If you are paying for treatment out of your own pocket, you may be wondering whether you can claim physiotherapy on taxes in Canada. The short answer is yes, in many cases you can. Physiotherapy, chiropractic care, registered massage therapy and naturopathic care in Ontario can all count toward the federal medical expense tax credit, as long as you keep the paperwork and follow a few rules. The CRA treats the practitioner’s fees as eligible, but supplements and vitamins generally are not.
Many people miss two of those rules: the 12-month window and the 3% threshold. Understanding them can help you work out whether your costs are likely to produce a credit that reduces the tax you owe. This guide walks through how it works in plain English. It is general information, not tax advice, so please check your own situation with the CRA or a tax professional before you file.
Key Takeaways
- Physiotherapists, chiropractors, registered massage therapists, naturopaths and acupuncturists are all on the CRA list of authorized medical practitioners for Ontario.
- You only get a credit for eligible expenses above the lesser of 3% of your net income or a fixed dollar amount ($2,834 for 2025, $2,890 for 2026).
- You can pick any 12-month period that ends in the tax year, so you are not stuck with January to December.
- You can only claim the part of an expense that you have not been, and will not be, reimbursed for. Amounts your insurer has reimbursed generally cannot be claimed, so keep receipts in case the CRA asks.
Can you claim physiotherapy on your taxes in Canada?
Yes. Fees you pay to a physiotherapist who is authorized in your province are eligible medical expenses on your tax return. You claim them through the medical expense tax credit, which is reported on line 33099 of your return for yourself, your spouse or common-law partner, and your children under 18. Medical expenses for certain other dependants go on line 33199. The CRA page on lines 33099 and 33199 sets out the full rules.
It is a non-refundable credit, which means it reduces the tax you owe rather than lowering your income directly.
Which Ontario practitioners does the CRA accept?
The CRA publishes a table of authorized medical practitioners by province. For Ontario, the table includes all of the following, which cover most of the services we offer at Wellmax:
- Physiotherapy (physiotherapist or physical therapist)
- Chiropractic care (chiropractor)
- Registered massage therapy (massage therapist)
- Naturopathic medicine (naturopath)
- Acupuncture (acupuncturist)
The practitioner has to be authorized in the province where they practise. That matters if you ever pay for care while travelling outside Ontario. Our team at Wellmax is made up of regulated health professionals in Ontario, led by physiotherapist Gurmeet Rai, who has 16+ years of experience, together with our chiropractor, registered massage therapists and naturopathic doctor.
Can you claim massage therapy on your taxes in Ontario?
Yes, when the treatment is provided by a registered massage therapist. The CRA table lists massage therapists for Ontario, and the rules are the same as for any other practitioner. If you are also curious about benefits, we cover whether massage therapy is covered by insurance in a separate guide.
What about chiropractic, naturopathic and acupuncture care?
All three are on the Ontario list as well. Eligible fees paid to any of these practitioners count toward the same pool. So your physiotherapy, chiropractic, massage and naturopathic receipts for the year can all go in together rather than being treated as separate claims.
How does the 3% threshold work?
You cannot claim every dollar. Your eligible expenses first have to pass a threshold, and only the amount above it produces a credit. According to the Canada Revenue Agency, the threshold is the lesser of 3% of your net income (line 23600) or a fixed dollar amount.
That fixed amount changes every year because it is indexed to inflation. The CRA lists it as $2,834 for the 2025 tax year and $2,890 for the 2026 tax year, based on its indexation figures. For many households, 3% of net income is the lower number, so that is the one that applies.
“The two rules most people miss are simple: you can choose which 12 months to claim, and you can only claim the part nobody has reimbursed.”
What is the 12-month rule for medical expenses?
This is the part that surprises people. The CRA lets you claim eligible medical expenses paid in any 12-month period that ends in the tax year you are filing for. It does not have to line up with the calendar year.
