Expected uptake of new Marriage Tax Allowance – 4 million couple. Actual number of successful applicants – 330,000
The gulf between these two figures has resulted in the Marriage Tax Allowance Policy, championed by David Cameron, being evaluated as an “utter flop”. If you haven’t already claimed don’t worry because you can backdate your claim meaning a tax rebate will be due within the last four tax years.
It was a very public demonstration of the party’s traditional Conservatism – marriage and commitment as the bedrock to civilised society – that the Conservatives has been touting since the Coalition in 2010. Despite a £2 million digital and print advertising campaign, the uptake of the new policy only stands at 8% of the government’s identified potential.
As Labour’s Shadow Minister without Portfolio, Jonathan Ashworth, told The Telegraph: “It’s embarrassing for David Cameron and George Osborne that their flagship policy has been a complete and utter flop.”
Many couples simply don’t know it exists and others may well have been put off the registration process that was disrupted by computer problems initially. Some people feel that a saving of £212 per tax year per couple is simply too small an amount to gain, when weighed against the time lost trying to contact HMRC to resolve any queries.
Jonathan Ashworth adds another dimension: “Labour has always said that the Tories’ marriage tax allowance is perverse and unfair. It’s a benefit that doesn’t go to the vast majority of families, doesn’t go to widows and doesn’t go to people who have been left by an abusive husband. It’s clear the Tories need to rethink this whole policy.”
Who is actually eligible to claim the married persons allowance?
If you are married or in a civil partnership and one partner earns less than their Personal Allowance and the other’s income is within the Basic Rate Income tax band. Basically, the scheme allows one partner’s Personal Allowance to be transferred across to the other, with an annual tax saving to the couple of £212.
How do you claim the married persons allowance?
You can apply online using the GOV.UK website and is managed by HMRC.
Is it going to be scrapped?
Well, the pressure is on to perhaps revise the policy in order to increase its embarrassingly low uptake. The Conservative MP for Enfield Southgate, David Burrowes, said: “We need to make sure that our commitment to recognise marriage in the tax system is more than window dressing. I will be pressing the Treasury to increase uptake”.
To further sweeten the deal, the financial secretary to the Treasury, David Gauke, said to The Telegraph: “Married couples should make sure applying for marriage allowance is part of their financial planning for the year ahead…We are also going to give couples up to four years to claim backdated allowances so that as few as possible miss out.”
Should it just be scrapped?
Not everyone has Cameron’s faith in the idea of marriage and many people do not think that this should be rewarded within the tax system. Fiona Weir, Chief Executive of the Gingerbread charity, told The Mirror: “The marriage tax only benefits couples, who are generally better off than cohabiting or single parent families. Modern families come in all shapes and sizes and the Government should support them all, not just those who are married.”
