Private ruling: Attendant for medical expenses rebate purposes
Published: March 2012
Ruling period: Year ended 30 June 2012
Date scheme commenced: 1 July 2011

Ruling: A2: 


Relevant legislative provisions: Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 Section 159P

Reasons for decision: Summary: Medical expenses are defined in subsection 159P(4) of the ITAA 1936 and at paragraph (h), it includes payments as remuneration of a person for services rendered by him or her as an attendant of a person who is blind or permanently confined to a bed or invalid chair. You are recognised as blind by the Australian government. You employ a personal attendant for six hours per week to assist you in organising personal items, drives you to medical and other appointments, assists with banking and your mobility. It is considered that these duties meet those of an attendant of a person within paragraph (h) for the purposes of claiming the medical expenses rebate. You also attend a hairdresser close to your work to have your hair washed and dried on a weekly basis. It is considered that the payment to the hairdresser is not a payment for the remuneration of a person for services rendered as an attendant of a person. The payment is one to a hairdressing business for professional services. The amount paid will incorporate an amount for labour, profit, the use of facilities and product. It is not a payment to an individual as an attendant to you for their services, as is envisaged by paragraph (h).

Please check this edited version to be sure that there are no details remaining that you think may allow you to be identified. If you have any concerns about this ruling you wish to discuss, you will find our contact details in the fact sheet. | Questions and answers: 1 . For the purposes of subsection 159P(4), do the duties of the employed attendant meet the definition of "attendant" for which medical expenses rebate is applicable? | 2. Will attending a local hairdresser for the purpose of getting your hair washed and dried on a weekly basis meet the definition of "attendant" in subsection 159P(4) of the ITAA 1936? | Relevant facts: You are in receipt of an Australian Government Blind Pension. | Your spouse is paid a carer allowance in respect of their care for you due to your disability. | To provide respite to your spouse from their caring duties, you employ an attendant for six hours weekly to assist you. The attendant assists you in organising your personal items, drives you to medical and other appointments, assists with your banking and your mobility. You also have a mobility disability, but are not bed-ridden. The carer is directly employed. | You also have your hair washed and dried weekly at a hairdresser near to your work. This is not the only expense you incur in relation to grooming, but is one that you cannot attend to yourself due to your blindness. Other costs you incur include haircuts and colours which are far more expensive and clearly of a private nature.