It seems everyone in the office here at Red Oak has been giving their teeth some good old TLC recently. In the last month, many of us have gone for routine dental check-ups and 3 of us have started the process of getting braces.
Of course, we are all aware of the tax relief we can claim back for the cost of some of our treatments, but it got me thinking that many of you out there might like some helpful tips so you can grin and bear the cost of your treatment, confident that you’ll be able to claim some money back…
Dental Expenses Basics
Dental expenses can be claimed for a period of up to 4 years, so from now till December you can still claim for expenses incurred as far back as 2010. It is important to note that you can only claim for tax relief in the following tax year. For example, expenses paid in 2014 can only be claimed from January 2015 onwards.
Tax relief of 20% can be claimed for the total amount of your dental expenses, excluding routine procedures like check-ups, oral hygiene treatments such as polishing and scaling, fillings, removal of teeth, or cost of false teeth. This also excludes any expenses reimbursed or covered by health insurance, the HSE or compensation claims, however, you can claim tax relief on the balance.
So what is included?
- Braces, including Clear Braces, Invisalign, Incognito, In-Ovation C, Ceramic Braces, Lingual Braces, traditional metal braces, and retainers.
- Veneers, including Rembrandts, Lumineers, Durathin, Vivaneers and IPS Emax.
- Crowns
- Bridgework
- Root Canal Treatment
- Inlays, including gold inlays
- Post and Core Build-Ups, including gold or fibreglass
- Tip Replacing
- Periodontal Treatment, including bone grafting and bone augmentation
With many people choosing to travel abroad for cheaper ‘dental holidays’ it’s also great to know you can claim for dental expenses which were performed outside the country as long as the dentist who performed the work is legally qualified to practice dentistry in that country.
Who can claim?
You can claim for the cost of dental expenses incurred by anyone as long as they were paid by you – for example, you can claim for your children’s or your partner’s expenses, or if more than one person paid the bill, you can split the expenses between you.
Revenue is also pretty fair, giving you the option of which tax year to claim your expenses, if they were spread over more than one year.
Example
Adele had gone for her a regular check-up and hygiene treatments in May 2012 before deciding to take the plunge and get Invisalign braces in October of the same year at a cost of €2,500. Her dentist had a payment plan which allowed her to pay 35% the cost of her braces 6 months after the treatment, which meant she paid the balance in March 2013.
Her fees looked like this:
2012
Check-Up: €60 (Routine)
Filling: €80 (Routine)
Scale and Polish: €40 (Routine)
Braces -1st payment Oct €1,625 (Non-Routine)
2013
Braces -2nd payment March €875
As her check-up, filling and hygiene work are considered routine and therefore not eligible for tax relief, Adele can only claim the cost of her braces. 20% of €2,500 works out at €500 tax back – not bad!
However, Adele had paid no PAYE in 2012, the year she incurred her expenses, so it was pointless claiming tax relief in that year as she would not have been entitled to any money back. Instead she claimed the full amount in 2013, as she had paid over €2000 in tax.
How to claim
Getting started is easy!
All you need to do is ask your dentist or orthodontist for a form called a ‘MED2’. Then, together with your receipts, forward these to us and we’ll take care of the rest for you.
Here at Red Oak, we securely store all our customer’s receipts for them so they meet their legal obligations and we take care of all the nasty stuff should Revenue select you for an audit.
To have one of our tax agents review your case for a refund, please click here.
Written by Alexandra Byrne.
I’m what you call an all-rounder! Having worked in customer services, accounting and now in marketing, I’m the one who can tie all the pieces of the puzzle together. I’ve a BSc from University of Limerick so I’m analytical, but I also love change! I’m constantly astounded by the lack of awareness we Irish have about our entitlements, and I like spreading the word about tax refunds – so as many people as possible can claim everything they are entitled to.