Married couples may be able to cut their tax bill with a little-known tax break. The marriage tax allowance allows you to transfer £1,260 of your personal allowance to your husband, wife, or civil partner to reduce how much tax they pay. This reduces their tax by up to £252 in the current tax year, by increasing their tax-free allowance from £12,570 to up to £13,830.
Your personal allowance is the amount you can earn each year before you start paying tax. This is currently set at £12,570 and is set to be frozen at this level until 2031. You must meet certain eligibility criteria to benefit from marriage tax allowance.
Eligibility Criteria
You must be married or in a civil partnership, and both of you need to have been born on or after April 6, 1935. One of you needs to be a non-taxpayer, which usually means you earn less than £12,570. The other person needs to be paying the basic 20% rate of tax, which normally means you earn less than £50,270. You are not eligible for marriage tax allowance if one of you is an additional or higher rate taxpayer.
How to Claim
The non-taxpayer needs to be the one who applies for marriage tax allowance. Once your claim has been approved, you'll then receive the tax benefit going forward. You can claim back marriage tax allowance for the last four tax years, provided you met the criteria for each tax year in question. If you claim for this tax year and backdate the maximum four years, you will get up to £1,260.
For the current tax year, the higher earner will have their tax code adjusted so they pass less tax, while any tax owed for previous tax years will be sent by cheque.
Expert Comment
Clare Stinton, senior personal finance analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “This time of year usually marks the start of wedding season. But while wedding bells are ringing, fewer couples are saying ‘I do’. More are choosing cohabitation, but skipping the aisle can be costly when it comes to money, tax and long-term financial security. Tying the knot unlocks financial advantages – in particular, tax perks. Benefits that unmarried couples simply don’t have access to, no matter how long they’ve lived together, regardless of shared bills, or whether they have children.”
