Question

I have a disability that is generally recognized by the SSA, however I am working with a high income and have not applied for SSA benefits nor would I qualify because of the high income. Can I claim any IRWE deductions directly related to my disabili

Forum|Forum|1 year ago
February 15, 2025
2 replies
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I have a disability that is well documented/substantiated by years of medical records. However, because I have a very high paying job I have never applied for any benefits. That said, to be able to do that job I pay a lot of out of pocket expenses directly related to managing the disability. (it wouldn't bring my income down enough to qualify for benefits however). I am not understanding if in order to claim any of these expenses as IRWE I need to be receiving SSA benefits or I can claim the IRWE deduction anyway even though I do not receive benefits.

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xmasbaby0

You are asking a question in an income tax user forum. You need to explore this issue with Social Security. We cannot advise you regarding eligibility for SS benefits.

**Disclaimer: Every effort has been made to offer the most correct information possible. The poster disclaims any legal responsibility for the accuracy of the information that is contained in this post.**

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xmasbaby0

Do you have job-related expenses that require adaptive or mobility devices in order for you to perform your job? In most instances, W-2 employees cannot deduct job-related expenses on a federal tax return, but there are some exceptions if the expenses are related to enabling you to perform your job.

**Disclaimer: Every effort has been made to offer the most correct information possible. The poster disclaims any legal responsibility for the accuracy of the information that is contained in this post.**

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xmasbaby0

Federal>Deductions and Credits>Employment Expenses>Job-Related Expenses

**Disclaimer: Every effort has been made to offer the most correct information possible. The poster disclaims any legal responsibility for the accuracy of the information that is contained in this post.**

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BillM223

Why are you not already trying to deduct your IRWE expenses as Medical Expenses on Schedule A. Is it because your high income make it impractical (medical expenses must exceed 7.5% of your adjusted gross income to even begin to be deductible)?

But if you are asking about specific Social Security deductions as described here ("DI 10520.001 Impairment-Related Work Expenses (IRWE)"), then yes, your questions may be better directed to the SSA.

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amsyncAuthor

Correct, the 7.5% threshold is (just) too much to be able to deduct medical expenses. Thank you for the link. While I have yet to find conclusive evidence that one has to be covered by SSA as disabled and receiving SSDI or SSI in order to use IRWE on an individual tax return, since the IRWE is used to lower income in order to determine SGA, and a disabled person is not considered disabled (unless blind) if he/she has income exceeding SGA, thereby not meeting condition 1 of the eligible person criteria.