You can’t claim your pet as a dependent, no matter how much a part of the family your pet is. You can’t treat veterinary bills as deductible medical expenses. And you can’t take an adoption credit for rescuing a pet from the pound.
This could change. A bill entitled Humanity and Pets Partnered through the Years (HAPPY Act) would allow pet owners to deduct up to $3,500 in pet expenses each year. It is too early to predict the likelihood of enactment of this measure at this time. We’ll continue to monitor this bill for you!
A tax technique for receiving a refund of back taxes by applying a deduction or credit from a current tax year to a prior tax year. For example, a business net operating loss may be carried back for two years.