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Marriage Allowance – are you missing out?

This was introduced in the 2015/16 tax year and allows, in certain circumstances, the transfer of 10% of unused personal allowances between spouses or civil partners.

For the 2015/16 tax year, you may be eligible to transfer £1,060 of your personal allowance between each other which represents a tax reduction of £212.00.

For the 2016/17, tax year you may be eligible to transfer £1,100 of your personal allowance between each other which represents a tax reduction of £220.00.

How do I qualify?

To qualify, one partner must have total income below the personal allowance (£10,600) and the other must be a basic rate taxpayer. 

How do I apply?

If you have not already submitted a claim then don’t worry, as it is not too late.

A claim must be made by telephoning HMRC on 0300 200 3300 or online at www.gov.uk/marriageallowance which can then be backdated to the 2015/16 tax year. Your tax liability will not be reduced if an online or telephone claim has not been made.

Your tax return is not for the purposes of making a claim, but for confirming to HMRC that an online/telephone claim has already been made.

The person who calls HMRC must be the person who is transferring the allowances (ie the person with income below £10,600 in 2015/16 or £11,000 in 2016/17).

Unfortunately, HMRC will not allow agents to make the claim on their clients’ behalf.

For more information call FBTC, the tax experts!