For a 2026 return, for example, you could choose a window that runs from September 1, 2025 to August 31, 2026, as long as you did not already claim those 2025 expenses on your 2025 return. It is worth choosing this window only if it holds more of your unreimbursed expenses than January to December would. You can compare a few different windows and choose the one that gives the best result.
Why does the 12-month window matter?
Treatment rarely respects the calendar. If you started a course of care in October and kept going into the new year, splitting the costs between two tax years can leave each year below the threshold and produce no credit at all. Choosing one 12-month window that captures the whole stretch of care can pull those costs into a single claim.
Can you use the same expenses twice?
No. An expense can only be claimed once. If you used a receipt in a prior year’s 12-month window, it cannot be counted again. Keep a simple note of the window you used each year.
Which spouse should claim physiotherapy expenses?
Either spouse or common-law partner can claim the family’s combined medical expenses. The CRA suggests you compare the result and notes that it may be better for the spouse with the lower net income to claim. The 3% threshold is lower for the lower-income spouse. Because the credit only reduces tax owed, it also depends on how much tax each spouse pays, so test both.
You can also combine expenses for yourself, your spouse and your dependent children into one claim. Your tax software will usually let you test both spouses and show which approach gives the larger credit.
What if my insurance paid for part of my physiotherapy?
You can only claim the portion you were not reimbursed for. That is the rule in the CRA guidance, and it is the most important one to follow. If your extended health plan paid for part of a visit, the part it paid is not part of your claim.
In other words, claim what you actually paid out of pocket. Here is how that plays out in common situations:
- Direct billing: your insurer pays the clinic and you pay only your share. Your share is what you can claim.
- Pay and submit: you pay the full amount and submit a claim afterwards. Once your insurer reimburses you, only the unreimbursed part is claimable.
- Plan maximum reached: if your plan stops paying partway through the year, the visits after that point are yours to claim.
Only the unreimbursed amount counts. You can read more about how coverage works in our guide to direct billing and insurance coverage, or see what physiotherapy costs in Ontario if you are still deciding on care.
What receipts do you need to keep?
The CRA says not to send documents with your return, but to keep them in case it asks to see them later. A good receipt shows the date, the amount paid, the name of the practitioner or clinic, and what the payment was for.
A few habits make this painless:
- Put every receipt in one folder (paper or digital) as soon as you get it.
- Note which receipts were partly reimbursed by insurance, and by how much.
- Write down the 12-month window you chose for the year.
- The CRA asks you to keep tax records for six years from the end of the tax year they relate to.
If you ever need a copy of a receipt from us, ask at the front desk. We also answer the common question about getting a receipt for insurance or taxes on our FAQ page.
What does a real example look like?
Here is a made-up example to show the math. The numbers are illustrative only and are not Wellmax pricing.
Say the claiming spouse has a net income of $60,000. 3% of that is $1,800, which is less than the $2,890 cap for 2026, so the threshold is $1,800. Over a 12-month window, the family paid $3,500 for physiotherapy, massage and eligible prescription drugs that insurance did not cover.
The amount above the threshold is $3,500 minus $1,800, which is $1,700. The federal credit is then roughly 14% of that $1,700 for 2026, which is about $238, and Ontario also has its own medical expense credit with its own threshold. Your tax software does this calculation for you, but it helps to know where the number comes from.
Notice what would change the result. If $1,000 of that $3,500 had been reimbursed by an insurer, it would come out of the claim first. And if the family had spent only $1,500, they would not pass the threshold at all and would get no credit for medical expenses that year.
Is it worth tracking physiotherapy costs for tax time?
It depends on how much you spend and on your income, which is why we suggest keeping receipts even when you are unsure. The credit is more likely to matter if you had a year with several types of care, a larger family, a lower net income or an injury that needed a longer course of treatment.
It is also worth remembering that this is only the money side. The reason you are in treatment is that something hurts or does not move the way it should. Our job is to find the cause and help you get better, with a plan that has an end point rather than endless visits. If you are not sure what you need, read about whether you need a referral and see what your first visit looks like.
