Couples – can you transfer your unused tax allowances?
The system for claiming the Marriage Allowance is up and running. It could save you up to £212 in the year to 5 April 2016.
Will you benefit?
To benefit from the Marriage Allowance you need to be part of a married couple or be civil partners. One member of the couple must have taxable income of less than the £10,600 tax-free personal allowance.
In addition:
- Neither you nor your partner must pay tax at higher (40%) or additional (45%) rates
- You must both be under the age of 80 on 5 April 2015
How to claim
The claim should be made by the partner with the lower income.
Go to https://www.gov.uk/marriage-allowance.
You will need some information to prove your identity to HMRC. So make sure you have the details to hand:
- the last 4 digits of the account that your child benefit, tax credits or pension is paid into
- the last 4 digits of an account that pays you interest
- details from your year end pay and tax summary form (P60). Your employer should have given you this form for the year to 5 April 2015 before 31 May.
You will also need both your own and your partner’s National Insurance numbers.
What happens next?
If your partner has income taxed under PAYE, such as an employment or pension, then their PAYE tax code will be increased by the amount of the available Marriage Allowance. This will mean that they pay slightly less tax.
More information
If you are unable to make a claim on-line, you may phone HMRC on 0300 200 3300 and ask to make a Marriage Allowance claim. You will need the information listed above.
There is information on the Marriage Allowance on the Gov.uk website at https://www.gov.uk/marriage-allowance-guide.
