The caregiver tax guides.
Six plain-English guides on the accounts and deductions that can pay for a parent's care with pre-tax dollars: claiming a parent as a dependent, the Dependent Care FSA, how it compares to the dependent care credit, the Health FSA, ABLE accounts, and the Schedule A medical deduction. Each one is built on the current IRS rules and links you back to the source, so you can check every figure before open enrollment closes.
Can you claim your elderly parent as a dependent? The rules
The four qualifying-relative tests in plain English: the gross-income limit, the more-than-half-support test, and why a parent (unlike other relatives) does not have to live with you.
Using a Dependent Care FSA for a parent's care
A parent who cannot self-care can be a qualifying person for your Dependent Care FSA, with the 2026 cap raised to $7,500 if your employer adopts it, if the care lets you work. Who counts, what expenses qualify, and the credit trade-off.
Dependent Care FSA vs the dependent care credit: which saves more?
For a parent's day care, the FSA usually beats the child and dependent care credit because it skips payroll tax too, but the credit can win at lower incomes. A worked example, and the rule against claiming both on the same dollars.
A Health FSA for a dependent's medical costs
Your Health FSA can reimburse a dependent parent's Medicare premiums, co-pays, dental, and equipment, pre-tax, up to the 2026 employee limit. The rules under IRC 213(d).
ABLE accounts: who qualifies and why they matter
Tax-free growth, up to $100,000 sheltered from SSI, and no tax on qualified disability expenses, when the disability began early enough. The age-of-onset test, rising to 46 in 2026.
Deducting a parent's medical expenses on Schedule A
You can deduct a dependent parent's unreimbursed medical costs, but only the part above 7.5% of your income, and only if you itemize. When that floor makes this a real lever, and when it doesn't.
Read the guides free. Want your own numbers?
The guides explain the rules. The $14 report runs your household against every account and hands you the exact elections to make at open enrollment.
Get your Caregiver Tax Savings Report · $14