As of: April 9, 2024, 4:46 a.m
By: Laura Hindelang
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If you have to spend more money than usual, you may be able to deduct the costs from your taxes as an extraordinary expense. Here's how to do it.
Private expenses are usually unimportant for tax purposes - unless they involve extraordinary burdens. This refers to additional financial expenditure that arises under special circumstances and results in you needing more money to live than normal, explains the
Finanztip
portal . You can deduct these costs from your taxes if you inevitably have to spend more money than most others with similar income, assets and marital status. Expenses are considered inevitable if the taxpayer “cannot avoid them for legal, factual or moral reasons,” says Section 33 of the
Income Tax Act
.
What counts as extraordinary burdens?
There is no general list of exceptional loads. However, a basic distinction is made between general exceptional loads and special exceptional loads. General charges include costs that cover, among other things, illnesses, funerals and disasters. However, the amounts are only tax deductible if they exceed the individually reasonable burden, explains
Finanztip
. The areas in which exceptional loads apply are:
You can deduct extraordinary expenses from your taxes under certain conditions. © Westend61/Imago
Medical costs:
These are expenses that are not covered by a health insurance company or health insurance, reports
Bayerischer Rundfunk.
Typical examples include hearing aids and glasses, wheelchairs, visits to the alternative practitioner, prescribed massages and co-payments for prescribed medication. Spa costs can also be claimed as a tax deduction. All costs and aids must be medically necessary and prescribed by a doctor or alternative practitioner, emphasizes
Finanztip
.
Funeral costs:
Costs for a funeral that cannot be paid from the estate or through insurance are considered extraordinary expenses. However, there are no entertainment costs for the funeral feast or expenses for mourning clothing, explains
Bayerischer Rundfunk
.
Replacement costs:
If you have lost essential items due to an unavoidable event - for example fire or flood - you can deduct the replacement costs from your taxes. However, this only applies if you have taken reasonable measures to protect yourself from the disaster. The necessary and appropriate costs of repairing the damage are then also taken into account, explains
Finanztip
.
Conversion measures:
If the house or apartment needs to be converted to make it suitable for disabled people, you can also declare these costs on your tax return.
Maintenance payments to those in need:
According to
Finanztip,
this usually concerns relatives in need, such as adult children or partners in a marriage-like relationship. If you support a person in need, you can claim the financial expenses up to the maximum maintenance amount as extraordinary expenses against your tax. The necessary prerequisite is that you are obliged to support the person in need and that the person you support only has a low income and assets.
Special extraordinary burdens: flat rate instead of individual deduction
In contrast to the special extraordinary burdens, the general extraordinary burdens are
regulated with flat rates or maximum amounts according to the
unified income tax assistance
. This includes, for example, the flat rate for adult children who are in vocational training and no longer live with their parents. According to
Finanztip,
this amounts
to a maximum of 1,200 euros per year.
Flat-rate amounts for disabled people, surviving dependents and carers also count as special exceptional burdens. The amount of the deduction is limited due to the fixed amounts, but the first cent of the expenses counts, explains the
United Income Tax Aid
. The general extraordinary burdens, however, are calculated individually by the tax office.
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How to declare extraordinary expenses in your tax return
According to Bayerischer Rundfunk
, what the legislature considers to be a “reasonable burden” for the individual depends
on their annual income, marital status and the number of children they have. There is a certain acceptable load limit for each combination. As a rule, between one and seven percent of total income is considered reasonable.
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You can only know at the end of the year whether you have exceeded the reasonable limit, emphasizes
Finanztip
. In order to get across the border, the portal advises distributing relevant expenses so that they are incurred in one year, if possible. The costs can usually only be claimed for tax purposes in the year in which the expenses were actually incurred. There is an “Extraordinary burden” appendix in the tax return. Since the tax offices require proof of the additional financial expenditure, you should systematically collect all receipts - such as prescriptions from the doctor, insurance notices, invoices - and submit them with your tax return.