In this era of burgeoning medical expenses, not having health insurance can hit your savings dearly. And that’s not the single reason for having health insurance. Besides protecting the savings during a medical emergency, Health Insurance also provides tax benefits to the insured under section 80D of the Income Tax Act 1961. 

A Senior Citizen Health Insurance Plan take these benefits a step further. Read on to know more about the manifold tax benefits you can avail yourself of with a Senior Citizen Health Insurance Plan. 

An individual who is more than 60 years but less than 80 years of age at any time during the financial year is considered a Senior Citizen for tax purposes of that particular year. Furthermore, a person above 80 years of age at any time during the year is regarded as a Super Senior Citizen for that year.

Below are the Tax Benefits under Section 80D for a Senior Citizen Health Insurance Policy:

1. The premium that you pay towards your health insurance is tax deductible under Section 80D of the Income Tax. The limit for this deduction is ₹25000/- which can be extended to ₹50,000 if the premium payee is a senior citizen. 
2. With this benefit in place, an individual can enjoy a deduction of up to ₹75000, given both parents are senior citizens. 
3. In rare cases, when the policyholder is also above 60 years of age and has further insured his parents under health insurance, the deductible amount can be up to ₹1,00,000 (₹50000 for policyholder + ₹50000 for parents, both of whom are senior citizens).

To claim tax deduction under 80D, you must submit the following documents:

1. The receipt for the premium paid towards the health insurance policy. 
2. The health insurance policy document mentions the name of the members insured, their ages and their relation to the proposer. 
3. If parents are covered, check for an 80D certificate from the health insurance provider.

The golden years of an individual’s life are precious and should be spent without having to worry about any financial implications, especially when it comes to medical emergencies. 

Thus, any medical bills or the premium paid towards a health insurance policy for senior citizens is eligible for tax deductions u/s 80D. 

Other than the above discussed tax benefits on the health insurance policy, here are a few more cases where you can save tax by caring for your health. 

1. You can claim tax benefits on annual preventive check-ups up to ₹5000/-.
2. The expenses incurred for the treatment of critical illnesses are allowed for tax deduction up to ₹1,00,000. 
3. If you purchase a Life Insurance Policy with Critical Illness or any health-related rider, you can avail of dual tax benefits- the premium paid towards the Life Insurance is deductible under Section 80C and the premium paid towards the Rider is tax exempted under section 80D. 
4. Depending on the severity of their condition, differently abled people can claim a rebate of up to ₹75000 p.a. if they have a disability of 40% or more. In case of individuals with 80% disability, this can go up to ₹1,25,000. These deductions can also be availed of by individuals who oversee taking care of differently abled dependents, given that the dependent, in this case, has not already availed of this tax benefit. 
5. Section 80DDB of Income Tax exempts individuals or HUFs (Hindu Undivided Family) from the medical expenses or treatment incurred by the individual for themselves or their dependents. 

In this case, the amount of deduction that can be claimed is as follows: