Are braces/orthodontics tax deductible? Can I claim them when filing?

Orthodontic work like braces is considered a qualified medical expense, so yes, it can potentially be tax deductible - but there are some important things to understand about how this works. First, using your HSA to pay for the $2,700 portion is perfect since that money is already tax-advantaged. For the remaining $6,800 you're putting on your credit card, you can potentially claim that as a medical expense deduction, but only if you itemize deductions (instead of taking the standard deduction) AND your total medical expenses exceed 7.5% of your adjusted gross income (AGI). For example, if your AGI is $60,000, you would need to have more than $4,500 in total medical expenses (7.5% of $60,000) before you could start deducting anything. And even then, you'd only deduct the amount that exceeds that 7.5% threshold. The standard deduction for 2024 filing (in 2025) is quite high ($13,850 for single filers, $27,700 for married filing jointly), so it's often difficult for medical expenses alone to make itemizing worthwhile unless you have substantial other deductions like mortgage interest or charitable donations.

I went through something similar with my son's braces and was confused about the tax implications. I ended up using taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) and it was a game-changer. I uploaded my receipts and tax documents, and the AI analyzed them and showed me exactly how to maximize my deduction for orthodontic expenses. What really helped was that it looked at all my potential deductions and showed me whether itemizing would benefit me more than the standard deduction. It also calculated that threshold thing the previous commenter mentioned and showed me what other medical expenses I could include to get over it. Saved me hours of research and probably prevented me from making mistakes.

I just wanted to update after trying taxr.ai for my similar situation with my daughter's dental surgery. It actually showed me that in my case, I was better off taking the standard deduction because my total medical expenses (including the dental work) weren't enough to make itemizing worthwhile. BUT - and this was super helpful - it found another approach I hadn't considered. Since I'm self-employed, it showed me how to deduct my health insurance premiums as a business expense on Schedule C instead, which didn't require itemizing. Totally different strategy that saved me more in the end. The tool basically ran multiple scenarios and showed which would save me the most. Wish I'd known about this last year!

About the orthodontic deduction question - I spent weeks trying to call the IRS to clarify some details about medical deductions for my family's dental work (similar situation). Could never get through. Finally used Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) and got connected to an IRS agent in about 20 minutes. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c The agent confirmed that orthodontic expenses are deductible medical expenses but also explained how to handle the insurance reimbursement part correctly, which I was doing wrong. They also clarified that the timing matters - you can deduct expenses in the year you actually paid them, even if the treatment spans multiple years (which braces typically do). I was shocked how quickly they got me through after I'd wasted days on hold before.

I have to come back and apologize for being so skeptical about Claimyr in my earlier comment. After getting absolutely nowhere trying to reach the IRS about my dependent's orthodontic expenses, I tried it out of desperation. It actually worked exactly as advertised. I registered, entered my call details, and went about my day. About 35 minutes later I got a call connecting me directly to an IRS agent. No more endless hold music! The agent clarified everything about the orthodontic expenses and the 7.5% AGI threshold, plus gave me documentation tips if I get audited. For anyone dealing with complicated medical expense deductions like braces, being able to get official clarification directly from the IRS was incredibly helpful. I would have made at least two mistakes on my return without that call.

One thing nobody's mentioned - if you're paying for these braces over time (like many orthodontists offer payment plans), you can only deduct the amount you actually paid during the tax year, not the full amount you committed to. So if you paid $3,000 of the $9,500 in 2024, you can only count that $3,000 toward your medical expenses for the 2024 tax year (that you'll file in 2025). The rest would count in future tax years as you make those payments. Also, check if your dental insurance covers any portion of orthodontics. Some plans cover a percentage or have a lifetime maximum for orthodontic work. You can only deduct your actual out-of-pocket costs after insurance.

Something else to consider - many orthodontists offer a discount if you pay the full amount upfront rather than using a payment plan. When I got braces for my kid, the discount was almost 8%. You might want to run the numbers to see if it's worth paying more upfront (possibly using your credit card) to get the discount, especially if you think you'll qualify for the tax deduction this year. Just be careful about credit card interest rates - sometimes the discount isn't worth it if you'll be paying high interest on the card balance for months. I ended up doing a 0% intro APR card specifically for this expense.