£220 Marriage Tax Allowance from the Government – Are You Missing Out?





Who qualifies?


  • You have to be married OR in a civil partnership.

  • One of you MUST earn less than £11,000 per year. The other MUST earn between £11,000 and £43,000.

  • And you’ll need to apply online.

How does it work?



The partner that doesn't pay tax transfers up to £1,100 of their unused allowance to the partner who does.  Reducing their tax by up to £220 per year.

You can apply, too, if one of you is receiving a pension. 

If a couple were entitled to the allowance in 2015/16 but didn't claim, they can backdate it.  So if you act now, your allowance could be worth £432.

HMRC believe that fewer than half of all entitled couples have claimed, and they're encouraging couples to apply on the Government's website. 


Popular posts from this blog

Should I Propose at Christmas? (Spoiler Alert: Probably Not)

Image
There’s something relentlessly optimistic about the festive season: the gathering of family and friends, the gift-giving and peace-and-good-will-to-all-men shtick. It’s probably the proximity to New Year, too, and all those resolutions and promises for a fresh start. SO many Christmas films have proposals in them, too.  And what greater gift could there be than an engagement over the festive period? Well… It’s easy to get carried away in the spirit of things but Christmas engagements aren’t always a great idea.  And if you have to ask should I propose at Christmas , then the answer is probably no. According to a survey by event company Chili Sauce , men seem to like proposing on Christmas Eve  (woman aren’t quite so keen). Guess you lucky lesbians are off the hook… Only you know whether or not it’s the right time to propose to your partner but here’s why we think you should be careful. 1.   Don’t propose just because it’s Chris...
Read more

Wedding Fair or Wedding Fayre: Which is it?

Image
Fair or fayre? We got busted by a simple Google search.  And we owe you an apology. After writing hundreds of posts promoting wedding open days , showcases and exhibitions , we assumed that we had wedding terminology down-pat. It turns out that we didn’t. All’s Fair or Fayre in Love (and Wedding Planning) According to The Cambridge Dictionary, Fayre is: “an old-fashioned spelling of fair , used to talk about a traditional public event where goods are bought and sold and where there is entertainment: a country fayre” Uh-oh. We went back through some of our posts to double check what we've been using and... How to Survive a Wedding Fayre  Hadley Park is Hosting a Wedding Fayre And these weren't the only ones.  In fact, every single wedding event we’ve advertised (aside from those specifically marketed as open days) has been described as a fayre. Okay , we thought, let’s get a second opinion. ...
Read more

Gay Wedding Hashtags

Image
Creating a wedding hashtag for a ceremony and reception isn’t every couple’s cup of tea but is it really so ridiculous when most of us use social media to document and organise our lives anyway.  Gay wedding hashtags are one example of how same-sex couples are creating new traditions.  Planning a wedding when you’re LGBTQ often means navigating heterosexual customs and gender-based norms.  This is one way that couples (gay or otherwise) can embrace modernity and add a bit of fun to their ceremony and reception. Customising a hashtag for friends and family to follow across social media platforms is bound to raise an eyebrow with some guests who may feel that it’s a bit soulless, tacky or narcissistic BUT hashtags are so helpful in curating photographs taken throughout the day.   It’s great for the happy couple to search back through, too, and see a different side of the celebrations: a guest’s eye-view.    Another reason that it’s popul...
Read more

Should You Invite a Homophobic Relative to Your Gay Wedding?

Image
It doesn’t matter whether you’re planning a straight, gay or bi wedding – families can make things difficult .  LGBTQ couples have the additional headache of deciding whether or not to invite relatives that don’t support same-sex marriage .  It’s hurtful and it adds additional pressure and stress onto what is already a difficult time of planning.  When you’re curating your guest list the question is: should you invite a homophobic relative to your gay wedding?   No – that’s our gut reaction.   If someone can’t give you 100% love and support on your wedding day, then they shouldn’t be there.  For some couples, it’s as straightforward as that.   But it isn’t always that simple, is it? It rarely is when family are involved.  Only you can decide whether or not that person (or those people) deserves to be a guest at your wedding.  You hold the power.  You’re the inviter-in-chief.  But before you make a...
Read more

5 Shakespeare Quotes about Love for your Wedding

Image
Tuesday (March 27th, 2018) was World Theatre Day , and we thought what better way to celebrate than with some love quotes from William Shakespeare’s plays. Poems and readings make great additions to a wedding but there’s also room to include some romantic Shakespearean quotes on your invitations, on your personalised wedding website or even as table centrepieces at your wedding breakfast or reception. Shakespeare’s words about love and marriage aren’t just deeply moving, they’re also timeless. Adding a touch of sophistication, charm and emotion to your ceremony, the bard’s take on love, relationships and marriage should be easily recognisable to your guests, too.  There are so many plays and sonnets to choose from but we’ve picked some of our favourites from Hamlet, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Love’s Labours Lost, The Tempest and, of course, Romeo and Juliet. We’d love to hear what your favourites are. Or maybe you’re more of a Kit Marlowe fan?  Did y...
Read more

