Marriage Duty Act 1694

The Marriage Duty Act 1694 was a 1695 act of the Parliament of England which imposed a tax, known as Marriage Duty or the Registration Tax, on births, marriages, burials, childless widowers, and bachelors over the age of 25. It was primarily used as a revenue raising mechanism for war on France and as a means of ensuring that proper records were kept by Anglican church officials. The tax was found ineffective and abolished by 1706.