Section 80DD Deduction: Disabled Dependant, Eligibility and Limits
Section 80DD of the Income-tax Act, 1961 provides a fixed deduction to eligible resident individuals and Hindu undivided families who support a dependant with a qualifying disability, through specified medical treatment, nursing, training, rehabilitation or contributions to approved maintenance schemes.
Section 80DD deduction amounts
| Qualifying disability | Fixed deduction under Section 80DD (1961 Act) |
|---|---|
| Person with disability (qualifying disability of at least 40%, subject to applicable certification law) | Rs. 75,000 |
| Person with severe disability (generally 80% or more, or qualifying statutory severe disability) | Rs. 1,25,000 |
These are fixed deductions, not reimbursement of actual expenditure. An eligible claimant does not receive both amounts for the same dependant. The deduction is subject to sufficient gross total income and other applicable conditions.
Who is eligible under Section 80DD(1)?
The claimant must be a resident individual or a resident Hindu undivided family (HUF). An individual may support a qualifying dependant who is a spouse, child, parent, brother or sister; for a HUF, the dependant must be a member of that HUF. The dependant must be wholly or mainly dependent on the claimant for support and maintenance and must not have claimed the disability deduction under Section 80U for the same relevant assessment year.
Qualifying outlays include medical treatment (including nursing), training and rehabilitation of the dependant, or payments into a specifically approved scheme for their maintenance. Merely holding a disability certificate without meeting the relevant expenditure or approved-scheme condition does not itself establish eligibility.
Meaning of disability, severe disability and dependant
Disability: A qualifying disability under the statutory definitions incorporated in Section 80DD, including specified conditions such as autism, cerebral palsy and multiple disabilities. The uploaded historical extract cites the Persons with Disabilities Act, 1995 and the National Trust Act, 1999. The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 changed the wider disability-law framework; verify the applicable income-tax definitions and certification requirements for the assessment year.
Severe disability: Generally a disability of 80% or more, or a category recognized as severe under the applicable incorporated legislation.
Dependant: A qualifying family member or HUF member wholly or mainly dependent on the claimant and not separately claiming Section 80U for the relevant year.
Section 80DD(2): approved maintenance schemes
Where deduction is claimed for payments to an approved insurance or maintenance scheme, the scheme must meet the conditions of Section 80DD(2). These include arrangements for an annuity or lump sum for the benefit of the dependant and an appropriate nomination of the dependant, another person or a trust to receive money for that benefit. Product approval and policy terms should be checked before contributing.
Section 80DD(3): payout and tax consequences
The original provision dealt with deemed income when the dependant predeceased the subscriber and specified amounts were received back. Finance Act, 2022 amended the scheme-related provisions to accommodate qualifying payments for the dependant during the subscriber's lifetime after the subscriber reaches the specified age, subject to statutory conditions, and to address associated tax consequences. The precise outcome depends on the date and terms of the policy, age, receipt and applicable amended text; do not rely solely on the historical extract below.
Section 80DD(4): disability certificate and records
Obtain a certificate from the prescribed medical authority in the prescribed form and maintain the documents required under the applicable rules and return-filing procedure. Where a certificate specifies reassessment or expires, obtain a renewed certificate when required. The historical statutory extract refers to furnishing a copy with the return; actual electronic filing and document-retention procedures should be checked on the official e-filing portal.
Practical examples
Example 1: A resident individual incurs Rs. 32,000 on qualifying treatment and care of a dependent child with certified qualifying disability. If all statutory conditions are met, the fixed deduction under the 1961 Act is Rs. 75,000, not merely Rs. 32,000.
Example 2: A resident taxpayer supports a dependent parent with a qualifying severe disability and incurs eligible expenditure. Subject to certification and other conditions, the fixed deduction is Rs. 1,25,000 under the applicable 1961 Act provisions.
Old tax regime and Income-tax Act, 2025
For tax years governed by the 1961 Act, Section 80DD is ordinarily an old-regime deduction and is generally unavailable under the concessional regime under Section 115BAC. Since the Income-tax Act, 2025 came into effect from 1 April 2026, verify the relevant corresponding provisions and available deductions before preparing a return for a later tax year.
Frequently asked questions
What is the deduction amount under Section 80DD?
For eligible assessment years under the Income-tax Act, 1961, the fixed deduction is Rs. 75,000 for a dependant with qualifying disability and Rs. 1,25,000 for severe disability, subject to all conditions.
Is Section 80DD based on the actual amount spent?
No. It provides a fixed statutory deduction when qualifying expenditure is incurred or a qualifying approved scheme contribution is made, subject to eligibility.
Can a non-resident individual claim Section 80DD?
Section 80DD of the 1961 Act requires the claimant to be a resident individual or resident Hindu undivided family.
Can a dependant claim Section 80U while a family member claims Section 80DD?
The same dependant must not have claimed Section 80U for the relevant assessment year where Section 80DD is claimed.
Can Section 80DD be claimed under the new tax regime?
Under the 1961 Act, Section 80DD is generally not available to an individual using the concessional regime under Section 115BAC. Verify the governing tax-year law, including the Income-tax Act, 2025.
