Marriage Tax Allowance

A question about : Marriage Tax Allowance

Does anyone know how you register to take some of your spouse's personal allowance from April? Or do they do it automatically?

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/b...ffect-you.html

Best answers:

• although the principle has been announced sometime ago it has not been implemented yet, so you will have to wait for HMRC to release the details of how it will actually work
  how long it will be before they come out is anyone's guess
• According to https://www.gov.uk/government/public...civil-partners claims will be done online.
  I would suggest more details will be given at the budget in March
• Thanks all, they're leaving it late! I thought it might be in place already, it is a real time thing not a rebate isn't it?
• The reasn why HMRC can't tell you about it is because they themselves dn't know how this is going to be implemented.
  Much like the Child Benefit clawback it's likely HMRC will get instruction from the Treasury at the last minute, giving their staff less than 1 month in order to be trained in how the system will work and what the process is.
• having read the above discussion, it sounds like they are going to have to wait until P60s are available for 14/15 to see who may be eligible for 15/16, hence the summer 15 estimate..
• https://www.gov.uk/government/public...civil-partners
  seems it is to done through the code number and not just for transfer of allowances of non liable person but also of those not liable above basic rate.
  Operative date
  This measure will have effect from the 2015-16 tax year.
  HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) is developing the process by which the married couple or
  civil partners will transfer their personal allowance. HMRC will ensure that the process is as
  straightforward as possible for customers. The lead option is that one party will apply on-line
  to transfer the allowance to their spouse or civil partner and HMRC will notify the recipient
  about the subsequent change to their tax code. HMRC recognises that some customers may
  need additional support to apply to transfer the allowance.
  Proposed revisions
  Legislation will be introduced in Finance Bill 2014 to provide that from the 2015-16 tax year,
  a spouse or civil partner who is not liable to income tax because their income is below their
  personal allowance or who is liable to income tax at the basic rate, dividend ordinary rate or
  the starting rate for savings will be able to elect to transfer Ј1,050 of their personal
  allowance to their spouse or civil partner. There will be a corresponding reduction to the
  transferring spouse's personal allowance.
  A spouse or civil partner who is liable to income tax at the basic rate, dividend ordinary rate
  or the starting rate for savings will receive the transferred personal allowance. The
  transferred allowance will be given effect as a reduction to the recipient's income tax liability
  at the basic rate of tax.
  From 2016-17 the transferable amount will be 10 per cent of the basic personal allowance.
• All that is quite old and we will, presumably. have something more definitive in the budget.
  it does say in an announcement that couples will benefit summer 2016 which seems to imply a refund for 2015/16 rather than a code number change. If 75% of people entitled to claim actually do it will be surprising
• I shall contrive through pension and company share contributions to make myself into a basic rate tax payer. My non-working wife will then notify that she wishes to make the transfer of the unused allowance to me. Presumably, the Revenue will wish to check whether I am prospectively likely to be a basic rate tax payer.
  Really couples should benefit from the benefits immediately rather than having to wait until 05/04/2016 or beyond.
  Any suggestions about how this should work please where the transferee has historically been a higher rate tax payer?
  Ј200 is not a big sum but it will pay for the electricity used my Mrs Sterling's tumble dryer each year.
• The measure will come in from 2015 to 2016, and couples will benefit from summer 2016.
  This is from one of the links above to the .gov site. Dated Sept 2013
  All should be revealed in March.
• To do this within the tax year would surely be an administrative nightmare. With employment changes such as the donor working more hours putting them over the tax threshhold, then losing those hours & going back down again. The recipient getting a pay rise putting them over basic rate tax. An absolute nightmare.
  The option which would equate to benefiting in the summer of 2016 would seem much more practical. Where presumably a couple could register an interest during the tax year. Then after the end of the tax year the figures are collated & a cheque for Ј200 sent out in time for the summer holidays.
  Remember that this is not just going to apply to people already getting child tax credits but to everyone whose income is low enough and they may not yet be linked.
• Dori2o does have a point, HMRC are moving all the technical detailed work from themselves to the taxpayer ie self assessment. Judging by what we see on here every January a large proportion of self done tax reporting results in either under or overpayments of tax and more fines and penalties for HMRC to collect.
  Perhaps the administrative nightmare you envisage is what is already causing HMRC problems
• Warning - if you already receive the married couples allowance you cannot transfer anything