Paris: The City of Love as an LGBTQ Honeymoon Destination

Image
What’s the most romantic city in the world? Most people will say Paris even if they’ve never been there. They’ll say it even if they’re single or if they despise romance because it’s an opinion transformed into fact by its re-telling.   Whether or not you think that Paris is THE city of love, it’s believed to be true by the countless couples who add their padlocks to the railings on the Pont Des Arts. And isn’t French known as the language of love? The cuisine is often the first port-of-call for those looking for a romantic meal and what of the cosy cobblestone streets of Montmartre? Paris is a city made for handholding, for sunset cruises, for champagne and croissants by the river and for proposals and for love. Of course, we couldn’t possibly comment on the reputation of the French as exception lovers; we’ll leave that one to your imaginations (or experience). There’s no doubt that Paris is a popular honeymoon destination but how safe and how suitable is it ...
Read more

How To Make Small Talk At Weddings

Image
*This post was updated July 30th 2015* The service  was delightful. The brides looked divine. The grooms were as handsome as you’ve ever seen them. You made small talk with the mother-in-law, buried your face in the order of service when everyone was  hugging , and mouthed hello to someone you vaguely remember from the hag do.  Now, you’re standing in the car park and everyone’s hanging around before the reception, but you don’t have anyone to talk to. Or maybe, you are with people you know. Maybe you’re laughing all the way to the reception until – ARE YOU KIDDING ME!? – You read the place settings only to realise that you’re sitting on a table with people you don’t know. Suddenly, you can’t kick your shoes off under the table; you can’t bury your face in the salmon starter, and you can’t do that party trick with a glass of water, a penny and the tablecloth. Well, you could... Oh, but THANK THE STARS , at least there’s wine. Being polite shoul...
Read more

Gay Marriage is Legal in Northern Ireland

Image
Northern Ireland has legalised same-sex marriage.  It brings the country in line with the rest of the United Kingdom with the first gay weddings expected to take place on February 14 th 2020. Equal marriage has been legal in England, Wales and Scotland since 2014. Over the years, campaigners have made numerous legal challenges arguing the ban  is discriminatory but all have been unsuccessful. The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) has been the biggest political sticking point having blocked all previous attempts at legislation. Why Now? Northern Ireland’s legislative assembly hasn’t sat at Stormont since January 2017 when power-sharing between the DUP and Sinn Fein collapsed.  Subsequent attempts to restore a devolved Government to Northern Ireland have failed. MPs in Westminster voted 383 to 73 in July 2019 in favour of legalising both same-sex marriage and abortion in Northern Ireland.   This gave a 3-month window and a...
Read more

Gay Marriage is Legal in Pitcairn

Image
The Pacific island of Pitcairn has just legalised same-sex marriage.  Yeah, you've probably never heard of Pitcairn .  We certainly hadn't.  Pitcairn is a British Overseas Territory about 1350 miles South-East of Tahiti and is one of the world's smallest inhabited islands.  It caught our eye because of its rather interesting history. Whilst you might not have heard of Pitcairn , you're probably familiar with its history because, i n 1790, Pitcairn was where nine of the mutineers  from HMS Bounty founded a settlement along with the ships Polynesian contingent.  You might also remember the 1984 film 'Bounty' starring Mel Gibson and Anthony Hopkins.  Today, the island's 48 inhabitants are all descended from those original settlers: 7th generation, in fact. That such a small and traditionally minded island community could be so open to equal marriage is a very pleasant surprise particularly when we see...
Read more

Gay Wedding Readings: How to Pick the Best One

Image
Choosing a reading for a gay wedding can be tough.  Whether you want a short poem for your lesbian ceremony or a quirky non-secular take on your same-sex relationship , it’s a big deal. Maybe you want something humorous , too? Something profound ? Something that won't put your guests to sleep.  The English language is awash with poems about love and marriage , pithy observations about life as a couple, advice on relationships (conventional or otherwise) , and romantic tracts on what it means to love someone unconditionally. Straight couples have it easier here.  Most traditional wedding readings are well, traditional: him and her , he and she .  But if you’re finding that your favourite wedding readings are more skewed towards a heterosexual audience, then you can always mix up the pronouns: him and her to him and him, he and she to she and she.   What is a wedding reading? A reading is a written piece that’s spoken aloud d...
Read more