Home stay – Spouse – Household savings – Tax consultant – Hagen – Holzwickede – Kamen – Lünen

Personal expenses for accommodation in a nursing or old people’s home due to illness or old age can be claimed for tax purposes within the framework of extraordinary burdens (§ 33 EStG) (home accommodation). Costs can only be taken into account to the extent that they are not covered by nursing care or other insurance funds.

If private households are dissolved in connection with residential care, the expenses are also to be reduced by the so-called household savings. The budget savings are regularly calculated in the amount specified in § 33a para. 1 of the German Income Tax Act (EStG) for the maintenance of dependents. This maximum amount corresponds to the basic tax-free amount applicable for the respective calendar year and amounts to 8,820 euros for 2017 and 9,000 euros for 2018.

The Federal Fiscal Court has now ruled that, in the case of spouses who are both confined to a retirement or nursing home due to illness, a household allowance must be recognized for each spouse. This reduces the eligible nursing home costs accordingly.

The expenses for institutional care remaining after deduction of the household savings can only have an effect for tax purposes to the extent that they exceed the reasonable burden.

(Further comments & information on this can be found in our information letter under item 6, issue 03/2018).