Blind Person’s Allowance 2026/27 | Eligibility & Claim

Blind Person's Allowance (BPA) is an extra tax-free allowance for eligible taxpayers who are blind or severely sight impaired. For 2026/27 it adds £3,250 to the standard £12,570 Personal Allowance, giving a combined allowance of £15,820 where the full Personal Allowance is available — worth £650 at 20% or £1,300 at 40%. Unlike the Marriage Allowance, unused BPA can be transferred to a spouse or civil partner if the eligible person cannot use it themselves.

The allowance is claimed through HMRC rather than applied automatically. Ask HMRC about the earliest year that can be corrected when you claim; do not assume every case can be backdated for four years. See how BPA changes your take-home pay with the Salary Calculator→, and read the Income Tax Bands 2026/27 guide for the bands it sits against.

BPA Amounts and Recent History

BPA increased from £3,130 in 2025/26 to £3,250 in 2026/27. It is an allowance against taxable income, not a cash credit, so its value depends on the marginal rate: £650 at 20%, £1,300 at 40% and £1,462.50 at 45% where those rates apply. Because it is added to the Personal Allowance, an England, Wales or Northern Ireland taxpayer earning £30,000 with the full standard allowances has £14,180 of taxable income and £2,836 of income tax before other reliefs.

Who Qualifies for BPA

• England and Wales — you must be registered with your local council as blind or severely sight impaired and have a certificate or similar medical document.
• Scotland and Northern Ireland — you can qualify if you cannot do work for which eyesight is essential; the England/Wales local-register test does not apply in the same way.
• All ages — children can qualify if the relevant condition is met, but unused BPA can only be transferred to a spouse or civil partner, not to a parent or guardian.
• Any employment status — employed, self-employed and non-earning individuals all qualify; employment status is irrelevant.
• Residence and tax rules — residence requirements still apply, so non-resident cases need separate checking.
• Amount across the UK — the 2026/27 BPA amount is £3,250, but Scotland has different Income Tax bands and Scotland/Northern Ireland have different eligibility wording.

The frequent stumbling block is the distinction between certified and registered. In England and Wales, a consultant’s certificate supports local-authority registration; in Scotland and Northern Ireland, the statutory test is whether eyesight prevents work for which sight is essential. Contact HMRC about the evidence needed for your nation and keep the certificate or other supporting document.

How BPA Reduces Your Tax — Worked Examples

Basic-rate example: £30,000 salary. Personal Allowance £12,570 plus BPA £3,250 gives £15,820 covered before tax, leaving £14,180 taxable at 20% — £2,836 of income tax. Without BPA the bill would be £3,486, so the allowance saves £650.

Higher-rate example: £60,000 salary. Where the full allowance falls against higher-rate income, BPA is worth £3,250 × 40% = £1,300. With a standard Personal Allowance, taxable income falls from £47,430 to £44,180: £37,700 is taxed at 20% (£7,540) and £6,480 at 40% (£2,592), giving £10,132 rather than £11,432 without BPA.

Transfer example. An eligible partner with no tax to pay may transfer unused BPA to a spouse or civil partner. A full £3,250 transferred to a higher-rate recipient can reduce tax by up to £1,300, or by £650 for a basic-rate recipient. Use HMRC form 575/575(T) or the current HMRC process; the recipient’s tax code or Self Assessment position is then updated as appropriate.

Claiming BPA and Transferring It

• Step 1 — establish eligibility — obtain the required certificate or medical evidence and, in England or Wales, complete local-authority registration.
• Step 2 — tell HMRC — contact HMRC on 0300 200 3301 and ask what evidence is needed for your nation and circumstances.
• Step 3 — provide evidence — keep the council registration or medical evidence required by the eligibility rules.
• Step 4 — correct earlier years — ask HMRC which earlier tax years can be amended and how any overpaid tax will be repaid.
• Step 5 — transfer the surplus — if your income cannot use the full £3,250, transfer the unused balance to your spouse or civil partner using form 575/575(T) or the current HMRC service.

