{"id":162,"date":"2026-11-03T18:30:56","date_gmt":"2026-11-03T18:30:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/rechtsanwaltsblog\/?p=162"},"modified":"2026-11-10T07:47:07","modified_gmt":"2026-11-10T07:47:07","slug":"einkommensteuer-absetzbarkeit-von-elternunterhalt-als-ausergewohnliche-belastung","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/en\/income-tax-deductibility-of-parental-maintenance-as-an-extraordinary-burden\/","title":{"rendered":"Parental support deducted from taxes: Maximum amount in 2026 and nursing home costs"},"content":{"rendered":"

Status: November 2026 \u00b7 Attorney Helmer Tieben, Cologne<\/em><\/p>\n

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In short:<\/strong> You can deduct up to 12,348 euros per year in 2026 in the form of extraordinary expenses for your parents, plus contributions paid to the basic health and nursing insurance (\u00a7 33a, paragraph 1, EStG). Any income earned by the parents in excess of 624 euros per year reduces this amount. If you pay for a nursing home because your mother or father is in need of care, \u00a7 33 EStG applies instead: In that case, the costs are deductible without a maximum amount, but only up to your reasonable expenses.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

The mother can no longer support herself on her pension, or the father has to go to a nursing home, and the pension does not cover the own contribution. Many children then step in, either voluntarily or because the social welfare office is requiring them to support them. Such payments can reduce the taxable income as an extraordinary expense. The extent to which this happens depends primarily on what you are paying for.<\/p>\n

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Note:<\/strong> The amounts apply for the tax year 2026. Lower maximum amounts apply for earlier years.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

<\/span>Maintenance or care costs: Which rule applies?<\/span><\/h2>\n

The Income Tax Act treats alimony and medical or care costs under two different regulations with different requirements. Which one applies depends on the purpose of the payment; you do not have a choice.<\/p>\n

Continuing livelihood<\/strong> falls under Section 33a, paragraph 1, of the EStG<\/a>. These are payments that help you finance your parents\u2019 rent, groceries, and everyday living expenses. This also includes living in a nursing home if you are elderly and on your own. There is a fixed maximum amount for this, but no personal contribution.<\/p>\n

Expenses due to illness or need for care<\/strong> fall under \u00a7 33 EStG<\/a>. This mainly concerns accommodation in a nursing home because the mother or father is in need of care. There is no maximum amount here. However, you must bear part of the cost yourself, the so-called reasonable burden.<\/p>\n

The financial administration draws the same line: costs of hospitalization due to illness or care related to nursing home care are covered by \u00a7 33, while costs of purely age-related nursing home care are covered only by \u00a7 33a (BMF letter of 15.10.2025, p. 12). The path to ordinary maintenance is blocked by \u00a7 33.<\/p>\n

<\/span>How much maintenance can I deduct under \u00a7 33a EStG?<\/span><\/h2>\n

The maximum amount corresponds to the basic exemption. For 2026, this is 12,348 euros<\/strong> per supported person, up to 24,696 euros if you support both parents. If you contribute to the basic health and care insurance for your parents, the amount increases by these contributions.<\/p>\n

If your parents live together as a married couple, the tax office calculates both together: their income and allowances are added up and compared with the double maximum amount and the double non-deductible amount. An example: If both have together countable income and allowances of 15,000 euros, 1,248 of them are exempt. The remaining 13,752 euros reduce the double maximum amount of 24,696 euros to 10,944 euros for both parents together.<\/p>\n

The maximum amount is calculated based on the own income and wages of the supported parent, provided that they exceed 624 euros per year. Income includes, for example, the taxable part of the pension. \u201eWages\u201c are funds that are not taxed, such as the tax-free part of the pension. Only these wages are allowed to be deducted in a lump sum of 180 euros per year, unless higher expenses are proven; the income is subject to the applicable expenses or lump sums there provided.<\/p>\n

Calculations are made on a monthly basis. You can only support your mother from October onwards; the calculation only counts three months, so a maximum of 3,087 euros. Therefore, a one-time payment in December for the entire year will only be taken into account from the month of payment onwards. A strict exception may apply if the first payment of support is proven to have cleared debts that the parent had previously incurred to support themselves in the same calendar year (BFH, judgment of 25 April 2018 \u2013 VI R 35\/16).<\/p>\n

<\/span>Example: This is how it is calculated<\/span><\/h2>\n

Son S supports his mother M with 500 euros per month, or 6,000 euros per year, by transferring money to her account. After deducting the allowances, M has her own income and salary of 6,000 euros per year and no significant assets.<\/p>\n

\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Calculating step<\/th>\nAmount<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Maximum amount in 2026<\/td>\n12.348 \u20ac<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Mother's own income and salary<\/td>\n6.000 \u20ac<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
minus the amount that is not subject to charge<\/td>\n\u2013 624 \u20ac<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
to be charged<\/td>\n5.376 \u20ac<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Remaining maximum amount<\/strong> (12.348 \u20ac \u2013 5.376 \u20ac)<\/td>\n6.972 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
In fact, paid maintenance<\/td>\n6.000 \u20ac<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Retractable<\/strong> (the lower amount)<\/td>\n6.000 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

S can therefore deduct the full maintenance of 6,000 euros as an extraordinary expense. This requires that the victim threshold and the other deduction requirements are met in particular. The amount that can be deducted is not the tax savings: it reduces the taxable income. Assuming a personal tax rate of 30 percent, an income tax savings of around 1,800 euros would result, plus solidarity surcharge and church tax, if any. Had he paid 600 euros per month, only 6,972 euros of 7,200 euros would be deductible.<\/p>\n

<\/span>What requirements do I need to meet?<\/span><\/h2>\n