Answers · UK 2025/26

How much tax will I pay on £15,000 of dividends in 2026/27?

On £15,000 of dividends in 2026/27, the first £500 is covered by the dividend allowance. The remaining £14,500 is taxed at 10.75% if you are a basic-rate taxpayer (£1,558.75), 35.75% if higher-rate (£5,183.75), or 39.35% if additional-rate (£5,705.75).

Last updated: 10 July 2026Last reviewed: 10 July 2026How we verify

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Dividends in 2026/27 have a tax-free dividend allowance of £500. Above that, dividends are taxed at 10.75% in the basic band, 35.75% in the higher band and 39.35% in the additional band. Dividends are treated as the top slice of your income, so the rate depends on which band the dividends fall into once stacked on your other income. Worked example: a company director with a £9,100 salary and £15,000 in dividends has combined income of £24,100, comfortably within the basic-rate band (which runs to the £50,270 higher-rate threshold). The first £500 of dividends is covered by the allowance, and the remaining £14,500 is taxed at the basic dividend rate of 10.75%, giving a bill of £1,558.75. By contrast, someone with a £60,000 salary and £15,000 of dividends has already used their Personal Allowance and basic-rate band through salary alone, so all their dividends fall in the higher band -- after the £500 allowance, the remaining £14,500 is taxed at 35.75%, a bill of £5,183.75. This nearly 3.3x difference shows why the same £15,000 of dividends can cost very different amounts depending on your other income. Use the dividend-tax calculator to enter your salary and dividends together and see the band split, and the dividend-vs-salary calculator if you are a company director deciding how to extract profit.