How can Wellmax help?
At Wellmax Physiotherapy in Oakville, we serve patients across Oakville and Mississauga. Your first visit is a 60-minute assessment, and the care is hands-on manual therapy aimed at finding the root cause of the problem. We offer direct billing to most major insurers, so you only pay your portion at the desk, which also keeps the math of your tax claim simple.
The details in this post are general information, not tax advice. Thresholds and rules can change, so confirm the current figures on the CRA website or with an accountant before you file.
Not sure where to start?
Book a free consultation and we will point you to the right care, with no pressure.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you claim physiotherapy on your taxes in Ontario?+
Yes, when the physiotherapist is authorized in Ontario. The CRA lists physiotherapists as authorized medical practitioners in Ontario, so what you pay for physiotherapy can count toward the medical expense tax credit. You can only claim the part that you were not reimbursed for, and only after your total eligible expenses pass the 3% of net income threshold (or the fixed dollar cap, whichever is lower). Keep your receipts in case the CRA asks to see them.
Can you claim massage therapy on your taxes in Ontario?+
Yes, when the treatment is provided by a registered massage therapist, because the CRA lists massage therapists among the authorized practitioners for Ontario. The same rules apply as for physiotherapy: claim only what was not reimbursed, keep your receipts, and remember that your expenses must pass the 3% threshold before they produce any credit.
What is the 12-month rule for medical expenses?+
You can choose any 12-month period that ends in the tax year you are filing for, and claim the eligible expenses you paid in that window. The period does not have to be January to December. Pick the window that captures the most unreimbursed expenses, and do not use expenses you already claimed on a previous year’s return.
Who should claim medical expenses, me or my spouse?+
The CRA suggests comparing both options and notes that it may be better for the spouse or common-law partner with the lower net income to claim. That is because the 3% threshold is based on the claimant’s net income, so a lower income can mean a lower threshold. Your tax software or a tax professional can run both versions in a few minutes.
Can I claim what my insurance already paid for?+
No. You can only claim the portion you were not reimbursed for and will not be reimbursed for. If your extended health plan paid part of a physiotherapy visit, only the part you paid out of pocket can count. The CRA has a narrow exception for some reimbursements that were already included in your income, which a tax professional can confirm.
Do I need to send my receipts in with my tax return?+
No. The CRA says not to send documents with your return, but to keep them in case it asks to see them later. Keep receipts that show the date, the amount, the name of the practitioner or clinic, and what was paid. If you need a copy of a receipt from us, just ask at the front desk.
Is the medical expense threshold the same every year?+
No. The fixed dollar amount is indexed to inflation. The CRA lists it as $2,834 for 2025 and $2,890 for 2026. The threshold is always the lesser of that fixed amount or 3% of your net income, so most people with a modest income use the 3% figure instead.
Do I need a referral to claim physiotherapy as a medical expense?+
The CRA authorized practitioner list is about who provided the service, and physiotherapists are on it for Ontario. At Wellmax you do not need a referral to book physiotherapy. Check with your insurance plan separately, because some plans have their own rules about what they reimburse.
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Gurmeet Rai, Registered Physiotherapist
Gurmeet is a Registered Physiotherapist with the College of Physiotherapists of Ontario and the Clinic Director and co-owner of Wellmax Physiotherapy in Oakville, with 16+ years of clinical experience. She focuses on complex, stubborn cases where earlier treatment has not worked, with advanced training in pelvic health, TMJ, vestibular, and sports and MSK rehab. Expect expert care from assessment to discharge, with honest guidance along the way.Read Gurmeet’s full profile or meet the team.
This article is for educational purposes only and does not replace a professional clinical assessment. Every body and condition is different. If you are experiencing pain or symptoms, book an assessment with a qualified clinician for advice specific to your situation. If you are experiencing a medical emergency, call 911 or visit your nearest emergency department.
