Marriage Allowance
Calculator 2025/26
Two separate allowances are available to married couples and civil partners — Marriage Allowance (up to £252/year for those born after 5 April 1935) and Married Couple’s Allowance (£436–£1,127/year for those where at least one partner was born before 6 April 1935). This calculator covers both, plus the backdated lump sum you may be owed for up to four unclaimed years — commonly over £1,000.
Marriage Allowance — what is it and who qualifies?
Marriage Allowance lets the lower-earning partner transfer 10% of their Personal Allowance (£1,260 for 2025/26) to their spouse or civil partner. The recipient gets a £252 reduction in their tax bill (£1,260 × 20%). To qualify:
- You must be married or in a civil partnership (cohabiting couples cannot claim).
- The donor (lower earner) must have income below the Personal Allowance — typically below £12,570. If the donor earns between £11,310 and £12,570, they may incur a small tax cost from reducing their own allowance.
- The recipient (higher earner) must be a basic-rate taxpayer: income between £12,571 and £50,270 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland; or between £12,571 and £43,662 in Scotland.
- Both partners must be born after 5 April 1935. If either was born before that date, the Married Couple’s Allowance (see below) applies instead.
The donor cost — what most calculators miss
When the lower earner’s income is between £11,310 and £12,570, they will pay a small amount of income tax after transferring £1,260 of their allowance, since their remaining personal allowance becomes £11,310. The tax saving to the recipient (£252) will still outweigh this donor cost in almost all cases — but it’s worth understanding the net couple saving rather than just the gross recipient benefit.
Before Marriage Allowance: Lower earner has £12,570 allowance, income £11,800. Tax = £0.
After transferring £1,260: Lower earner’s allowance reduces to £11,310. Income of £11,800 exceeds this by £490. Donor pays £490 × 20% = £98 tax.
Recipient saves: £252 tax reduction on their bill.
Net couple saving: £252 − £98 = £154 per year. Still worth claiming — but not the full £252.
Backdating — up to four years of unclaimed allowance
If you’ve been eligible for Marriage Allowance in previous years but never claimed, you can backdate your claim for up to four tax years. HMRC pays the backdated amount as a lump sum, usually by cheque or bank transfer within a few weeks of the claim being processed.
The allowance amount and personal allowance were different in prior years, so the annual saving differs slightly. The maximum four-year backdated lump sum for 2021/22 to 2024/25 is approximately £1,008 — plus the £252 in 2025/26, giving a potential total of £1,260 for a couple who has never claimed.
| Tax year | Personal Allowance | Transfer amount (10%) | Tax saving (at 20%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021/22 | £12,570 | £1,260 | £252 |
| 2022/23 | £12,570 | £1,260 | £252 |
| 2023/24 | £12,570 | £1,260 | £252 |
| 2024/25 | £12,570 | £1,260 | £252 |
| 2025/26 | £12,570 | £1,260 | £252 |
Married Couple’s Allowance — for older couples
Married Couple’s Allowance (MCA) applies where at least one partner was born before 6 April 1935. It is completely separate from Marriage Allowance — you cannot claim both. MCA gives a tax reduction (not a deduction from income) of 10% of the allowance amount.
For 2025/26: the maximum MCA is £11,270 (giving a tax reduction of £1,127), and the minimum is £4,360 (giving a tax reduction of £436). The allowance tapers if the claimant’s income exceeds the income limit of £37,700 — reducing by £1 for every £2 above that limit, but never below the minimum of £4,360.
Marriage Allowance works by reducing the donor’s personal allowance and giving the recipient a £252 tax credit. Married Couple’s Allowance works differently — it directly reduces your tax bill by 10% of the allowance amount (£436–£1,127), regardless of your marginal rate. This makes MCA more valuable for higher-rate taxpayers than Marriage Allowance would be.
Frequently asked questions
Child Benefit, HICBC, income tax, inheritance tax — all 2025/26.