Marriage Allowance vs Married Couple's Allowance: Which Applies to You 2026/27

Two reliefs with almost identical names cause endless confusion. Marriage Allowance and Married Couple's Allowance are not the same thing, they have different rules, and you cannot have both. Here is how to work out which, if either, applies to you in 2026/27.

Marriage Allowance: the common one

Marriage Allowance lets a lower-earning spouse or civil partner transfer GBP 1,260 of their unused personal allowance to their partner. To qualify:

• You are married or in a civil partnership.
• The lower earner has income below the GBP 12,570 personal allowance.
• The higher earner is a basic-rate taxpayer, with income up to the GBP 50,270 higher-rate threshold.

The transfer is worth GBP 252 a year, because the receiving partner gets GBP 1,260 of extra allowance at 20%. You can also backdate a claim up to four years, which can give a one-off refund of around GBP 1,000 on top.

Worked example

Sophie earns GBP 9,000 and her husband Liam earns GBP 30,000.

• Sophie transfers GBP 1,260 of her unused allowance to Liam.
• Liam's tax bill falls by GBP 1,260 at 20% = GBP 252 for the year.
• Sophie still pays no tax, because her income is below her reduced allowance of GBP 11,310.

If they had never claimed before, backdating four years could add roughly GBP 1,000 as a lump-sum refund.

Married Couple's Allowance: the older relief

Married Couple's Allowance is a separate, much older relief. The key difference is the eligibility test: at least one spouse or civil partner must have been born before 6 April 1935. Because of that birth-date cut-off, it applies only to couples now in their nineties or older.

It also works differently. Rather than transferring personal allowance, it gives a reduction in your tax bill calculated as a percentage of a set allowance, and it can be reduced where income is high. It is the relief that long predates the modern Marriage Allowance.

The crucial differences

• Eligibility: Marriage Allowance is about income levels; Married Couple's Allowance is about a pre-1935 birth date.
• Mechanism: Marriage Allowance transfers GBP 1,260 of allowance; Married Couple's Allowance gives a tax reduction.
• Value: Marriage Allowance is worth GBP 252 a year; Married Couple's Allowance is typically worth more but is restricted to a tiny, older group.
• You cannot claim both for the same couple.

Which one is yours?

Use this quick test:

• Was either of you born before 6 April 1935? If yes, look at Married Couple's Allowance.
• If not, and one of you earns under GBP 12,570 while the other is a basic-rate taxpayer, claim Marriage Allowance.
• If both of you are higher-rate taxpayers, or both have income above the personal allowance, neither relief applies.
• Never pay a third-party refund agent; claim directly with HMRC.

A short checklist:

• Confirm your birth dates against the 6 April 1935 line.
• Check each partner's income against GBP 12,570 and GBP 50,270.
• Apply directly on gov.uk if eligible for Marriage Allowance.
• Consider backdating up to four years.
• Re-check each year, as income changes can affect eligibility.

This is general information, not financial or tax advice. The exact rules, especially for the income-restricted Married Couple's Allowance, are set out on gov.uk under Marriage Allowance and Married Couple's Allowance. To see the saving for your own figures, try the Marriage Allowance calculator at calchub.uk.