Official legal and filing resources
- India Code - Central legislation
- Income Tax Department - statutes, rules and circulars
- Income Tax e-Filing Portal - forms and return guidance
- Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities
Original Section 80DD text and legislative notes (historical)
The following extract and amendment notes are preserved from the original page. They are reproduced for reference and should not be treated as a fully consolidated text of all later amendments.
1 ,2 (1) Where an assessee, being an individual or a Hindu undivided family, who is a resident in India, has, during the previous year,- (a) incurred any expenditure for the medical treatment (including nursing), training and rehabilitation of a dependant, being a person with disability; or
(b) paid or deposited any amount under a scheme framed in this behalf by the
Life Insurance Corporation or any other insurer or the Administrator or the
specified company subject to the conditions specified in sub-section (2) and
approved by the Board in this behalf for the maintenance of a dependant, being a
person with disability,
the assessee shall, in accordance with and subject to the provisions of this
section, be allowed a deduction of a sum of seventy-five thousand rupees from
his gross total income in respect of the previous year:
Provided that where such dependant is a person with severe disability, the provisions of this sub-section shall have effect as if for the words "seventy-five thousand rupees", the words "one hundred and twenty-five thousand rupees" had been substituted.
(2) The deduction under clause (b) of sub-section (1) shall be allowed only if the following conditions are fulfilled, namely:-
(a) the scheme referred to in clause (b) of sub-section (1) provides for payment of annuity or lump sum amount for the benefit of a dependant, being a person with disability, in the event of the death of the individual or the member of the Hindu undivided family in whose name subscription to the scheme has been made;
(b) the assessee nominates either the dependant, being a person with disability, or any other person or a trust to receive the payment on his behalf, for the benefit of the dependant, being a person with disability.
(3) If the dependant, being a person with disability, predeceases the individual or the member of the Hindu undivided family referred to in sub-section (2), an amount equal to the amount paid or deposited under clause (b) of sub-section (1) shall be deemed to be the income of the assessee of the previous year in which such amount is received by the assessee and shall accordingly be chargeable to tax as the income of that previous year.
(4) The assessee, claiming a deduction under this section, shall furnish a copy of the certificate issued by the medical authority in the prescribed form and manner, along with the return of income under section 139, in respect of the assessment year for which the deduction is claimed:
Provided that where the condition of disability requires reassessment of its extent after a period stipulated in the aforesaid certificate, no deduction under this section shall be allowed for any assessment year relating to any previous year beginning after the expiry of the previous year during which the aforesaid certificate of disability had expired, unless a new certificate is obtained from the medical authority in the form and manner, as may be prescribed, and a copy thereof is furnished along with the return of income.
Explanation.-For the purposes of this section,-
(a) "Administrator" means the Administrator as referred to in clause (a) of
section 2 of the Unit Trust of India (Transfer of Undertaking and Repeal) Act,
2002 (58 of 2002);
(b) "dependant" means-
(i) in the case of an individual, the spouse, children, parents, brothers and sisters of the individual or any of them;
(ii) in the case of a Hindu undivided family, a member of the Hindu undivided
family,
dependant wholly or mainly on such individual or Hindu undivided family for his
support and maintenance, and who has not claimed any deduction under section 80U
in computing his total income for the assessment year relating to the previous
year;
(c) "disability" shall have the meaning assigned to it in clause (i) of section 2 of the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995 (1 of 1996) 3 and includes "autism", "cerebral palsy" and "multiple disability" referred to in clauses (a), (c) and (h) of section 2 of the National Trust for Welfare of Persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disabilities Act, 1999 (44 of 1999);
(d) "Life Insurance Corporation" shall have the same meaning as in clause (iii) of sub-section (8) of section 88; (e) "medical authority" means the medical authority as referred to in clause (p) of section 2 of the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995 (1 of 1996) or such other medical authority as may, by notification, be specified by the Central Government for certifying "autism", "cerebral palsy", "multiple disabilities", "person with disability" and "severe disability" referred to in clauses (a), (c), (h), (j) and (o) of section 2 of the National Trust for Welfare of Persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disabilities Act, 1999 (44 of 1999);
(f) "person with disability" means a person as referred to in clause (t) of section 2 of the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995 (1 of 1996) 3 or clause (j) of section 2 of the National Trust for Welfare of Persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disabilities Act, 1999 (44 of 1999);
4 (g) "person with severe disability" means-
(i) a person with eighty per cent or more of one or more disabilities, as
referred to in sub-section (4) of section 56 of the Persons with Disabilities
(Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995 (1
of 1996); or
(ii) a person with severe disability referred to in clause (o) of section 2 of the National Trust for Welfare of Persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disabilities Act, 1999 (44 of 1999);
(h) "specified company" means a company as referred to in clause (h) of section 2 of the Unit Trust of India (Transfer of Undertaking and Repeal) Act, 2002 (58 of 2002).
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1. Subs. by Act 32 of 2003, s. 34, for section 80DD (w.e.f. 1-4-2004).
2. Subs. by Act 20 of 2015, s. 20, for sub-section (1) (w.e.f. 1-4-2016).
3. Ins. by Act 23 of 2004, s. 16 (w.e.f. 1-4-2005).
4. Subs. by s. 16, ibid., for clause (g) (w.e.f. 1-4-2005).