Section 80DDB of income tax act 1961 provides deduction for medical treatment of specified diseases. This deduction can only be claimed if an individual or HUF has incurred expenses towards the maintenance and care of the designated ailments. Following diseases are covered under 80DDB deduction:
- Neurological Diseases with a disability of at least 40%
- Malignant cancer
- AIDS
- Dementia
- Chronic Kidney failure
- Haemophilia
- Thalassemia
The taxpayer can claim this income tax deduction at the time of filing ITR under Chapter VI-A.
Who is eligible to claim 80DDB deduction?
Any of the following taxpayer or dependent who suffers from the diseases, qualify for the deduction under section 80DDB of income tax act:
In case of an individual:
- Any resident individuals who themselves suffer from the disease
- Any resident individual who pays for the support & maintenance of the dependent who undergoes for the treatement
(Dependent includes children, spuse, parents or siblings)
In case of HUF:
- Karta of the HUF
- Members of the HUF
What is 80DDB Deduction Limit?
The age of the person for whom the medical expenses are incurred determines the amount that can be claimed as a deduction under section 80TTB of income tax act.
| Age of the person who is undergoing the treatment | Deduction Limit |
| Age less than 60 years | INR 40,000 or actual expense whichever is less |
| Age is 60 years or more | INR 1,00,000 or actual expense whichever is less |
Important Points:
- The deduction is allowed only up to the amount of expenditure incurred.
- Furthermore, the age of the individual receiving the medical care determines the amount of deduction rather than the age of the assessee or the person claiming the deduction.
- From 1st April 2016, no deduction shall be allowed unless the prescription is obtained for the treatment from a specialist. However, the specialist does not necessarily need to be working at a government hospital.
- While claiming a deduction under section 80DDB the amount has to adjusted with the reimbursement received by the insurance company or employer.
- Section 80DDB deduction is not allowed if the taxpayer opts for the new tax regime
- Deduction under section 80DDB of Income Tax Act can not be claimed against short-term capital gains u/s 111A, long-term capital gains, and income chargeable to tax at special rates.
How is the Deduction Calculated Under Section 80DDB?
| Actual expenses on treatment | xxx |
| Maximum (INR 40,000/1,00,000) | xxx |
| Whichever is lower | xxx |
| Less: Insurance claim | (xxx) |
| Amount of deduction | xxx |
To understand the calculation better, let us take an example:
Scenario 1:
Abhijeet is 35 years old and incurs an expense of INR 70,000 on the medical treatment of a specific disease. He is eligible to claim a maximum deduction of INR 40,000 under Section 80DDB. Abhijeet also receives INR 25,000 as reimbursement from the insurance company against the expenses he has incurred.
As Abhijeet has already been reimbursed for INR 25,000, he will be able to claim a deduction of INR 15,000 (INR 40,000 minus the amount received by the insurance company, i.e., INR 25,000) under Section 80DDB.
Scenario 2:
Ashutosh is 40 years old and incurs an expense of INR 70,000 on the medical treatment of a specific disease. His insurance company reimbursed INR 50,000 against the expenses he made.
In this scenario, Ashutosh will not be able to claim a deduction under Section 80DDB, as the reimbursement by the insurance company is already more than the permissible limit u/s 80DDB. (It is, however, important to note that if Ashustosh was to incur this expense for a senior citizen then, he will be permissible deduction under section 80DDB for Senior citizen will be upto Rs. 1,00,000)
Acquire Certificate for Claiming Deduction Under Section 80DDB
As mentioned formerly, it is mandatory to provide a valid proof via certificate of the disease. A medical practitioner can issue the certificate as shown in the table below.
| Disease | Eligible Person who can issue certificate |
| Neurological Diseases where the disability level is proved to be of 40% and above (a) Dementia (b) Dystonia Musculorum Deformans (c) Motor Neuron Disease (d) Ataxia (e) Chorea (f) Hemiballismus (g) Aphasia (h) Parkinsons Disease | A neurologist who has an MD degree in Neurology Or any degree that the medical council of India reconizes as equivalent. |
| Malignant Cancers | An oncologist who has an MD degree in Oncology Or any degree that the medical council of India reconizes as equivalent. |
| AIDS (Full Blown Acquired Immuno-Deficiency Syndrome) | Any specialist who has a postgraduate degree in general or internal medicine Or any degree that the medical council of India reconizes as equivalent. |
| Chronic Renal Failure | Chronic Renal Failure A nephrologist who has an MD degree in Nephrology. Or a urologist who has a Master Chirurgiae (M.Ch.) degree in Urology Or any degree that the medical council of India reconizes as equivalent. |
| Haematological Disorders (i) Haemophilia (ii) Thalassaemia | A specialist who has an MD degree in Hematology Or any degree that the medical council of India reconizes as equivalent. |
What Information Should the Certificate Contain?
The acquired certificate must have the following details:
- Name and Age of Patient
- Name of the Disease
- Details of the specialist issuing the prescription, such as Name, Address, Registration Number, Qualification
- The name and address of the hospital if the treatment was taken in a government hospital
ITR Form Applicable for Section 80DDB
The taxpayer can claim deductions u/s 80DDB while filing ITR if all the conditions are met. Individuals or HUFs can claim 80DDB in any of the ITR forms, i.e., ITR 1, ITR 2, ITR 3, and ITR 4 depending upon their income sources.
Supporting Documents
Along with common documents like Form 16, PAN, etc, it is mandatory for the assessee to provide proof of expenditure, such as medical bills. Therefore, it is compulsory to obtain a prescription for such treatments from a qualified doctor.
FAQs
Specified diseases such as AIDs, cancer, dementia, neurological diseases, etc. are covered under 80DDB.
Yes, you can claim both the deductions 80DD- for disabled dependents and 80DDB- medical treatment of specified disease provided you satisfy the conditions.
No, section 80DDB only covers Malignant Cancer.
80DD relates to medical costs incurred for the treatment of disabled dependents.
While 80DDB relates to medical costs incurred towards the treatment of specified diseases for self and dependents.
Am i eligible to claim 80ddb and 80u simultaneously?
Hi @Zainab_Hawa1,
Yes, you can claim both deductions at the same time provided 80U is claimed for yourself and 80DD is claimed for a disabled dependent.
Hi @bhotlu
Quicko does support deduction on medical expenditures for senior citizens.
Here’s the article on how to add tax breaks on Quicko.
If you still face any issue, let me know.
Hi @bhotlu
Quicko does support deduction on medical expenditures for senior citizens.
Here’s the article on how to add tax breaks on Quicko.
If you still face any issue, let me know.
Hi @bhotlu
Thank you for bringing this issue to our notice. We checked you have also raised a ticket regarding the same.
Our team is working on resolving the problem and will provide you with a response through the ticket as soon as we have a solution in place.
Hi @Aman_Jain1
You can claim medical expenses + premium + preventive health checkups for your senior citizen parents of up to ₹50,000.
You cannot claim a deduction of the amount which your employer is paying as group insurance but you can claim the extra amount which you are paying and which is not covered under the group health insurance provided by the employer.
Hi @mbharwani
If in the certificate it is mentioned that the disability exists since 2012, you can claim it in FY 2022-23 as well.
Yes, @mbharwani you must file form 10IA for the same.
Hello @Shrutika_Shah ,
Recently i had a surgery which costed me around 85K , my corporate insurance company reimbursed only 60K So my question here is Can I show remaining 25k as medical expense ? if yes please provide the details.