The £100,000 taper applies to the standard Personal Allowance. Do not automatically apply that taper to BPA: BPA is a separate allowance and the current HMRC calculation treats it separately. A pension contribution that lowers adjusted net income may restore some or all of a tapered Personal Allowance, but the effect on BPA and the overall tax calculation should be checked with HMRC or a tax adviser.

BPA vs Marriage Allowance

Both allowances can involve transfers between spouses, but they work differently. Marriage Allowance moves £1,260 of the Personal Allowance and normally requires the transferor to be a non-taxpayer and the recipient not to be a higher- or additional-rate taxpayer. BPA can transfer unused amounts where the eligible person's income is too low to absorb it; the recipient can be a higher-rate taxpayer.

The two may be available to the same couple, but the eligibility tests differ. A couple where one partner is eligible for BPA and earns little may transfer unused BPA; Marriage Allowance still requires its own conditions and cannot be transferred to a higher- or additional-rate recipient. Use the current Marriage Allowance service and HMRC form 575/575(T) or online process for BPA.

Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish Taxpayers

The £3,250 amount applies across the UK, but the tax saving follows each nation’s bands. Scotland has separate Income Tax rates and eligibility wording; Wales follows the UK-wide allowance with Welsh Income Tax rates currently aligned to England; Northern Ireland follows the rUK bands and has its own eligibility wording. Check the nation-specific condition and marginal rate before estimating the saving.

BPA Alongside Other Allowances

BPA does not replace anything — it adds to every other relief you already hold.

A taxpayer entitled to both a transferred Marriage Allowance and BPA could have £12,570 + £1,260 + £3,250 of allowances before savings and dividend allowances, subject to the separate conditions for each relief. Each relief is claimed separately, so keep a checklist of every allowance you are entitled to rather than assuming BPA is a one-off.

Check the claim against the tax record

Keep the certificate, local-authority registration or other evidence used for the claim, together with the date HMRC accepted eligibility and the tax year from which it applies. Compare the updated tax code or Self Assessment calculation with the amount claimed. A change in employer, pension income, self-employment, marriage or civil partnership can change how the allowance is used even though the sight-loss condition has not changed.

If the allowance is transferred, record the amount transferred, the recipient's tax year, the spouse or civil-partner relationship and the confirmation from HMRC. The transfer is of unused BPA, not a second £3,250 payment for both people. If the eligible person later earns enough to use more of the allowance, contact HMRC rather than leaving an old transfer in place.

Earlier years and corrections

Ask HMRC to identify the years that can be corrected before estimating a refund. The date of registration or certification, the tax paid, the tax return position and whether the claim was made through PAYE or Self Assessment can all affect the correction. Keep original P60s, tax codes, Self Assessment statements and HMRC correspondence. Do not multiply the current £3,250 amount across earlier years without checking the published amount for each tax year.

The same caution applies to examples in a calculator. BPA reduces taxable income; it does not create a cash payment equal to the allowance. The actual benefit can be limited by the income tax due, the applicable Scottish or rUK bands and the amount that is transferred. Use the official HMRC decision and tax calculation as the final evidence.

Frequently Asked Questions

Keep evidence and check the tax year

Keep the registration or certification details, HMRC correspondence, tax-code notice, payslips and any spouse or civil-partner transfer claim together. If you move from employment to Self Assessment, check that the allowance has not been omitted or duplicated between payroll and the return. A change in residence within the UK, relationship status or taxable income can alter how much of the allowance is useful, even when eligibility for BPA has not changed.

When asking HMRC to correct an earlier year, identify the exact year, the date eligibility began and the tax already paid. Do not assume a calculator result proves the earliest claim date or refund. If HMRC changes the code, compare the next payslip with the notice and keep the original records. The practical aim is a correct allowance for each eligible year, not simply a larger-looking Personal Allowance figure.

Check the effect on your take-home pay with the Salary Calculator→ and see how the allowance fits your overall position in Income Tax Bands 2026/27. Also worth reading: Marriage Allowance 2026/27 and Tax Codes Explained 2026/27.

Official sources

• GOV.UK: Blind Person’s Allowance
• GOV.UK: What you’ll get
• GOV.UK: Eligibility
• GOV.UK: How to claim
• GOV.UK: Transfer allowance
• HMRC: Notice of transfer of surplus income tax allowances