The medical tax credit you are entitled to for expenses related to a disability that are not recouped from your medical scheme will be calculated for you by the South African Revenue Service (SARS) if you declare 
these expenses on your income tax return. Read more: What is the additional medical tax credit for disability expenses?
The expenses you claim must be as a result of your disability and the credit is equal to a third of these expenses plus some of your medical scheme contributions.
If you want to work out what additional medical tax credit you will be entitled to if you, or a family member, are disabled, follow these steps:
- Determine your annual contributions to your medical scheme.
- Determine your annual medical fees tax credit for contributions paid. See what the credits are in the Tax Tables.
- Multiply the credits for the year by 3.
- Deduct the answer in step 3 from the answer in step 1.
- Add up your unrecouped medical expenses and the expenses related to your disability. Add these to the answer in step 4.
- Multiply the answer in step 5 by 33.3%.
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Example
Sam is paying R10 151 a month to a medical scheme with a spouse and a child registered as dependents. Sam’s child is disabled, uses a wheelchair and attends a special school.
The medical scheme fees credit is R347 a month each for the first two dependents and R243 a month for any subsequent dependents.
- Sam’s annual contributions are: R10 151 x 12 = R121 812
- Sam’s medical tax credit is R347 + R347 + R234 = R928 a month. For the year, the credit is R11 136
- Three times this medical tax credit for the year is R11 136 x 3 = R33 408
- Sam’s medical scheme contributions exceed three times the credit by R88 404 (R121 812 – R33 408)
- Sam’s unrecouped medical expenses are R25 650 and the expenses related to Sam’s child’s disability are R74 300. The unrecouped expenses plus the contributions above three times the medical tax credit are R180 354 (R88 404 + R25 650 + R74 300)
- Sam can claim R180 354 x 33.3% = R62 784 as an additional medical tax credit
- Sam’s total medical tax credit is R11 136 + R62 784 = R73 920
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