The appellant, a gay single man, claimed the medical expense tax credit (METC) for expenses incurred in 2015 for egg donation and gestational surrogacy services.
The Minister disallowed the claim.
The Tax Court of Canada held that the egg donor and surrogates did not meet the statutory definition of 'patient' under the Income Tax Act, as they were not the appellant's spouse, common-law partner, or dependant.
The Court also found that the denial of the METC did not infringe section 15 of the Charter, as the legislation did not treat the appellant differently from others in 2015.
The appeal was allowed only to the extent of a concession made by the Crown regarding DNA fragmentation expenses.
