Things you need to know
To claim a deduction for dividend expenses, you must incur expenses in earning any income from dividends and distributions. Dividends and distributions income are amounts or credits you receive from Australian companies or as participant in a dividend reinvestment plan.
If a listed investment company (LIC) pays you a dividend that includes a capital gain amount, you can claim a deduction of 50% of the LIC capital gain amount at this question. The LIC capital gain amount shows separately on your dividend statement.
What you can claim as a dividend deduction
Dividend expenses you can claim a deduction for may include:
- management fees and fees for investment advice relating to changes in the mix of your investments
- interest you pay on money you borrow to buy shares or similar investments
- costs relating to managing your investments, such as travel and buying specialist investment journals or subscriptions.
You can also claim 50% of the LIC capital gain, see Listed investment company dividend capital gains concession.
If you borrow money to buy assets for both private use and income-producing investments, you can claim only the portion of the interest expenses relating to the income-producing investments.
Interest you incur on investments you make using a capital protected borrowing may not be fully deductible. To help determine if you can deduct the full amount, see Capital protected products and borrowings.
If you incur expenses relating to certain overseas investments (or investments in Australia if you're a foreign resident), the thin capitalisation rules may affect your deductions. These rules may apply if the total of your debt deductions and those of your associates are over $2 million for 2024–25. For more information, see Thin capitalisation – how the rules work.
For more information on deductions you can claim, see Dividend income deductions.
You can also claim the decline in value of your computer using the percentage of your total computer use that relates to managing your investments. If you use your computer to manage both your investments to produce interest and investments in shares or similar securities, you can claim only the proportion of the decline in value relating to managing those investments once, at either question D7 or D8. If you're claiming a deduction for the decline in value of your computer, see Guide to depreciating assets 2025.
What you can't claim as a dividend deduction
You can't claim expenses for:
- financial advice you receive from someone who isn't either a:
- tax agent with a current Tax Practitioners Board registration
- qualified tax relevant provider with a current Australian Securities and Investments Commission registration
- some interest expenses where you borrow money under a capital protected product or borrowing
- brokerage fees and other transaction costs.
You also can't claim expenses for charges on an investment proposal before the acquisition of an asset unless you're carrying on an investment business, in which case you claim any expenses at P8 Business income and expenses in the Business and professional items schedule 2025.
If this applies to you, then you should lodge your tax return using myTax or a registered tax agent. If you're unable to use myTax or a registered tax agent, contact us and we'll send you a paper tax return that includes the Business and Professional items schedule 2025.
Don't show at this question
Don't show at this question any dividend expenses you incur in:
- earning trust and partnership distributions – show these at question 13 – labels X and Y in your supplementary tax return
- earning foreign source dividends – show these at question 20 or question D15 in your tax return.
If you don't have any dividends or distributions deductions, go to question D9 Gifts or donations 2025.
What you need to answer this question
You may need written evidence of your dividend and distribution expenses. Most of the records you need will be given to you by the company, the fund manager or your stockbroker. These may include receipts for subscriptions and bank statements showing the interest and bank fees you pay. See, Keeping records of shares and units.
You'll also need your LIC dividend statement which shows the capital gain amount. Show dividends you receive from a LIC at question 11.
If you have joint share investments or similar investments, show only your share of the joint expenses. If you hold the investment equally with one other person, this will be half. Keep a record of how you work out your proportion if you and the other investors don't share the expenses equally.
If you don't have dividend deductions, go to question D9 Gifts and donations 2025.
Completing your tax return
To complete this question, follow the steps.
Step 1
Add up all your deductions for this question.
Step 2
Write the total amount at question D8 – label H.
Where to go next
- Go to question D9 Gifts or donations 2025.
- Return to main menu Individual tax return instructions 2025.
- Go back to question D7 Interest deductions 2025.