Martin Lewis has this morning urged people to take action right now to make sure they don’t miss out on potentially getting £1,000 or more paid into their banks ‘within a week.’ The financial expert said that there is a very short window of opportunity to sign up for a Marriage Allowance tax scheme which is of benefit to married couples.
In an urgent tweet today he said: “If this is relevant to you - DO IT TODAY - do not delay.” He was referring to his advice at the end of last week on the issue around transferring £1,260 of your Personal Allowance to your husband, wife or civil partner.
Failing to do it before April 5 could potentially mean couples losing hundreds of pounds in tax. This reduces their tax by up to £252 in the tax year (6 April to 5 April the next year).
Read more: Martin Lewis in urgent alert saying 2.1m people could get £1k paid into bank account within a week
To benefit as a couple,the lower earner must normally have an income below the Personal Allowance - this is usually £12,570. The government says when a person transfers some of their Personal Allowance to their husband, wife or civil partner, they may still have to pay more tax themselves, but as a couple they would pay less.
You can benefit from Marriage Allowance if all the following apply:
- you’re married or in a civil partnership
- you do not pay Income Tax or your income is below your Personal Allowance (usually £12,570)
- your partner pays Income Tax at the basic rate, which usually means their income is between £12,571 and £50,270 before they receive Marriage Allowance
Potentially 2.1 million couples could benefit from the scheme but they need to take urgent action. He said last week: “URGENT [please] share. Are [you] married or in civil partnership if so - Is one of [you] a basic 20 per cent taxpayer? [Or] 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 [you] don’t sort by Wed 5 April [you] risk losing £100s.”
He then added: “Folks there are 2.1m UK couples eligible for this & MISSING OUT. It’s likely most will get £1,000+ paid straight into their bank accounts possibly within a week. Please retweet the tweet below, make it massive, as if it’s not done ASAP people will miss over £200 of the payout.”
The MoneySavingExpert founder says from April 6 couples will “lose the ability to do claims relating to the 2018/19 tax year... so get your skates on”. To be eligible for the tax break you must be married or in a civil partnership. And one of you must be a non-income-taxpayer, the other a basic 20 percent taxpayer.
The financial guru explained: “The non-taxpayer can apply to transfer 10 percent of their tax-free allowance, currently £1,260, to their spouse, so they now can earn that much more without paying 20 per cent tax, so they pay £250 less tax.” Once you’re signed up, it’s paid automatically year after year.
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