With the wedding season in full swing, HMRC wants to make couples aware of the Marriage Allowance tax saving.
Marriage Allowance allows you to transfer £1,260 of your Personal Allowance to your husband, wife or civil partner which reduces their tax by up to £252 in the tax year.
Eligibility
you’re married or in a civil partnership
you do not pay Income Tax or your income is below your Personal Allowance (usually £12,570)
your partner pays Income Tax at the basic rate
You cannot claim Marriage Allowance if you’re living together but you’re not married or in a civil partnership.
You can still apply for Marriage Allowance if you:
receive a pension
live abroad - as long as you get a Personal Allowance.
Backdating your claim
You can backdate your claim to include any tax year since 5 April 2018 that you were eligible for Marriage Allowance.
Your partner’s tax bill will be reduced depending on the Personal Allowance rate for the years you’re backdating.
If your partner has died since 5 April 2018 you can still claim - phone the Income Tax helpline on 0300 200 3300. If your partner was the lower earner, the person responsible for managing their tax affairs needs to phone.
Stopping Marriage Allowance
Your Personal Allowance will transfer automatically to your partner every year until you cancel. You can cancel Marriage Allowance online through your your personal tax gateway (you will need your log in details) or call 0300 200 3300.
To Note
When you transfer some of your Personal Allowance to your husband, wife or civil partner you might have to pay more tax yourself, but you could still pay less as a couple.