We’ve had many customers ask in the past if our therapy pools and above ground lap pools are tax deductible. It really depends on being able to convince the IRS to categorize the pool as a medical expense versus a personal recreational purchase. The IRS will allow deductions for medical expenses but not for anything deemed personal or recreational or aesthetic. A doctor’s recommendation is required and even then it does not guarantee IRS approval of the deduction.
In general, home improvement purchases such as therapy pools and lifts may be deductible as medical expenses. According to IRS Publication 502 medical expenses are defined as the costs of diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease. The important difference is that medical care expenses must be used to primarily alleviate or prevent an illness and does not include items are merely beneficial to general health. Swimming pools are generally questioned by the IRS because they can be used for recreation as well.
Here are some key points that have helped customers in the past:
Proof Pool Purchase Directly Related To Medical Care. Your doctor or primary care physician needs to prescribe swimming and/or aquatic therapy for a particular health condition. Some points that may help include explaining that without aquatic therapy the disease symptoms may return and that the pool was purchased after a doctor’s recommendation.
Proof of Primary Purpose The pool must be maintained primarily for medical reasons. You can demonstrate that there is no alternate swimming pool nearby, it is used frequently (such as twice a day every day); and other family members use the pool only occasionally.
Proof Of Specialized Device For Medical Purpose Mechanical pool lifts or specially designed stairs as well as other devices that are not purely recreational can be added to a Fitmax Therapy Pool or iPool to help allow the deduction.
Operating and maintenance costs for a therapy pool including the heater and filter pump in terms of the water chemicals needed and electricity can also be deducted as well regardless if the pool was able to be deducted or not. Remember to keep your receipts and documentation for submission.
Please keep in mind we make therapy pools and above ground lap pools (very good ones, which we are proud of) — we are not an accounting service or law firm. Our staff can’t even do their own taxes by themselves. This material is for informational purposes only, and is not intended to provide, and should not be relied on for tax, legal or accounting advice.
If you are curious about what types of therapy pools and above ground lap pools we have to offer, you can find out more here
If you have any additional questions that you would like a live human to answer, please contact us today.
