Accessibility statement for Marriage Allowance service

This accessibility statement explains how accessible this service is, what to do if you have difficulty using it, and how to report accessibility problems with the service.

This service is part of the wider GOV.UK website. There is a separate accessibility statement for the main GOV.UK website.

This page only contains information about the Marriage Allowance service, available at https://www.tax.service.gov.uk/marriage-allowance-application.

Using this service

The Marriage Allowance services allows qualifying couples to transfer part of their Personal Allowance to their partner. You can also reject or cancel transfer of Personal Allowance.

This service is run by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC). We want as many people as possible to be able to use this service. This means you should be able to:

  • change colours, contrast levels and fonts
  • zoom in up to 300% without the text spilling off the screen
  • get from the start of the service to the end using just a keyboard
  • get from the start of the service to the end using speech recognition software
  • listen to the service using a screen reader (including the most recent versions of JAWS, NVDA and VoiceOver)

We have also made the text in the service as simple as possible to understand.

AbilityNet has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability.

How accessible this service is

This service is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.1 AA standard.

Some people may find parts of this service difficult to use:

  • On several pages, the legends for the radio buttons are not descriptive enough and this can cause confusion for screen readers.
  • On several pages, there are page titles that are duplicated and this can cause difficulty for screen readers who need unique page titles to allow them to identify the page correctly.
  • Some pages where users need to enter a date don’t have a legend and this can cause problems for screen readers. It will be difficult to relate the date input to the question being asked as it will not be read out by the screen reader.
  • On several pages, there are no status messages on expandable radio buttons. This can cause problems for screen readers as they need to be told when expandable elements appear.
  • Throughout the service, the way that error messages are presented is not clear for users. This can cause problems in identifying the issue and correcting it.

What to do if you have difficulty using this service

You can contact HMRC for extra support if you need help with filling in forms or getting a different format, like large print, audio recording or Braille.

Reporting accessibility problems with this service

We are always looking to improve the accessibility of this service. If you find any problems that are not listed on this page or think we are not meeting accessibility requirements, report the accessibility problem.

If you are not happy with our response

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is responsible for enforcing the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 (the 'accessibility regulations'). If you are not happy with how we respond to your complaint, contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS) or the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland (ECNI) if you live in Northern Ireland.

Contacting us by phone or getting a visit from us in person

We provide a text relay service if you are deaf, hearing impaired or have a speech impediment.

We can provide a British Sign Language (BSL) interpreter, or you can arrange a visit from an HMRC advisor to help you complete the service.

Find out how to get extra support from HMRC.

Technical information about this service’s accessibility

HMRC is committed to making this service accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.

This service is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.1 AA standard, due to the non-compliances listed below.

Non‐accessible content

The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons.

Non‐compliance with the accessibility regulations

On several pages, the legend provided is not descriptive. This can be confusing to screen readers as it is unclear what the content is relating to and why it has been used. This can also be confusing for users as they do not make sense out of context. This fails WCAG 2.1 - Understanding Success Criterion 1.3.1: Information and relationships. This will be fixed by 31 March 2024.

On the page where selecting the date of marriage or civil partnership, the fields have no legend. This can cause problems for screen readers as they may be unable to tell what the fields relate to out of context. This fails WCAG 2.1 Understanding success criterion 1.3.1: Information and relationships. This will be fixed by 31 March 2024.

Throughout the service, page titles are duplicated across multiple pages which means that screen readers may not understand they are on a new page if they are moving through tabs. This fails WCAG 2.1 - Understanding Success Criterion 2.4.2: Page titled. This will be fixed by 31 March 2024.

On the are you married or in a civil partnership page, a status message appears after selecting ‘No’ without letting screen readers know. This will be a problem for screen readers browsing out of context. This fails WCAG 2.1 - Understanding Success Criterion 4.1.3: Status messages. This will be fixed by 31 March 2024.

On the confirm earlier tax years page, the error handling is not descriptive. This makes it difficult for screen readers to understand what the error message relates to. This fails WCAG 2.1 - Understanding Success Criterion 3.3.3: Error suggestion. This will be fixed by 31 March 2024.

How we tested this service

The service was last tested on 23 April 2021 and was checked for compliance with WCAG 2.1 AA.

The service was built using parts that were tested by the Digital Accessibility Centre. The full service was tested by HMRC and included disabled users.

This page was prepared on 1 October 2020. It was last updated on 19 October 2023.

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