infirm dependents over age 18 (Line 306), or transfer a disability amount from the dependent parents (Line 318). It is not clear to me if parents have to claim these first, and you only claim the unused portions, or what. You might want to talk to a tax advisor. You may need some documentation, but people admitted to nursing homes generally have no difficulty qualifying for a Form T2201 - Disability Tax Credit Certificate.


----------

