Periods of unemployment

Transferring tax credits to a spouse or civil partner

You might be unemployed and jointly assessed, where your spouse or civil partner pays tax under Pay As You Earn (PAYE). If this is the case, you may be able to transfer your unused tax credits to your spouse or civil partner. This will increase their tax credits and reduce the tax they pay.

The quickest and easiest way to do this is through myAccount:

  1. Sign into myAccount.
  2. Select ‘Manage your tax for the current year’ in PAYE Services.
  3. Click on 'edit' in 'How your tax credits and rate band are currently divided'.

You can also contact your Revenue office to arrange this.

Next: What happens when you return to work?