Section 80DDB: deduct up to Rs 40,000 (Rs 1 lakh for senior citizens) for treating specified diseases

When a family faces a serious illness, the bills arrive faster than the salary does. Section 80DDB of the Income-tax Act, 1961 answers part of that shock: a resident individual or a Hindu Undivided Family can deduct up to Rs 40,000 (Rs 1,00,000 where the patient is a senior citizen) for the actual cost of treating a defined list of specified diseases. The deduction sits inside Chapter VIA, which means it is available only if you file under the old tax regime, not the default new regime under Section 115BAC. Below we walk through the statutory text, a full worked example on a Rs 12 lakh salary, the mistakes that surface most often in scrutiny, and seven questions taxpayers ask every filing season.

Before you read on, keep three figures in mind: the ordinary ceiling of Rs 40,000, the senior-citizen ceiling of Rs 1,00,000, and the fact that both are reduced rupee-for-rupee by any insurance or employer reimbursement you receive for the same treatment. Everything in this guide flows from those numbers, which come straight from the statutory text of Section 80DDB as it stands for assessment year 2026-27.

What the Section Says

Section 80DDB allows a tax deduction for amounts actually paid in the previous year for the medical treatment of a specified disease, either for the taxpayer or for a dependant. The claimant must be a resident in India during that year; a non-resident cannot claim it. The eligible claimants are a resident individual and a Hindu Undivided Family, and no other entity qualifies under the provision as drafted in the Income-tax Act, 1961.

The deduction is the lower of the amount actually paid or the statutory ceiling for that patient. For an ordinary patient below 60 years the ceiling is Rs 40,000; for a senior citizen aged 60 years or more the ceiling rises to Rs 1,00,000. This single Rs 1,00,000 ceiling for all senior citizens has applied since the Finance Act, 2018 replaced the earlier split of Rs 60,000 (age 60 to 80) and Rs 80,000 (age 80 and above) with effect from 1 April 2018.

The specified diseases are not listed in the section itself; they are prescribed in Rule 11DD of the Income-tax Rules, 1962. The rule covers four broad groups, summarised in the table below, and you should verify the exact clinical criteria on the official Income Tax Department portal before you claim.

A "dependant" is defined narrowly: for an individual it means the spouse, children, parents, brothers or sisters wholly or mainly dependent on the taxpayer; for an HUF it means any member wholly or mainly dependent on the family. If the person you paid for is not within this list, the Rs 40,000 or Rs 1,00,000 deduction is not available even though the disease qualifies under Rule 11DD.

Two documentary conditions gate the claim. First, the deduction must be reduced by any amount received from an insurer under a health policy or reimbursed by an employer for that same treatment. Second, you must obtain a prescription from a specialist, and Rule 11DD requires that prescription to carry the patient's name and age, the name of the disease, and the name, address, registration number and specialist qualification of the doctor issuing it. If the treatment is in a Government hospital, the prescription must also carry that hospital's name and address, per the amended Rule 11DD effective from the assessment year 2016-17 onwards.

Worked Example

Consider Meera, a resident salaried employee aged 45 with a gross salary of Rs 12,00,000 for the financial year 2025-26 (assessment year 2026-27). During the year she pays Rs 3,10,000 for her father's cancer treatment. Her father is 68, is wholly dependent on her, and qualifies as a senior citizen, so the applicable ceiling is Rs 1,00,000. A health policy reimburses Rs 70,000 of the bill. The 80DDB computation runs as follows.

Meera therefore deducts Rs 1,00,000, not the full Rs 2,40,000, because the senior-citizen ceiling caps the benefit. Had her father been below 60, the ceiling and the deduction would both have been Rs 40,000. Because 80DDB is a Chapter VIA deduction, Meera can claim it only by choosing the old regime, so she should run both regimes through the old vs new regime calculator before deciding.

At Meera's income, the marginal rate in the old regime for the slab above Rs 10,00,000 is 30% plus 4% cess, an effective 31.2%. A Rs 1,00,000 deduction therefore saves her about Rs 31,200 in tax for the year. To see how that deduction interacts with her full slab position, standard deduction and other Chapter VIA claims, model the whole return in the income tax calculator. If she were instead defaulting into the new regime, the new regime tax calculator would show the same Rs 1,00,000 spend producing no 80DDB relief at all, because Section 115BAC withdraws Chapter VIA deductions other than 80CCD(2), 80CCH and 80JJAA.

