Marriage Allowance Explained: Transfer £1,260 and Save on Tax

Marriage Allowance is a tax perk that lets one partner in a marriage or civil partnership transfer £1,260 of their Personal Allowance to the other. If you qualify, it can cut your household's tax bill by up to about £252 a year for 2025/26 — and you can backdate a claim for up to four previous tax years, potentially worth over £1,000 in one go.

It works when one of you doesn't use all of your tax-free Personal Allowance (usually because you earn under £12,570) and the other is a basic-rate taxpayer. The lower earner "lends" part of their unused allowance to the higher earner, who then pays tax on less of their income.

It's free to claim, done directly through HMRC, and once set up it usually renews automatically each year. This guide explains who qualifies and how to apply.

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Key Takeaways

• Marriage Allowance lets one partner transfer £1,260 of their Personal Allowance to the other, saving up to about £252 a year for 2025/26.
• To qualify, you must be married or in a civil partnership, with one partner a non-taxpayer and the other a basic-rate taxpayer.
• You can backdate a claim for up to four tax years, which can add up to a much larger one-off refund.
• It's free to claim through gov.uk and usually renews automatically each year once set up.

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What Marriage Allowance Is

Everyone gets a Personal Allowance — the amount of income you can earn each year before paying Income Tax, which is £12,570 for 2025/26. If you don't earn enough to use all of it, that spare allowance is normally wasted.

Marriage Allowance lets the lower-earning partner transfer £1,260 of their unused Personal Allowance to their husband, wife or civil partner. The receiving partner's tax-free allowance rises by £1,260, so £1,260 of their income that would have been taxed at 20% is now tax-free. That's a saving of £252 a year (20% of £1,260).

It's not a payment into your account — it's a reduction in the higher earner's tax, usually applied by adjusting their tax code.

Who Qualifies

To claim Marriage Allowance for 2025/26, all of the following must apply:

• You're married or in a civil partnership (simply living together doesn't count).
• One partner is a non-taxpayer — normally with income under the £12,570 Personal Allowance.
• The other partner is a basic-rate taxpayer — normally with income between £12,571 and £50,270 (the thresholds differ slightly in Scotland).

If the higher earner pays tax at the higher (40%) or additional rate, you generally can't claim. The idea is to help couples where one has little or no taxable income and the other pays basic-rate tax.

How Much You Can Save

The headline saving is up to £252 a year for 2025/26. But because you can backdate a claim for up to four earlier tax years (as long as you were eligible in each), a first-time claim can be worth much more — potentially over £1,000 once backdated years are added to the current year.

Each tax year has its own allowance and saving, so the exact backdated amount depends on the figures for those years. HMRC works this out and pays backdated amounts as a refund or through your tax code.

How to Claim

Claiming is free and straightforward — and you should only ever do it directly through the official route, not through third-party sites that charge a fee for the same thing:

1. The non-taxpaying partner (the one giving up part of their allowance) makes the application.
2. Apply online through the Marriage Allowance service on gov.uk, or by contacting HMRC.
3. You'll need both partners' National Insurance numbers and a way to prove your identity.
4. HMRC adjusts the higher earner's tax code and pays any backdated amount.

Once set up, it renews automatically each year, so you don't need to reapply — but you must tell HMRC if your circumstances change (see below).

When to Cancel or Review

You should review or cancel Marriage Allowance if your situation changes, for example:

• The lower earner's income rises above the Personal Allowance and they become a taxpayer.
• The higher earner moves into the higher-rate tax band.
• You divorce or dissolve your civil partnership.

If it no longer benefits you, either partner can cancel through HMRC. Before deciding, it's worth checking your combined position — our income tax calculator helps you see each partner's tax, and our other calculators cover the wider picture.

Frequently asked questions

How much is Marriage Allowance worth?

For 2025/26 it lets you transfer £1,260 of Personal Allowance, saving up to about £252 a year in tax. Backdating up to four years can make a first claim worth considerably more.

Who should apply — the higher or lower earner?

The lower-earning, non-taxpaying partner applies, because they're the one transferring part of their unused Personal Allowance. HMRC then adjusts the higher earner's tax.

Can I claim Marriage Allowance if we just live together?

No. You must be legally married or in a civil partnership. Couples who live together without being married or in a civil partnership don't qualify.

Is there a deadline to backdate a claim?

You can backdate for up to four tax years, but once a year falls outside that window you lose the chance to claim it. It's worth applying promptly so you don't miss out on earlier years.

General information only, not financial advice. Benefit rules change — check gov.uk or a benefits calculator like entitledto or Turn2us.