Select Region
Let's Get Social!
  • ACTIVITIES
    • Calendar Weekend Events in Manhattan Weekend Events in Brooklyn Weekend Events in Queens Weekend Events in Long Island Weekend Events in Westchester Weekend Events in Rockland/Bergen
  • After-School
    • Brooklyn Manhattan Queens Long Island Rockland Westchester
  • Education
    • Brooklyn Manhattan Queens Long Island Rockland Westchester
  • Camp
    • Brooklyn Manhattan Queens Long Island Rockland Westchester
  • Special Needs
    • Brooklyn Manhattan Queens Long Island Rockland Westchester
  • Advertise


    • Home Special Needs Articles
    Special Needs Services That Can Be Claimed on a Tax Return

    Special Needs Services That Can Be Claimed on a Tax Return

    By Katelin Walling

    While we can’t give tax advice, we’ve got some expert tips on things to consider when itemizing your taxes. Many services and expenses you might not have realized could be tax deductible.


    Tax season is quickly approaching (didn’t we just file for 2014?), and the thing most of us want is to get a refund, or at least, to pay as little as possible. Most people don’t know exactly what they can claim as tax-deductible, let alone what parents of children with special needs can claim. We spoke to Amy O’Hara, Esq., a partner with the law firm Littman Krooks LLP, whose specialties include estate planning and administration, trust administration, guardianships, and special needs planning, to find out what services you can claim on your next tax return.
     


    The following are tax-deductible and can be itemized on tax returns:

    • Special schools and special education services
    • Aides that a child may require to benefit from education
    • Exercise programs, if recommended by a medical professional
    • Transportation to and from special schools or therapy sessions
    • Equipment, devices, and supplies necessary to treat or alleviate a medical condition, including technology items such as communication devices
    • Doctors’ office co-pays, evaluations, and travel to and from appointments
    • Medications
    • Home renovations, as long as they are medically necessary
    • Workshops and seminars for parents that focus on the child’s special needs, as well as the travel to and from, but not the lodging or meals
    • The cost of buying, training, and maintaining a guide dog or other service animal, including food, grooming, and veterinary care
    • Special foods if your child is prescribed a gluten- or casein-free diet; as long as it’s medically recommended and you have a doctor’s note or certification, the cost of the specialty foods over and above what you would normally pay, would be allowable
    • Legal expenses related to your child’s special needs (i.e. if you hire an attorney to help you prove that your child’s medical expenses are legitimate) 

    RELATED: Financial and Future Planning for Child with Special Needs


    The following can be claimed on a case-by-case basis:

    • Special therapies (arts, gymnastics, horseback riding): You can try to claim special therapies, but everything goes back to the doctor’s recommendation and how the therapy helps to alleviate your child’s condition.
    • Supplements: If they are medically recommended, they most likely are deductible. If they’re not recommended and are being used as an experimental therapy or not under a doctor’s orders, then it’s questionable and, O’Hara says, unlikely to be accepted.


    Above all, O’Hara says, be cautious and carefully consider allowable deductions because you can be audited, and you want to be able to verify and justify the expenses you are trying to deduct. “I recommend you document and keep receipts for everything because you never know when the state or federal level may audit your tax return and ask for verification of these expenditures,” O’Hara says. “So it’s very important to document everything.”

    RELATED: Find a Finance Professional Near You

       

    More Special Needs Articles:

    Support & Resources for Children with Special Needs in Brooklyn

    Get the proper care for your child with special needs with these helpful resources in Brooklyn. Find the perfect school or therapy program online.


    Latest News:

    Read the 2022 Special Child Issue Today!

    The 2022 issues of Special Parent are full of advice and resources for special needs parents.


    Family Activities:



    Have a Laugh:

    Best Memes of the Week for Parents

    Here are the funniest parenting memes from Instagram, Facebook, and Reddit this week.
    Katelin Walling

    Author: Katelin Walling is the former editorial director for NYMetroParents. She has been writing about parenting, health, finance, education, fun things to do in NYC and the surrounding area, and more for nearly 10 years. She also has 20+ years of child care experience and was a babysitter in NYC for 8 years. Katelin graduated from the University of Maine in 2011 and attended the NYU Summer Publishing Institute during the summer of 2011. To unplug in her free time, she can often be found reading, knitting (or general crafting), or whipping up a vegan treat—all with a cup of coffee nearby. See More

    Featured Listings:

    Otto Specht School

    Otto Specht School

    Chestnut Ridge , NY At the Otto Specht School, we work to discover each child's path to lifelong learning, offering a variety of educational programs designed to meet the...

    The Vincent Smith School

    The Vincent Smith School

    Port Washington, NY Since 1924, Vincent Smith School has been LI’s premier school for differentiated instruction in grades first-12th for students with learning difficult...

    Care.com HomePay

    Care.com HomePay

    Austin, Texas When you hire a sitter, nanny, senior caregiver, housekeeper, or another household employee, it's important to understand how payroll & taxes work, as...

    Variety Child Learning Center

    Variety Child Learning Center

    Syosset, NY Variety Child Learning Center provides services to more than 750 children and families annually. Services include evaluations to determine eligibility...

    About Us

    NYMetroParents, the parenting division of Schneps Media, publishes eight regional print magazines around the greater New York City metro region, as well as the website nymetroparents.com.

    Read more...

    Join Us

    This Month's Issue

    NYMP Cover
    Copyright 2025 All Rights Reserved Privacy Policy SE Link