If you habit secure sex, the IRS has some excellent information. Condoms now qualify as an itemized deduction.

When the IRS recently announced recent levy brackets, standard deductions and other significant items for the 2025 levy period, it also issued Notice 2024-71. It says condoms for a taxpayer, spouse or dependent now qualify as a medical outlay and can be deducted if you itemize and your medical costs exceed 7.5% of adjusted gross turnover (AGI) for the year. AGI is total turnover minus deductions, or “adjustments” to turnover that you are eligible to receive.

Previously, condoms as an itemized levy deduction were on a case-by-case basis. “You had to prove you had a medical rationale such as not spreading a STD (sexually transmitted disease) rather than just as a contraceptive,” said Richard Pon, a certified community accountant in northern California.

Condoms have been reimbursable for years through a pre-levy health reserves account (HSA) or flexible reserves account (FSA), which cover over-the-counter medications that aren’t generally levy deductible as an itemized deduction.

Condoms are only one of many medical-related costs that qualify for a levy deduction, Pon said. Some listed below aren’t recent but may be little known, he said.

More levy deductible medical-related costs

• DNA collection kits if used to obtain health worry information, not ancestry information. This is suggested in a 2019 private note ruling (PLR) for a taxpayer asking the IRS for clarification on the levy treatment for genetic testing. Technically, PLRs only apply to the taxpayer requesting clarification, but the ruling indicates the IRS’ thinking on the matter and how it might treat similar situations, experts said. The IRS said the “taxpayer must allocate the worth paid for the DNA collection kit and health services between the medical and non-medical items and services to determine what is medical worry” and may deduct that portion of the outlay.
• Breast pumps and lactation supplies, such as pump accessories, nursing pads, milk storage bags and nipple cream/ointments.
• Smoking cessation programs and nicotine extraction drugs, but only if they’re doctor prescribed. Over-the-counter nicotine patches are not levy deductible.
• Volunteer-related costs. The hourly rate for period spent helping can’t be deducted but unreimbursed items volunteers spent money on can be. Any deduction of $250 or more requires documentation and possibly, acknowledgment from the qualified charity. “Volunteer medical professionals may have scrubs, uniforms and personal protective equipment,” Pon said. “Sometimes they have volunteer trip, such as Doctors Without Borders. Sometimes they have medical equipment they pay for. Volunteer first responders may also have uniforms and safety gear that are unreimbursed costs.”

What if I don’t itemize?

People who don’t itemize their levy returns can still advantage by using a health reserves account (HSA) or flexible spending account (FSA) to reimburse themselves for medical costs, Pon said.

FSA and HSA contributions aren’t taxed. For 2025, the HSA contribution limit for an person is ​$4,300 and $8,550 for a household with a high deductible health schedule. The FSA contribution limit is $3,300.

“The recent joint standard deduction is $30,000 so it’s challenging for a lot of people to itemize,” he said. And “even if you itemize, most people do not deduct medical costs since it must exceed 7.5% of your adjusted gross turnover.”

FSAs and HSAs also cover OTC medications or drugs like insulin that aren’t allowed as itemized deductions. “So, this is one way to get a levy deduction for over-the-counter medicine such as Tylenol,” Pon said.

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What are some other advantages of FSAs and HSAs?

• FSA reimbursement eligibility occurs on day 1 of your employment.  If you have been reimbursed more than you have contributed, you do not have to repay the funds when you leave the job as long as the funds were used on eligible costs, Pon said.

For example, he said: Fred elects to contribute in 2025 $600, or $50 monthly, to his FSA. In January, Fred buys glasses for $500 and receives reimbursement from his FSA. Fred leaves his job in February when his employer had only deducted $100 in FSA contributions. Fred is not responsible for repaying the $400 excess from the FSA.

“Therefore, from a monetary perspective, it’s best to use as much of your FSA early in the year as you do not have to repay excess FSA funds if you later leave during the year,” Pon said.

• HSAs can also be used as capital apportionment vehicles.HSA funds can be invested and develop levy free over period. Plus, if you suddenly discover yourself in a monetary bind, you can withdraw money levy-free against any receipts for qualified costs you paid for out of pocket while your HSA was invested and growing. “There’s no timeline of when an HSA account holder has to reimburse themselves,” said Ryan Losi, executive vice president at CPA firm PIASCIK. “You can accumulate medical costs, make a folder over 40 years and put in all the documents for them; meantime, pay out of pocket, then at 65 (years ancient) you can reimburse yourself, levy free.”

Medora Lee is a money, markets, and financial planning reporter at USA TODAY. You can reach her at [email protected] and  subscribe to our free Daily Money newsletter for financial planning tips and business information every Monday through Friday morning.