Husband, wife, civil partners and children

Abstract

This chapter deals, in particular, with the taxation of husband and wife as from 6 April 2000. From 5 December 2005, the rules generally also apply to civil partners (6.9). The concept of the present independent taxation system goes back to 6 April 1990 and reference should be made to previous editions of this book for intervening changes or for the rules which applied for 1989– 90 and earlier years. The latter included an optional form of separate taxation of spouses, which merely allocated their joint liability, and an elective form of truly separate taxation limited to a wife’s earnings. (Some of the rules for independent taxation have been mentioned in Chapter 3.)