Dividend Tax Calculator for 2023/24, 2024/25, 2025/26 and 2026/27
Dividends were taxed at 8.75%, 33.75% and 39.35% in 2023/24, 2024/25 and 2025/26, and at 10.75%, 35.75% and 39.35% from 6 April 2026 1. The dividend allowance was £1,000 in 2023/24 and has been £500 since 1. Your January 2027 tax return is for 2025/26, so it uses the 8.75% and 33.75% rates.
Dividend tax rates and allowance by year
| Tax year | Allowance | Basic rate | Higher rate | Additional rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023/24 | £1,000 | 8.75% | 33.75% | 39.35% |
| 2024/25 | £500 | 8.75% | 33.75% | 39.35% |
| 2025/26 | £500 | 8.75% | 33.75% | 39.35% |
| 2026/27 | £500 | 10.75% | 35.75% | 39.35% |
Source: HMRC's current and past rates table 1. Personal allowance £12,570, basic-rate band £37,700 and additional rate over £125,140 in all four years. Budget 2026 kept the 2026/27 rates and the £500 allowance for 2027/28.
Dividend tax calculator 23/24, 24/25, 25/26 and 26/27: the same income in each year
| Situation | Salary | Dividends | 2023/24 | 2024/25 | 2025/26 | 2026/27 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Director on a £12,570 salary | £12,570 | £50,000 | £7,362.50 | £7,406.25 | £7,406.25 | £8,396.25 |
| Director on a £12,570 salary | £12,570 | £20,000 | £1,662.50 | £1,706.25 | £1,706.25 | £2,096.25 |
| Employee on £35,000 with shares | £35,000 | £3,000 | £175 | £218.75 | £218.75 | £268.75 |
| Higher-rate employee | £60,000 | £5,000 | £1,350 | £1,518.75 | £1,518.75 | £1,608.75 |
| Investor on £110,000 | £110,000 | £10,000 | £3,037.50 | £3,206.25 | £3,206.25 | £3,396.25 |
Dividend tax only, rest-of-UK bands (dividend rates are UK-wide). 2024/25 and 2025/26 match because nothing changed between them; 2023/24 is lower because of the £1,000 allowance; 2026/27 is higher because the basic and higher rates rose by 2 points.
Which year am I filing for?
- 2025/26 (6 April 2025 to 5 April 2026): the return due online by 31 January 2027. See the 2025/26 return guide and the payments on account calculator.
- 2024/25 or 2023/24: only if you're amending a return or catching up a late one.
- 2026/27: this tax year, for planning. Use the main dividend tax calculator.
Frequently asked questions
What were the dividend tax rates in 2025/26?
8.75% in the basic-rate band, 33.75% in the higher-rate band and 39.35% in the additional-rate band, after a £500 dividend allowance. These are the rates for the 2025/26 return due by 31 January 2027.
What was the dividend allowance in 2023/24?
£1,000. It fell to £500 from 2024/25 and is still £500 in 2026/27.
Which year's rates go on my January 2027 tax return?
2025/26, the tax year from 6 April 2025 to 5 April 2026. The 10.75% and 35.75% rates only apply to dividends paid from 6 April 2026.
Are the rates changing again in 2027/28?
No. Budget 2026 kept the dividend rates at 10.75%, 35.75% and 39.35% and the allowance at £500 for 2027/28.
Which tax year is a dividend taxed in?
Normally the tax year in which it is paid to you, not the company's accounting year. Final dividends declared by your own company can be taxed when they become due, so see our guide to which tax year a dividend falls in.
Does this work in Scotland?
Yes. Dividend rates are the same across the UK. Scottish rates only apply to your salary, so the calculator's dividend tax figure is right for Scottish taxpayers too.
Choosing the right year, and what changed between them
Dividend tax is charged on the dividends paid in a tax year, which runs from 6 April to the following 5 April. So the year to choose is the year the money was paid to you, not the year the company made the profit and not the year you file. The return due online by 31 January 2027 is for 2025/26: dividends paid between 6 April 2025 and 5 April 2026.
Three things moved across these four years. The dividend allowance fell from £1,000 in 2023/24 to £500 from 2024/25. The basic and higher dividend rates stayed at 8.75% and 33.75% until 5 April 2026, then rose by 2 percentage points to 10.75% and 35.75% from 6 April 2026. The additional rate stayed at 39.35% throughout. The Personal Allowance (£12,570), the basic-rate band (£37,700) and the £125,140 additional-rate threshold did not change.
Use a past year when you are checking or correcting a return already sent, catching up a late one, or comparing what the same income cost in different years. GOV.UK says you can usually change a return within 12 months of the 31 January filing deadline, so a 2024/25 return can be amended online until 31 January 2027. After that, if you overpaid, you can claim a refund for up to 4 years after the end of the tax year concerned.
The same dividend either side of the April 2026 change
Paid on 5 April 2026 or 6 April 2026
A director on a £12,570 salary pays a £20,000 dividend. Paid on 5 April 2026, it falls in 2025/26 and the dividend tax is £1,706.25. Paid a day later, it falls in 2026/27 and the tax is £2,096.25: £390.00 more, because the 10.75% basic rate replaced 8.75%. The rate depends only on the date paid.
The smaller allowance, on a small dividend
An employee on £30,000 with £1,000 of dividends paid £0 in 2023/24, when the allowance was £1,000, and £43.75 in 2024/25, when it fell to £500.
A higher-rate taxpayer
On a £60,000 salary, £10,000 of dividends cost £3,206.25 in 2025/26 and £3,396.25 in 2026/27: the 2-point rise on the higher rate adds £20 for every £1,000 taxed at it.
Every figure here is worked out by the same code as the calculator, using 2026/27 rates unless another year is named. Estimates for planning, not tax advice.
Common mix-ups with past years
- Filing 2025/26 figures at 2026/27 rates. The 10.75% and 35.75% rates only apply to dividends paid from 6 April 2026; a January 2027 return still uses 8.75% and 33.75%.
- Using your company's year end. A company with a 31 December year end can pay dividends in two different tax years from the same year's profits.
- Forgetting payments on account. A past-year bill of £1,000 or more usually means payments on account for the following year too.
- Amending too late. Once the 12-month amendment window has closed, a correction that increases your tax still has to be reported to HMRC; one that reduces it needs an overpayment relief claim.
Sources & references
Every headline figure in this guide is drawn from the official HMRC and GOV.UK sources below and reflects the confirmed 2026/27 rates. Each link opens the relevant official page in a new tab.
- Income Tax rates and allowances for current and past years ↗ https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/rates-and-allowances-income-tax/income-tax-rates-and-allowances-current-and-past
- Tax on dividends ↗ https://www.gov.uk/tax-on-dividends
- Self Assessment tax returns — GOV.UK ↗ https://www.gov.uk/self-assessment-tax-returns
- Self Assessment tax returns: corrections — GOV.UK ↗ https://www.gov.uk/self-assessment-tax-returns/corrections
Sources last checked: 29 October 2026.
Run your own limited company? The Director's Pay & Tax Pack 2026/27 (28-page pack, £4.99) covers salary, dividends with paperwork templates, director's loans and year-end.