There is a tax break sitting unclaimed by hundreds of thousands of eligible couples, simply because they have never heard of it. Marriage Allowance is straightforward, free to claim, and can put a useful sum back in your pocket every year — with back payments on top.
How it works
If one partner earns too little to use their full Personal Allowance, they can transfer a slice of it to the other partner, as long as that partner is a basic-rate taxpayer. The higher earner then pays tax on less of their income, cutting the household's overall bill. The saving is modest but worth having, and it repeats every year you remain eligible.
Who qualifies
- You must be married or in a civil partnership — living together does not count.
- One partner earns below the Personal Allowance threshold (or does not use it all).
- The other partner is a basic-rate taxpayer, not a higher-rate one.
Backdating
This is the part people miss. You can backdate a claim by several years if you were eligible at the time, which can turn a single claim into a noticeably larger one-off refund. It is worth checking even if your circumstances have since changed.
How to claim
Apply directly through the government website — it is free, and you should ignore any third party offering to do it for a cut of the refund. Once set up, the allowance usually carries forward automatically each year, so you claim once and benefit repeatedly. If your incomes change, review whether you still qualify.