Check out some similar questions!

private9 · Mar 23, 2008, 06:55 AM

Since I am self-employed, I have a catastrophic health insurance policy that does not include outpatient testing or doctors visits.

I need to have a diagnostic test commonly done for those of us over 50. I am thinking of having it done in a medical center in Costa Rica. The test would be a fraction of the cost of having done in the US.

What parts of the trip would be deductible as legitimate medical expenses? Airfare? Hotel? Food?

Note: I am not thinking this as a vacation. I would take a long weekend at most.

Thank you.

AtlantaTaxExpert · May 2, 2008, 12:24 PM

Probably NONE of it will be deductible, because medical expenses, as an itemized deduction, are deductible only to the extent that they exceed 7.5% of your AGI.

Example: Your Adjusted Gross Income is $100,000. That means the first $7,500 of medical expenses are NOT deductible. If you had $8,000 in deductible expenses, only $500 could be listed as a itemized deduction on Schedule A.

private9 · May 2, 2008, 02:57 PM

I know about the percentage of AGI. But, in order to 'play' I have to reach the point where I receive a deduction, no matter how small.

Since I am self-employed and don't receive employer-based healthcare, I pay cash for doctor visits and prescriptions. I keep track of all of them so that I can increase the amount relative to AGI.

So, I should have asked: What parts of the trip to Costa Rica for medical testing are allowable for this, besides the medical fee itself? Airfare? Meals? Hotel?

Hope this now makes sense.

Thank you.

AtlantaTaxExpert · May 5, 2008, 08:45 AM

If the ONLY reason for going to Costa Rica is for the medical procedure, you have an argument to claim EVERYTHING (airfare, meals, hotel).

I had a client who was disabled with a neuroligical disorder. Though living in Atlanta, she returned to New York once a year for her annual checkup with the neurologist who originally diagnosed her condition, despite the fact that Atlanta's Emory Hospital has one of the best neurology departments in the world.

She wrote off ALL of the costs of that trip, and the IRS subsequently challenged that deduction. I successfully argued that, since she has the right to continue to see the neurologist she is comfortable with, she should be allowed to deduct the costs of the trips, especially since she took pains in economizing the trip (she stayed ONLY for one day; she spent the night at relatives; she took the subway and not a taxi).

The same logic would apply in your case.

private9 · May 5, 2008, 10:51 AM

Thank you.

And that's pretty much what would happen. Long weekend, there and back. As medical tourism becomes more common, I'm wondering if/when the IRS has or will have a ruling on this. People are doing this more and more to more faraway places than Costa Rica.