Martin Lewis has issued an urgent warning to prevent people missing out on money.
The Money Saving Expert founder said that if you're married or in a civil partnership, you may be entitled to a £1,260 tax break - called the marriage tax allowance. However, it is thought that 2.1million couples miss out on this each year.
Taking to Twitter he advised who would be eligible for the cash. But he urged people to act quickly as they only have six days, until Wednesday, April 5, to sort it.
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Martin wrote: "URGENT please share. Are u married or in civil partnership if so - Is one of u a basic 20% taxpayer? - The other a non-taxpayer (earn under c£12,570/yr) If so you're likely due up to £1,300 tax back, but if u don't sort by Wed 5 Apr u risk losing £100s."
In a comment he added: "2.1 million eligible couples are missing out on this." A guide on the consumer champion's MSE website outlined everything to know about the marriage tax allowance, including how to apply, how much you could get and who is eligible.
What is the marriage tax allowance?
The marriage tax allowance allows you to transfer £1,260 of your personal allowance (the amount you can earn tax-free each tax year) to your spouse or civil partner if they earn more than you. If your claim is successful, it will lower the higher earner's tax bill for the tax year, but you can also backdate your claim if eligible.
You can apply here at the Gov.uk website. If you're eligible and apply successfully, you'll also automatically get the tax break each year going forward – so no need to keep reapplying.
Who is eligible?
- You need to be married or in a civil partnership. Just living together doesn't count.
- One of you needs to be a non-taxpayer. This usually means you'll earn less than the £12,570 personal allowance between April 6, 2022 and April 5, 2023.
- The other partner needs to be a basic 20% rate taxpayer. This means you'd normally need to earn less than £50,270, or if you live in Scotland, £43,662. Higher or additional-rate taxpayers aren't eligible for this allowance.
- You both must have been born on or after 6 April 1935.
How much can you get?
Marriage tax allowance for the 2022/23 tax year is worth up to £252.
In addition to the current year's allowance, you can backdate your claim by up to four tax years too – currently 2018/19, 2019/20, 2020/21 and 2021/22. But the deadline to apply for 2018/19 is April 5, 2023.
The amounts for each year are worth up to:
- 2022/23 – £252
- 2021/22 – £252
- 2020/21 – £250
- 2019/20 – £250
- 2018/19 – £238
This means that if you claim for this tax year and backdate the maximum four years, you'll get up to £1,242.
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