Tax reduction in the case of illness-based nursing home accommodation

BFH: Both spouses have household savings to consider
If married couples have to move to a retirement or nursing home because of their illness, they can only claim a limited amount of tax deduction. If the couple dissolves their previous joint household, the costs can be stated as extraordinary burdens in the tax declaration, but only reduced by a household saving for each person, decided the Federal Finance Court (BFH) in Munich in a on Wednesday, 6. December 2017, published judgment (Az .: VI R 22/16). The fact that the expenses of the spouses are reduced only by a household saving for a person, is not permissible.

Picture: Kzenon - fotolia

An elderly couple from Bavaria, who had to move to a retirement and nursing home from May 2013 due to illness, had sued. The home costs incurred in the year in the amount of about 27,500 euros, they wanted as comprehensive tax-reducing in their tax return as an exceptional burden for health reasons asserted.

Since they had previously only one common and now dissolved household, they deducted from the home costs only a household saving for one person. The savings were calculated according to the maximum amount of maintenance stipulated in the Income Tax Act at the time of 8,130 euros (today 8,820 euros). The household savings amounted then for a person € 3,387.50.

But that was not the tax office. The authority said that the couple must consider not only the household savings of one person, but for both spouses. The home costs are therefore to be reduced by a total of 6,775 euros, only the remainder can be claimed as extraordinary charges.

This was also followed by the BFH in its ruling of 4 October 2017. If both spouses are due to illness in the nursing home accommodated and exist no more household, fall in both a household savings. Both are relieved by the abandonment of the common budget for the rental, electricity or food costs. fle / mwo