Answers · UK 2025/26
What happens to the Marriage Allowance when you separate?
The Marriage Allowance is cancelled from the start of the tax year in which you permanently separate. Any transferred allowance in earlier years is not clawed back.
Full answer
If a married couple or civil partners separate, the Marriage Allowance ceases to apply from the beginning of the tax year in which the separation becomes permanent. HMRC defines permanent separation as living apart in circumstances that are likely to be permanent. For the tax year of separation, the receiving partner retains the benefit of the transferred allowance for the full year -- HMRC does not pro-rate it. In subsequent years, both individuals revert to the standard Personal Allowance of £12,570. If the Marriage Allowance was claimed for prior years, those claims are not reversed. Following divorce or dissolution of a civil partnership, the Marriage Allowance automatically ends. You do not need to notify HMRC separately if you cancel a Marriage Allowance claim.
This answer is informational only and does not constitute financial, tax or legal advice. Figures are for the 2025/26 UK tax year. See our methodology and sources.