Marriage and married couple’s allowance

This transferral reduces a partner’s tax by up to £252 in the tax year (6 April to 5 April the next year).

Marriage Allowance is sometimes referred to as the Marriage Tax Allowance.

You might qualify for Marriage Allowance if:

• you’re married, or in a civil partnership and are not in receipt of Married Couple’s Allowance
• you do not pay income tax or you earn less than your Personal Allowance so are not liable to tax. This will usually mean an income of less than £12,570 for 2022-23.
• your partner pays tax on their income at the basic rate so is not liable to tax at the higher or additional rates. This will usually mean your partner ihas an income between £12,571 and £50,270 before they receive the Marriage Allowance. If you’re in Scotland, your partner must pay the starter, basic or intermediate rate, which usually means their income is between £12,571 and £43,662.

Marriage Allowance means the partner who earns more will get £1,260 added to their basic Personal Allowance.

Of the amount of money transferred to a partner as part of Marriage Allowance – 20% is given as a reduction in their tax bill. This is different from Personal Allowance – which is deducted from taxable income before tax is worked out.

Here’s an example – although this won't apply if you're in Scotland as the income tax bands there are different.

If you earn £30,000 a year, you’re a basic rate taxpayer. If your partner earns £8,000 a year, they’re a non-taxpayer. This means your household could be £252 better off:

You can apply online to HMRC at GOV.UKOpens in a new window All you need are your National Insurance numbers and identification.

You can also apply by calling 0300 200 3300*

_{*Lines are open Monday to Friday: 8am to 6pm, There may be call charges. See GOV.UK for details}

You need to meet the criteria for each year you apply for.

Keep in mind that the threshold for non-taxpayers and basic rate taxpayers is different according to the tax year you’re claiming for.

You can backdate your claim for up to four years.

You can apply online to HMRC at GOV.UKOpens in a new window

If your partner died after 2016, and you meet the other criteria for Marriage Allowance – you can still apply for the benefit.

You’ll be applying for a backdate of the benefit up to four years. 

To apply for Marriage Allowance if you partner has died, call 0300 200 3300*

^{*Lines are open Monday to Friday: 8am to 6pm. There may be call charges. See GOV.UK for details}

Where one or both partners were born before 6 April 1935 might be able to claim a more generous allowance, called Married Couple’s Allowance. This means that one member of the couple must be at least 88 years old on 5 April 2023 to qualify for an allowance in the 2022/23 tax year.

For marriages before 5 December 2005, the husband’s income is used to work out Married Couple’s Allowance. Although it can be transferred to the wife.

For marriage and civil partnerships after this date, it’s the income of the highest earner.

Tax relief for the Married Couple’s Allowance is 10%. This means that the higher earning partner gets 10% of the tax they pay.

The benefit has upper and lower limits for both the amount of tax that can be claimed and how much that can be earned.

For the 2022-23 tax year, this could cut your tax bill between £353 and £912.50 a year.