Income Tax Act 2007 section 44

Election for new rules to apply

Section 44 allows couples who married before 5 December 2005, or civil partners whose civil partnership resulted from a relevant conversion, to jointly elect for the newer married couple's allowance rules to apply to them instead of the older rules.

• Couples who married before 5 December 2005 may elect to switch from the old married couple's allowance rules (section 45) to the new rules (section 46), under which the spouse with the higher income — rather than automatically the husband — becomes the person entitled to make the primary claim to relief.
• The election must be made jointly by both parties to the marriage or civil partnership and must be submitted before the start of the first tax year for which it is to take effect.
• Once made, the election remains in force for every subsequent tax year and cannot be withdrawn, so couples should consider the implications carefully before electing.
• Civil partners whose civil partnership results from a relevant conversion are also eligible to make this election on the same basis.