One more figure matters. The deduction reduces gross total income; it is not a refund of medical costs. Meera still bears Rs 2,08,800 of the net Rs 2,40,000 outlay herself after the Rs 31,200 tax saving, which is why 80DDB is best read as partial relief layered on top of a good health policy rather than a substitute for one.

Common Mistakes

The first and most common error, seen repeatedly when returns are picked for scrutiny, is claiming the gross bill instead of the net figure. Section 80DDB requires the amount paid to be reduced by insurance or employer reimbursement first; a taxpayer who spends Rs 1,50,000, recovers Rs 90,000 from a policy, and still claims Rs 1,00,000 has over-claimed, because the eligible base is only Rs 60,000 and the deduction is capped at that Rs 60,000.

The second mistake is using the deduction in the new regime. Many taxpayers assume every medical deduction survives the switch, but Section 115BAC has been the default since the financial year 2023-24 and it disallows 80DDB entirely. If you filed under the new regime for assessment year 2026-27 and still entered an 80DDB figure, the processing under Section 143(1) will disallow it, a category of adjustment you can read about in our guide to e-Proceedings and responding to income tax notices.

The third mistake is treating the senior-citizen ceiling as Rs 60,000 or Rs 80,000. Those two figures were correct only until 31 March 2018; from the assessment year 2019-20 onwards a single Rs 1,00,000 ceiling applies to every patient aged 60 or above, so quoting the old split under-claims by up to Rs 40,000.

The fourth mistake is missing or defective specialist documentation. Rule 11DD no longer requires the old Form 10-I, but it does require a prescription from a specialist with the stated qualification, and a claim supported only by pharmacy bills or a general practitioner's note is routinely disallowed. Keep the specialist prescription and payment proofs even though nothing is uploaded with the income tax return itself.

The fifth mistake is claiming for a person outside the dependant definition. Payment for an in-law, a grandparent, or a financially independent sibling does not qualify, however genuine the illness, because the person must be wholly or mainly dependent on the claimant. This is distinct from Section 80D, whose health-insurance limits are a separate benefit; do not confuse the two, and note that 80DDB is unrelated to the Section 80C basket of Rs 1,50,000.

FAQ

Can I claim Section 80DDB in the new tax regime?

No. Section 80DDB is a Chapter VIA deduction, and Section 115BAC, the default regime from the financial year 2023-24, withdraws it. Only 80CCD(2), 80CCH and 80JJAA survive in the new regime, so an 80DDB claim requires you to opt for the old regime for assessment year 2026-27.

What is the maximum deduction under Section 80DDB for the financial year 2025-26?

The deduction is the lower of the amount actually paid or Rs 40,000 for an ordinary patient, rising to Rs 1,00,000 where the patient is a senior citizen aged 60 or above. These ceilings apply for assessment year 2026-27 and have been unchanged since the Finance Act, 2018.

Do I have to subtract my insurance claim before applying the limit?

Yes. Section 80DDB requires the amount paid to be reduced by any sum received from an insurer or reimbursed by an employer for the same treatment. If you spend Rs 1,20,000 and recover Rs 50,000, your eligible base is Rs 70,000, capped at the applicable Rs 40,000 or Rs 1,00,000 ceiling.

Which diseases are covered under Section 80DDB?

Rule 11DD prescribes them: specified neurological diseases certified at 40% or more disability, malignant cancers, chronic renal failure, and haematological or immune disorders including haemophilia, thalassaemia and full-blown AIDS. Verify the exact clinical wording on the Income Tax Department portal before claiming.

What document do I need to claim the deduction?

You need a prescription from a specialist with the requisite qualification, carrying the patient's name and age, the disease name, and the doctor's name, address, registration number and qualification, as required by Rule 11DD. Form 10-I was withdrawn from assessment year 2016-17, but if treatment is in a Government hospital the prescription must also name that hospital.

Can a Hindu Undivided Family claim Section 80DDB?

Yes. A resident HUF can claim the deduction for treating any member who is wholly or mainly dependent on the family, subject to the same Rs 40,000 or Rs 1,00,000 ceilings and the same reduction for reimbursements.

Is the senior-citizen limit still Rs 60,000 or Rs 80,000?

No. The earlier split of Rs 60,000 for those aged 60 to 80 and Rs 80,000 for those above 80 was replaced by a single Rs 1,00,000 ceiling by the Finance Act, 2018, effective from 1 April 2018, and that Rs 1,00,000 figure applies for the financial year 2025-26.