To claim transportation and travel expenses with the Canada Revenue Agency, the following conditions must be met:
- There were no equivalent medical services near your home
- You took a direct route
- It was reasonable for you, under the circumstances, to travel to the place you did for those medical services
If all these conditions are met, you can claim medical travel expense to drive your mother to medical appointments as you have traveled more than 80 km (one way), you can claim vehicle expenses, accommodation, meals, and parking expenses. If driving to get medical care is necessary, you can claim the cost of fuel, oil, license fees, insurance, maintenance, and repairs, including parts. Depreciation, provincial tax, and finance charges are all eligible.
There are two methods to calculate vehicle expenses — the detailed and the simplified method. If you use the detailed method, keep track of the number of kilometers driven in the 12-month period you choose for medical expenses. Then, calculate the percentage of your total vehicle expenses that relate to the kilometers driven for medical treatment.
If you chose the simplified method, you only need to determine how many km you traveled for medical treatment in the 12-month period. Multiply the km by the rate for your province. The rates are different for each province or territory, are updated annually, and can be found at the Canada Revenue Agency’s website.
Whether you choose the detailed method or the simplified method, be sure to save all your receipts in case the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) asks to see them later.
For more information, please see our TurboTax article: Claiming Medical Expense Travel Credits.
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