Here’s How Tax Relief for Neurodivergent Kids Actually WorksIf you’re raising a neurodivergent child in South Africa, you’re already doing a lot.
Appointments. School meetings. Forms. “Can you just send that report again?” moments. The daily juggling act of home + school + therapy + life.
So when someone says, “You might be able to claim tax relief,” it can feel like one more admin mountain… right when you’re already running on fumes.
Here’s the good news: tax relief is available, and there’s a real framework designed to give families some breathing room.
The bad news is: it’s not always obvious how it works, and the internet is full of conflicting advice.
This guide will help you understand the basics without spiralling.
Tax relief is available in South Africa
South Africa’s tax system includes support for families who carry additional medical and care costs. The main mechanism is the Additional Medical Expenses Tax Credit (AMTC).
It’s not a cash payout. It’s a tax credit that reduces the amount of normal tax you pay.
For many families, it becomes a crucial “safety valve”, especially when you’re paying for the kind of support your child needs to function well in the real world.
Where neurodiversity fits into the SARS framework
SARS doesn’t have a neat category called “neurodivergence.”
Instead, conditions like Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), ADHD, and PDA are considered based on their functional impact, in other words, how much they limit day-to-day life.
For tax purposes, a “disability” is defined as a moderate to severe limitation in a person’s ability to function or perform daily activities (including learning, thinking, communicating).
If your child’s challenges create a moderate to severe limitation that is expected to last more than a year, your family may qualify for tax relief.
If the limitations are considered milder, the condition may fall under what SARS calls a “physical impairment.” (Despite the name, this category isn’t limited to physical conditions and can still apply in some neurodevelopmental contexts.)
Relief may still be available, but often with different thresholds and limits.
The common misunderstanding that trips parents up
One of the biggest myths is:
“If I have the diagnosis, we automatically qualify.”
Not necessarily.
SARS looks at whether the condition remains a significant limitation even after what it calls “maximum correction” (including appropriate therapy, treatment, or medication).
Because every child is different, eligibility is assessed case by case. Two families can have the same diagnosis and still have different outcomes depending on how the condition impacts daily functioning.
Which is frustrating, yes.
But also: it’s why getting clarity early matters.
Why paperwork and medical confirmation matter (even if you hate admin)
The admin requirements can feel like adding weight to an already heavy load.
But they’re also the keys to unlocking tax relief.
A diagnosis label isn’t enough. You need formal medical confirmation from a registered practitioner who is trained to give an opinion on your child’s condition.
The key document is the ITR-DD form (Confirmation of Diagnosis of Disability).
Whether this form is required in your situation can depend on how your child’s needs are classified (which is exactly where many parents get stuck).
Important: you typically don’t submit the form with your annual return, but you must keep it, along with invoices and proof of payments, for at least five years.
SARS often verifies these claims, so having your paperwork organised from the start protects you later.
Think of it like this: a few clicks to save documents today can save you hours of stress later.
You don’t have to figure it all out today
If this feels complex, you’re not meant to decode it alone in between lunchboxes and meltdowns.
So we created a simple starting point for parents:
✅ Download the tax relief cheat sheet at www.dalza.com/tax-relief-cheat-sheet/
A clear summary of what you need to know (and what to gather), without the jargon.
Supporting a neurodivergent child requires enough time, energy, and emotional bandwidth as it is. Tax admin shouldn’t be another thing you have to white-knuckle your way through.
Start with the cheat sheet.
Get the lay of the land.
And take it one step at a time.
👉 Download the free tax relief cheat sheet at www.dalza.com/tax-relief-cheat-sheet/
Disclaimer:
This content is provided for general information purposes only. It is not intended as legal, tax, or financial advice. Tax outcomes depend on individual circumstances, and eligibility for tax relief is assessed by SARS on a case-by-case basis. We recommend consulting a registered tax practitioner or qualified professional before submitting any tax claims
Dalza empowers parents, educators and healthcare professionals to effectively support children who learn and think differently.
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Sleep, Mood, Meltdowns: Turn Quick Notes into an Action Plan at SchoolIf you parent a neurodivergent child, your days are full of small moments that matter.
The noise that tipped them over.
The transition that went better than expected.
The snack that helped. The one that didn’t.
You clock these moments in real time. But then the day moves on.
By the time you’re packing lunches or collapsing on the couch, the details are blurred because you’re trying to hold too much in your head. So next time the teacher or therapist asks, “What seems to trigger it?” your mind goes blank
This is the quiet stress most parents don’t talk about: the pressure to remember everything, because it all feels important.
For parents of neurodivergent children, the challenge isn’t noticing the small moments. It’s remembering them accurately, connecting them over time, and turning them into something useful, without keeping a novel-length diary or relying on exhausted memory.
