By Faye Thompson
Would you like a £250 tax break for you and your partner?
HMRC are estimating that around 2 million couples will miss out on the £250 tax break again this year and have no idea that they can back date the claim and receive up to £1,150.
The Marriage Allowance lets people with an income of £12,500 or less, transfer up to £1,250 of their Personal Allowance to their husband, wife or civil partner (if your partners income is higher). This can reduce their tax by up to £250 for the 2020/2021 tax year. You can also backdate any claims for up to 4 years to April 2015.
This is the last chance for couples to back date their £250 claim for the 2015 and 2016 tax years as a deadline of 5th April 2020 has been set. After the deadline couples will only be able to claim as far back as the 2016 to 2017 tax year.
Couples in England, Wales and Northern Ireland can claim the Marriage Allowance if all of the below applies:
- Married or in a Civil Partnership.
- Don’t pay income tax OR your income is below the Personal Allowance threshold (normally £12,500).
- Your partner pays Income Tax at the basic rate between £12,501 and £50,000.
The same criteria applied to couples in Scotland, however, your partner must pay Income Tax at the starter, basic or intermediate rates between £12,501 and £43,430.
It will not affect your application for Marriage Allowance if you or your partner:
- Currently recieve a pension
- Live abroad (as long as you recieve a Personal Allowance).
You cannot claim Marriage allowance if you are already claiming the Married Couple’s allowance.
You only have to claim for Marriage Allowance once as HMRC will automatically renew this each year. However, if your circumstances change, you should notify HMRC immediately.
You can check if you are eligible for the Marriage Allowance by visiting gov.uk/marriage-allowance.
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