MARTIN Lewis has warned couples that they could be missing out on a tax break worth £1,200.
You could claim back hundreds of pounds worth of tax, but you have to act fast to get the full amount.
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Marriage allowance is available to couples who are married or in a civil partnership, where one person earns less than the personal allowance threshold of £12,570.
You can transfer £1,260 of your personal allowance to your partner, reducing their tax by up to £252.
In addition to this year’s allowance, you can also get it for the previous four tax years -currently 2017/18, 2018/19, 2019/20 and 2020/21.
The tax break was worth £230, £238, £250 and £250 during those years respectively, meaning you can get up to £1,210 in total.
But you can only backdate it by four years, so you need to act now get get the amount from 2017/18, Martin Lewis warned.
You could miss out on £230 if you don’t apply before April 5 this year.
Once you’ve claimed you won’t need to apply again but you should let HMRC know if you stop being eligible.
Speaking on ITV’s Martin Lewis Money Show Live, he said :”Now the gain for this year is £252, but this is backdate-able if you were eligible, so you need to do it now or you will lose the £230 from 2017/18.
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“And once you do claim by the way, you needn’t claim again – you’ll get it automatically, but you need to tell them if you’ve stopped becoming eligible.”
The money saving guru heard from one viewer who received a cheque for £960 after applying for backdated marriage allowance.
Who is eligible for marriage allowance?
You can claim marriage allowance if all the following apply:
- you’re married or in a civil partnership
- you do not pay income tax or your income is below your personal allowance (usually £12,570)
- your partner pays income tax at the basic rate, which usually means their income is between £12,571 and £50,270 before they receive marriage mllowance
You cannot claim marriage allowance if you’re living together but you’re not married or in a civil partnership.
You can backdate your claim to include any tax year since 5 April 2017 that you were eligible for marriage allowance.
Your partner’s tax bill will be reduced depending on the personal allowance rate for the years you’re backdating.
To work out how much you will get you can use the government’s marriage allowance calculator.
How can I apply for marriage allowance?
You can apply for marriage allowance for free online.
If both of you have no income other than your wages, then the person who earns the least should make the claim.
If either member of the couple gets other income, such as dividends or savings, you can call the Income Tax helpline to work out who should claim.
HMRC will then give the allowance you’ve transferred to your partner by changing their tax code or when they’ve sent their self assessment tax return.
Bear in mind that it can take up to two months to change a tax code.
If your new Personal Allowance is lower than your income after you’ve made a claim, you might have to pay some income tax. However, you might still benefit as a couple.
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