What does help is a simpler approach: brief daily notes that take seconds, can turn a week of scattered moments into clear patterns, and real support at school.
Here’s how to do it. The only rule: one line a day
For one school week, write one short line each evening. Just a note you’d want to remember later.
If it helps, anchor it to this single question:
“What changed today?”
That change might be:
- an unexpected calm transition
- Teacher-reported after assembly meltdown
- a small win that surprised you
Why this works.
This approach draws on simple journaling techniques that use one sentence a day to capture what matters, without overwhelm. When notes are short and consistent, patterns start to surface on their own.
After a week, you’re no longer relying on memory; you’re looking at evidence.
And that’s where things start to shift.
After 10 days, look for just three things:
1. What showed up more than once?
(“Late nights → tough mornings” / “Noise before lunch = meltdown risk”)
2. What helped, even a little?
(“Headphones after assembly” / “Written instructions”)
3. What surprised you?
(These are often the most useful insights.)
Turn it into a teacher/ therapist-ready message.
“Over the last week, we noticed that when instructions were given verbally only, [Your child’s name] struggled to get started. When they were written or shown visually, they were able to work more independently.”
It’s this actionable insight that bridges the gap between home, school and therapy and gets everyone in the care team working towards the same goal: supporting your child.
Keeping these daily notes in one place matters. When they’re scattered across your head, your phone, and half-finished notebooks, patterns get lost again.
Dalza is an award-winning app that gives parents a single, secure place to jot these one-line notes, spot patterns, and then share insights with teachers or therapists in a 1:1 or group chat.
Small notes turn guesswork into clarity, and clarity is what helps your child get the right support, sooner.
Dalza is free for 30 days, so you can try the ‘one line a day’ technique and see if it helps reduce your mental load, risk-free.
To get started today, simply add your name and email here.
Dalza empowers parents, educators and healthcare professionals to effectively support children who learn and think differently.
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Why Can’t my Child Cope with New-Term Change?Beneath the calendar reminders and stationery lists that accompany a new school year is the real worry: How will all this change affect my child’s body and brain?
For many families of neurodivergent children, the weight of that question becomes heavier through the first few weeks of the new school year.
Many autistic, ADHD, dyslexic, and sensory-sensitive learners rely on predictability to stay regulated.
When people, places, and pace all shift at once, their cognitive load and anxiety can climb, which makes it tougher to focus, follow instructions, or find their footing socially.
Practical routines matter: for example, clear, predictable structures and consistent cues reduce uncertainty and support attention.
You might also want to consider what experts call “acute monitoring.” In plain language, that means capturing quick notes, often daily or weekly for two to four weeks, to track how the recent changes are affecting your child and to adjust support quickly.
What should you track when everything shifts?
Keep it light but useful, just the breadcrumbs adults can act on:
- Sleep & morning start: tiredness amplifies anxiety and inattention.
Mood & stress signals: clinginess, shutdowns, pacing, nail-picking.
Triggers & tolerances: noise, crowded corridors, moving between spaces.
Appetite & energy: dips and spikes often mirror stress.
Social notes: who they sit or play with; who helps them feel safe.
Equally important is where those breadcrumbs live. School is only a slice of your child’s year (a child spends on average 14% of the year in school). What happens at home, aftercare, and therapy shows up in class, and the other way round.
When notes sit in scattered emails and WhatsApp threads, the teachers miss patterns and parents end up re-explaining. Strong parent–teacher partnerships are consistently linked to better academic, social, and emotional outcomes; sharing a clear, current picture is what makes that partnership work.
That’s where Dalza helps. It’s an award-winning, secure app that holds a living record of your child. One hub you control, where school, home, and therapy can see the same up-to-date essentials.
Tracking Patterns • Feedback • Action Plans (made simple):
- Patterns: Log short notes on sleep, mood, behaviour, appetite, and those tricky moments. Over a couple of weeks, the trends pop.
- Feedback: Capture input from teachers, therapists, and even from your child, how does this change feel, and does that shift week to week?
- Action Plans: When a pattern appears (e.g., loud assembly → overwhelm), agree one small tweak (headphones + movement break), record it, and see what changes.
It only takes a quick note each evening to start spotting patterns and feel the stress of trying to remember it all lifting.
You decide who sees what, when (POPIA/GDPR-aware by design). If school staff or therapists change, all the necessary information is immediately available, so your child’s support doesn’t skip a beat.
Change is inevitable; disruption isn’t. With a short burst of acute monitoring and one calm place for Patterns • Feedback • Action Plans, your child’s support stays responsive, and you don’t have to hold it all in your head.
Try Dalza free at dalza.com.
Dalza empowers parents, educators and healthcare professionals to effectively support children who learn and think differently.
Post Views: 36,076
