At the height of the wedding season, HMRC is reminding married couples and people in civil partnerships to sign up for the marriage allowance tax break

Marriage allowance allows married couples or people in civil partnerships, including those who have been together for many years, to share their personal tax allowances if one partner earns below the personal allowance threshold of £12,570, and the other is a basic rate taxpayer.

Eligible couples can transfer 10% of their tax-free allowance to their partner, which is £1,260 in 2022/23. It means couples can reduce the tax they pay by up to £252 a year. They can apply any time and, if eligible, could backdate their claims for up to four previous tax years to receive a payment of up to £1,242.

Marriage allowance is one of a number of benefits and reliefs available to boost family finances at a time when many are concerned with the rising cost of living.

Angela MacDonald, HMRC’s deputy chief executive, said: ‘We want to ensure people are receiving vital financial support at a time when they need it most. Married couples or those in a civil partnership could potentially receive tax relief worth up to £1,242, meaning extra cash in their pockets.

‘To find out if you are eligible and how to apply search ‘marriage allowance’ on gov.uk.’

More than two million couples currently benefit from marriage allowance, but there could be thousands more who are eligible to claim.

Even if couples do not qualify for marriage allowance when they first get married, a change in circumstances years later could mean they become newly eligible. These include:

• one partner retiring and the other remaining in work;
• a change in employment;
• a reduction in working hours which means their earnings fall below their personal allowance;
• maternity, paternity, or shared parental leave;
• unpaid leave or a career break; and
• one partner studying or in education and not earning above their personal allowance.

If a spouse or civil partner has died since 5 April 2018, the surviving person can still claim by contacting the income tax helpline.

Marriage allowance claims are automatically renewed every year. However, couples should notify HMRC if their circumstances change.