SteuerGo FAQs

Who receives the disability allowance?

You can receive the disability allowance if you can prove a certain degree of disability. A person is considered disabled if their physical, mental, or emotional health is impaired for more than six months.

The degree of disability is usually determined by the pension office. From a degree of disability of 50, you receive a severely disabled pass; up to a degree of 45, the office issues a notice of determination. The tax office is bound by these notices.

You can claim the disability allowance for yourself, your disabled spouse, or your disabled child. The allowance cannot be transferred from disabled parents or siblings.

Tip: If the degree of disability is determined retroactively for several years, you can claim the allowance retroactively for the years for which a degree of disability is recognised. However, you should register your tax claims as soon as possible after the degree of disability is determined, as certain deadlines must be observed.

The disability allowance is an annual amount. It is granted in full even if the disability occurs or ceases during the year. If the degree of disability is increased or decreased during the year, the annual amount is based on the higher degree of disability (R 33b para. 7 EStR).

If multiple disabilities occur for different reasons, the disability that leads to the highest allowance is used. The disability allowance has a full tax-reducing effect, as no reasonable burden is deducted.

The question is whether care-related expenses can be deducted as extraordinary expenses under § 33 EStG in addition to the disability allowance, or whether the allowance must be waived for this. Since 2008, the following regulation applies:

If you claim the disability allowance under § 33b para. 3 EStG, care-related expenses are not additionally recognised as extraordinary expenses under § 33 EStG. The "either-or principle" applies (R 33.3 para. 4 EStR 2008).

You must decide: Either you apply for the disability allowance, or you claim the care-related costs as extraordinary expenses with proof. When providing proof, the care allowance from the care insurance must be deducted, and the tax office will also deduct the reasonable burden from the remaining amount. For consideration under § 33 EStG to be more advantageous, the expenses must be higher than the disability allowance, the care allowance received, and the reasonable burden.

But no rule or exception:

You can, for example, claim the following special expenses in addition to the allowance:

• extraordinary medical expenses caused by an acute event, such as costs of an operation, medical treatment, medication, and doctor’s fees,
• expenses for a health cure carried out based on a medical certificate issued before the start of the cure (the medical certificate from a medical service of the health insurance is equivalent to the official medical certificate),
• disability-related conversion costs for a car,
• disability-related renovation costs for the home,
• disability-related travel allowance (from 2021):

Up to and including 2020, travel costs related to a disability could be considered at 0.30 Euro per kilometre driven up to certain maximum amounts. This consideration regularly required proof of the kilometres driven. This proof is no longer required from 2021.

The disability-related travel allowance is:

• 900 Euro: for people with a degree of disability of at least 80 or a degree of disability of at least 70 and the mark "G" for walking disabled
• 4.500 Euro: for people with exceptional walking disability (mark "aG"), blind people (mark "BI"), deafblind people (mark "TBI"), helpless people (mark "H") or people for whom care level 4 or 5 has been determined.

The following special feature must be observed when considering the disability-related travel allowance:

Disability-related travel costs are part of the general extraordinary expenses. When calculating your income tax, the reduction by the reasonable burden is deducted from the total amount of extraordinary expenses, which also includes the disability-related travel allowance.