How to Report Dividends on Your Self Assessment Tax Return

To report dividends from your own limited company, tick the UK interest and dividends section of your Self Assessment return and enter the total cash dividends you received in the tax year under dividends from UK companies. HMRC works out the tax automatically, applying your £500 dividend allowance first and then the 10.75%, 35.75% or 39.35% rates.

Key takeaways

• Dividends from your own company go in the UK interest and dividends section of the Self Assessment return.
• Enter the total cash dividend for the tax year, not what the company declared in its accounts.
• The tax year is based on when the dividend is paid or becomes due, not the company year end.
• The £500 dividend allowance and tax rates are applied by HMRC’s calculation, so you do not enter them yourself.
• Dividend vouchers and board minutes are your evidence, so keep them with your tax records.

Where dividends go on the return

Dividends from a UK limited company are reported in the section of the return called UK interest and dividends. When you file online, you first tick that this section applies to you, and then the form asks for the total amount of dividends from UK companies. You enter a single figure for the whole tax year, not a line for each payment.

Since the tax credit on dividends was abolished in 2016, there is no separate gross and net figure. The amount you enter is simply the cash dividend you received. If you use paper forms, the same figure goes in the dividends box on the main SA100 return.

If you are new to the process, read our guide to Self Assessment for company directors for the bigger picture.

Which tax year does a dividend belong to?

Dividends are taxed in the tax year in which they are paid, which runs from 6 April to 5 April. For an interim dividend, that is generally the date it is paid. For a final dividend, it is the date it becomes due and payable. It does not matter when the company’s financial year ends or which accounting period the profit came from.

That is why many directors time dividends carefully around 5 April. A dividend paid on 4 April falls in the old tax year and one paid on 6 April falls in the next, which can change which tax bands apply. Our post on dividend tax rates and how to reduce the bill explains the timing in more detail.

Gather the right documents

You need a clear record of each dividend payment. For every dividend, the company should have produced board minutes and a dividend voucher showing the date, amount, shareholder name and company details. Add up the amounts paid in the relevant tax year and match them to your bank statements and the director’s loan account.

Document	What to check
Dividend voucher	Date, amount and shareholder name
Board minutes	Dividend was formally declared
Bank statements	Money actually left the company
Director’s loan account	Any dividend credited but not yet paid
Company accounts	Profits were available to distribute

How the tax is calculated

You do not enter the tax rates. After you report the dividends, HMRC’s online calculation applies your £500 dividend allowance, then taxes the rest at 10.75% in the basic rate band, 35.75% in the higher rate band (income above £50,270) and 39.35% in the additional rate band (income above £125,140). Dividends are treated as the top slice of your income, so any salary uses your personal allowance first.

Remember that the dividend allowance still uses up part of your basic rate band. It is taxed at 0%, but it counts towards band limits. If you want to see how changes in salary and dividends alter the bill before you file, use the dividend tax calculator.

A simple worked example

Suppose your company paid you a salary of £12,570 and dividends of £40,000 in 2025-26. Your salary uses the personal allowance. The first £500 of dividends is covered by the dividend allowance. The remaining £39,500 falls within the basic rate band because your total income is under £50,270, so it is taxed at 10.75%, giving roughly £4,246 of dividend tax. You would enter £40,000 as the dividend figure, and HMRC would calculate the tax.

The same logic applies to any amount. Enter the cash you received, and let the return do the arithmetic. If the result looks unexpected, check that you have not entered dividends from a previous or future tax year by mistake.

Dividends credited to your loan account

Sometimes a company declares a dividend but does not pay it out, instead crediting it to your director’s loan account. For tax purposes, the dividend is still treated as received when it was legally due. That means it belongs on your return for that tax year even though you did not see the cash.

This catches directors out because the bank account does not show any movement. Keep the board minutes and loan account records so you can show how the figure was reached. For more on how loan accounts work, see our explainer on director’s loan accounts and Section 455 tax.

Jointly owned companies and spouse shareholders

If you share ownership with a spouse or other directors, each shareholder reports only their own dividends on their own return. Dividends must be paid in proportion to shareholdings for each class of share unless the company has set up different share classes, and the paperwork must show that clearly. If one person holds a small stake and receives large dividends relative to their involvement, HMRC may look closely, particularly where income is being moved to a lower earner. Take advice before changing share structures.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Entering the amount declared in the company accounts rather than the amount received in the tax year.
• Leaving out dividends that were credited to a loan account.
• Using the wrong tax year because the dividend straddled 5 April.
• Reporting dividends that were never lawfully declared because there were insufficient profits.
• Forgetting that the company may need to reverse a dividend that was illegally paid.

The bottom line

Reporting dividends is simple once your records are tidy: add up the cash received in the tax year, enter it in the UK interest and dividends section and let HMRC calculate the tax. The real work is keeping vouchers, minutes and bank records consistent all year.

Frequently asked questions

Where do I put dividends on my Self Assessment return?

In the UK interest and dividends section, under dividends from UK companies. Enter the total for the tax year.

Do I enter the gross or net amount?

There is no tax credit, so you enter the actual cash dividend received.

Which tax year do my dividends belong to?

The year in which the dividend was paid or became due, running from 6 April to 5 April, regardless of the company’s year end.

Do I need to report dividends under the £500 allowance?

If you are filing a return, report them anyway. They are taxed at 0% under the allowance, but they still count towards your income and band limits.

What evidence should I keep?

Board minutes, dividend vouchers, bank statements and the director’s loan account for each dividend.