10 February 1998 External T.I. 9800245 - MEDICAL EXPENSES - SOCIAL WORKERS

Please note that the following document, although believed to be correct at the time of issue, may not represent the current position of the CRA.
Prenez note que ce document, bien qu'exact au moment émis, peut ne pas représenter la position actuelle de l'ARC.

Please note that the following document, although believed to be correct at the time of issue, may not represent the current position of the Department.

Prenez note que ce document, bien qu'exact au moment émis, peut ne pas représenter la position actuelle du ministère.

Principal Issues:

Whether payments to social workers qualify as medical expenses

Position:

No, unless the social workers are working in a recognized mental health clinic, community agency or hospital and they are members of the association governing their particular profession and the treatment is at the request of or in association with a medical practitioner.

Reasons:

Social workers are not medical practitioners or therapists as they are not recognized under the Regulated Health Professions Act, 1991 or any other Act of Ontario governing the practice of health care generally.

980024

XXXXXXXXXX N. Mondou,M.Fisc.

Attention: XXXXXXXXXX

February 10, 1998

Dear Madam:

Re: Fees for social work services

This is in reply to your memorandum of December 18, 1997 in which you asked whether clients of family service agencies can claim as medical expenses the fees they pay for social service work.

XXXXXXXXXX

Our comments

Subsection 118.2(2) of the Income Tax Act ("ITA") provides a list of the types of expenditures which qualify as medical expenses for the purposes of the medical expense tax credit.

More particularly, paragraph 118.2(2)(a) of the ITA states that a medical expense of an individual is an amount paid "to a medical practitioner, dentist or nurse or a public or licensed private hospital in respect of medical or dental services...". Specifically, where a service is rendered, the terms “medical doctor”, “medical practitioner”, “dentist”, “pharmacist”, “nurse” or “optometrist” refer to persons authorized to act as such under the laws of the jurisdiction in which the service is rendered. For instance, medical practitioners can include a therapeutist (or therapist), depending on the applicable province or jurisdiction.

Therefore, in the case of fees paid for services rendered by social workers in Ontario, these fees may qualify as "medical expenses" if social workers are authorized to practice as such pursuant to the laws of the province of Ontario. This requirement applies whether the payment is made directly to a social worker or to an agency of which the social worker is an employee or partner. However, it is our understanding that social workers are not currently recognized under the Regulated Health Professions Act, 1991 or any other Act of Ontario governing the practice of health care generally. Consequently, it is our view that social workers are not medical practitioners for the purposes of the ITA and fees paid to social workers for professional services do not qualify as medical expenses.

Nevertheless, we will consider fees paid to social workers as "medical expenses" if the social workers:

1 are working in a recognized mental health clinic, community agency or hospital,

2 are members of the association governing their particular profession, and

3 provide a treatment at the request of, or in association with, a medical practitioner.

We trust that these comments are of assistance.

Yours truly,

C. Chouinard
for Director
Business and Publications Division
Income Tax Rulings and
Interpretations Directorate
Policy and Legislation Branch