What Marriage Allowance is
Everyone has a tax free personal allowance, which is the amount of income you can receive each year before you start paying Income Tax. Marriage Allowance lets a spouse or civil partner who is not using all of their personal allowance transfer part of it to their partner. Specifically, the lower earning partner can transfer £1,260 of their allowance to the other.
The partner receiving the transfer then has a larger allowance, so they pay tax on less of their income. The result is a saving of up to £252 a year for the couple. It only works as a transfer in one direction at a time, from the non taxpayer or lower earner to the basic rate taxpayer.
Who can claim
To claim Marriage Allowance you must be married or in a civil partnership. Simply living together does not count for this relief, unlike some other parts of the tax system. One of you needs to be a non taxpayer or earning below the personal allowance, so that they have spare allowance to give away. The other partner needs to be a basic rate taxpayer, because the relief is not available where the receiving partner pays tax at the higher rate.
It is the lower earning partner who makes the claim, since they are the one transferring part of their allowance. Once set up, the transfer usually continues automatically each year until you cancel it or your circumstances change, so you do not have to reapply every year.
A worked example
One partner is a non taxpayer
Ben works part time and earns well below the personal allowance, so he pays no Income Tax and has unused allowance. His wife Chloe works full time and is a basic rate taxpayer. Ben applies to transfer £1,260 of his personal allowance to Chloe. Chloe's allowance increases, so £1,260 of her income that would have been taxed at 20 percent is now tax free. That saves the couple 20 percent of £1,260, which is £252 for the year. Because Ben was not using that part of his allowance anyway, the couple are better off overall by £252.
The saving is the same each year the transfer is in place, and it continues automatically until cancelled, so it keeps working in the background.
Backdating your claim
One of the best features of Marriage Allowance is that you can backdate a claim by up to 4 years, provided you were eligible in those years. This means a couple claiming for the first time can potentially recover relief for several earlier years as well as the current one, which can add up to a worthwhile lump sum.
To backdate, you simply include the earlier years when you make your claim, and HMRC works out what is due. If you have been eligible for some time without claiming, it is well worth checking how far back you can go. This kind of review often sits alongside wider tax planning to make sure you are using every allowance available to you.
How to claim and what to watch
The lower earning partner makes the claim. If you already file a return, the claim can be handled through Self Assessment, otherwise it can be claimed directly. Keep in mind that the transfer can occasionally leave the lower earner paying a small amount of tax if their income rises, so it is worth a quick check if your earnings change during the year.
It is also sensible to look at Marriage Allowance alongside other household reliefs and charges, such as the High Income Child Benefit Charge, so you see the full picture for your family. If you would like us to check your eligibility and sort out the claim, including any backdating, you can start your quote.
A simple guide to Marriage Allowance, who can claim, how much it saves and how to backdate a claim.
Frequently asked questions
How much can Marriage Allowance save?
It allows the transfer of £1,260 of personal allowance from the lower earner to a basic rate paying partner, saving the couple up to £252 a year.
Do we have to be married to claim?
Yes. You must be married or in a civil partnership. Living together without being married or in a civil partnership does not qualify for this relief.
Who actually makes the claim?
The lower earning partner, the one with unused personal allowance, makes the claim to transfer part of it to their basic rate paying partner.
Can I backdate a claim?
Yes. You can backdate a Marriage Allowance claim by up to 4 years, as long as you were eligible in those years. This can recover relief for several past years in one go.
What if the receiving partner is a higher rate taxpayer?
Marriage Allowance is not available where the receiving partner pays tax at the higher rate. The relief is designed for couples where one is a non taxpayer or lower earner and the other is a basic rate taxpayer.
Does the claim renew automatically?
Yes. Once set up, the transfer usually continues each year automatically until you cancel it or your circumstances change, so you do not need to reapply every year.