Skip to content

Dividends Tax Administration and Shareholder Distributions

Dividends tax obligations often sit uncomfortably between the company secretary, the finance team and external advisors, and errors surface only when SARS raises a query. This course explains how dividends tax is withheld, declared and paid, when exemptions and reduced rates apply, and how to handle distributions to local and foreign shareholders. Examples reflect the group and family company structures common across the region.

What you will be able to do

  • Distinguish dividends tax from company income tax within a distribution decision.
  • Determine when a company must withhold, declare and pay dividends tax.
  • Apply exemptions, exemption declarations and reduced treaty rates correctly.
  • Process distributions to local, foreign and exempt shareholders accurately.
  • Complete and submit the dividends tax return within statutory deadlines.
  • Document beneficial ownership and declarations to support each distribution.

Course outline

  1. 01How dividends tax works in South Africa
  2. 02Withholding obligations and payment timing
  3. 03Exemptions and exemption declarations
  4. 04Reduced rates under tax treaties
  5. 05Distributions to foreign shareholders
  6. 06Deemed dividends and loan accounts
  7. 07Completing the dividends tax return
  8. 08Beneficial ownership and record keeping

Who should attend

Company secretaries, financial managers, tax administrators and accountants who process shareholder distributions and dividend declarations.

Dates, venues and fees

DatesVenueDaysFeeCalendar
17 to 18 Aug 2026Lusaka2US$1,100
24 to 25 Aug 2026Kigali2US$1,100
31 Aug to 1 Sep 2026Nairobi2US$1,100
7 to 8 Sep 2026Durban2R10,000
14 to 15 Sep 2026Johannesburg2R10,000
28 to 29 Sep 2026Mauritius2US$1,100
5 to 6 Oct 2026Dubai2US$1,100
12 to 13 Oct 2026Lagos2US$1,100
19 to 20 Oct 2026Harare2US$1,100
26 to 27 Oct 2026Kampala2US$1,100
2 to 3 Nov 2026Dar es Salaam2US$1,100
9 to 10 Nov 2026Pretoria2R10,000
16 to 17 Nov 2026Cape Town2R10,000
30 Nov to 1 Dec 2026Online2US$900
7 to 8 Dec 2026Mozambique2US$1,100
14 to 15 Dec 2026Cairo2US$1,100
21 to 22 Dec 2026Accra2US$1,100

Fees are per delegate. South African venues are priced in rand; other locations and online in US dollars. Fees exclude 15% VAT where applicable. Group bookings of three or more delegates from the same organisation qualify for a reduced rate; contact us for a quotation.

Related courses in Tax, Treasury and Banking

Tax, Treasury and Banking

Value Added Tax Compliance and Control

Most assessments arise from ordinary administration: input tax claimed without a valid tax invoice, output tax missed on a disposal, or an...

Next session
31 Aug to 2 Sep 2026
Venue
Dubai
3 day programme
FromUS$900
Tax, Treasury and Banking

Payroll Taxes and Employees Tax Administration

Payroll sits where employment law, benefits and tax collection meet, and errors repeat every month until someone finds them. Employees tax...

Next session
31 Aug to 1 Sep 2026
Venue
Johannesburg
2 day programme
FromUS$900
Tax, Treasury and Banking

Corporate Income Tax Fundamentals

Accounting profit and taxable income are rarely the same number, and the difference has to be explained line by line. Delegates follow the...

Next session
31 Aug to 2 Sep 2026
Venue
Kigali
3 day programme
FromUS$900
See all Tax, Treasury and Banking courses