What is the blind person's allowance?
Answered 11 March 2026
Here is a comprehensive answer on the blind person's allowance:
What the law says
Amount and entitlement (ITA 2007, s.38)
An individual who makes a claim is entitled to a blind person's allowance of £3,250 for a tax year, provided they meet one of two conditions and the residence requirements of s.56.
The First Condition (England & Wales): The individual must be registered as a severely sight-impaired adult in a register kept under:
- s.77(1) of the Care Act 2014 (England), or
- s.18(1) of the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014 (Wales).
The Second Condition (Scotland & Northern Ireland): The individual must be ordinarily resident in Scotland or Northern Ireland and, because of their blindness, be unable to do any work for which eyesight is essential.
Backdating rule: If an individual becomes registered in a tax year but obtained the underlying evidence of blindness/severe sight-impairment in the preceding tax year, they are treated as having met the first condition for the whole of that preceding tax year.
How the allowance is given effect: The allowance is given at Step 3 of the income tax calculation in s.23 ITA 2007.
Transfer to spouse or civil partner (ITA 2007, s.39)
If the allowance exceeds the individual's remaining relievable income (net income minus any personal allowance), the surplus may be transferred to a spouse or civil partner who is living with the individual, provided:
- The individual makes an election, and
- The spouse/civil partner makes a claim.
The election must be made within 4 years of the end of the relevant tax year and cannot be withdrawn.
HMRC guidance / practice
When a blind person's allowance is transferred between spouses, HMRC operationally sets a Manual Code indicator with the reason "BPR transfer" and records a note in Contact History to reflect the transfer (e.g. "Manual code Blind Person's allowance transferred to wife/husband").
Citation sources
Part 3 Personal reliefs Chapter 2 Personal allowance and blind person's allowance Blind person's allowance Blind person's allowance 38 1 An individual who makes a claim is entitled to a blind person's allowance of £3,250 for a tax year if the individual— a meets the first or second condition for the whole or part of the tax year, and b meets the requirements of section 56 (residence etc). 2 The first condition is that the individual is— a registered as a severely sight-impaired adult in a regist
Part 3 Personal reliefs Chapter 2 Personal allowance and blind person's allowance Blind person's allowance Election for transfer of allowance under section 39 40 1 An election under section 39— a must be made not more than 4 years after the end of the tax year to which it relates, and b cannot be withdrawn. 2 If an individual makes an election for a tax year under section 39 the individual is treated as also giving notice under section 51(4) that section 51(1) (tax reductions for married couples
Part 3 Personal reliefs Chapter 2 Personal allowance and blind person's allowance Blind person's allowance Transfer of part of blind person's allowance to a spouse or civil partner 39 1 This section applies to an individual who is entitled to a blind person's allowance under section 38 for a tax year if— a the individual is a person whose spouse or civil partner is living with the individual for the whole or any part of the tax year, and b the spouse or civil partner meets the requirements of se
Part 3 Personal reliefs Chapter 2 Personal allowance and blind person's allowance Introduction Allowances under Chapter 34 1 In this Chapter— a section 35 deals with entitlement to a personal allowance, b section 38 deals with entitlement to a blind person's allowance, and c section 39 deals with the transfer of part of a blind person's allowance to a spouse or civil partner. 2 An allowance under this Chapter is given effect at Step 3 of the calculation in section 23. 3 See also— a section 809G,
Where a husband's Blind Person's allowance is transferred to his wife, set the Manual Code indicator with the reason BPR transfer and add a note in Contact History `Manual code Blind Person's allowance transferred to wife'. Where a wife's code includes her husband's Blind Person's allowance and no record is held for the husband, set the Manual Code indicator with the reason BPR transfer and add a note in Contact History `Manual code husband’s Blind Person's allowance in code'. Where a wife's Bli