Will I get any tax benefits from being the caretaker of my elderly disabled parents beyond the Child and Other Dependent Tax Credits?

[hialeahjoe]

My mother is 74 and disabled, and my father 72 and also disabled. I am getting $1000 for Child and Other Dependent Tax Credits, but dont I also get a tax benefit for being caretaker for elderly/disabled?

[xmasbaby0]

Are you claiming your parents as dependents?   If so you would get the $500 credit for other dependents for each of them which you say you are getting.   And if you pay for their medical expenses and itemize deductions you can enter the out of pocket medical expenses you paid for them.   Did you pay any of their medical expenses?

No, there are no other tax benefits on your federal return for taking care of your elderly parents, or for saying on your return that they are disabled, unless you pay someone to take care of them so that you can work---in that case you could enter the child and dependent care credit and enter information for the money spent on a care provider for them.

[Hal_Al]

Q. Don't I also get a tax benefit for being caretaker for elderly/disabled?

A. No.

There  a couple of tax rules, that don't apply to you, that may be leading to that thought. 

1. If the government is paying you to care for your parents ("Medicare waiver payments that qualify as difficulty of care payments"), then that money is tax free income (but has to be reported, on your return). 

2. There is a credit for the elderly or disabled (you don't have to be both), but it applies to the taxpayer, not his dependents. Even then, very few people qualify because it's a non refundable credit.