Companies that have made a profit can do one of two things with the excess cash. They can (1) take the money and reinvest it to earn even more money, or (2) take the excess funds and divide them among the company's owners, the shareholders, in the form of a dividend.
If the company decides to pay out dividends, the earnings are taxed twice by the government because of the transfer of the money from the company to the shareholders. The first taxation occurs at the company's year-end when it must pay taxes on its earnings. The second taxation occurs when the shareholders receive the dividends, which come from the company's after-tax earnings. The shareholders pay taxes first as owners of a company that brings in earnings and then again as individuals, who must pay income taxes on their own personal dividend earnings.
Key Takeaways
- The double taxation of dividends is a reference to how corporate earnings and dividends are taxed by the U.S. government.
- Corporations pay taxes on their earnings and then pay shareholders dividends out of the after-tax earnings.
- Shareholders receiving dividend payments from a company must then pay taxes on that income as part of their personal income taxes.
- Because of this requirement, some corporations opt to avoid paying dividends to shareholders and instead reinvest the money internally.
Paying Taxes Twice
This may not seem like a big deal to some people who don't really earn substantial amounts of dividend income, but it does bother those whose dividend earnings are larger. Consider this: you work all week and get a paycheck from which tax is deducted. After arriving home, you give your children their weekly allowances, and then an IRS representative shows up at your front door to take a portion of the money you give to your kids. You would complain since you already paid taxes on the money you earned, but in the context of dividend payouts, double taxation of earnings is legal.
The double taxation also poses a dilemma to CEOs of companies when deciding whether to reinvest the company's earnings internally. Because the government takes two bites out of the money paid as dividends, it may seem more logical for the company to reinvest the money into projects that may instead give shareholders earnings in capital gains. (For more on this subject, check out Investment Tax Basics For All Investors and Dividend Facts You May Not Know.)
Advisor Insight
Donald P. Gould
Gould Asset Management, Claremont, CA
First, let's understand what a dividend is. When a corporation makes a profit, it pays income tax on that profit, the way individuals pay income tax on their wages. The money left over is called the "profit after tax" (PAT). When a company distributes its PAT among its shareholders, such distributions are known as "dividends."
Say that you own Apple Inc. shares that pay $228 in dividends a year. You must report the $228 on your tax return and, depending on your tax bracket, pay federal and state income tax on it. Because Apple paid tax on its profits, and then you paid tax on the dividends, it’s called double taxation of dividends. In fact, it’s double taxation of corporate profits; the dividends are only taxed once. Some firms deliberately do not pay dividends just to avoid the syndrome.
FAQs
The double taxation of dividends is a reference to how corporate earnings and dividends are taxed by the U.S. government. Corporations pay taxes on their earnings and then pay shareholders dividends out of the after-tax earnings.
How are dividends double taxed? ›
Double taxation occurs when taxes are levied twice on a single source of income. Often, this occurs when dividends are taxed. Like individuals, corporations pay taxes on annual earnings. If these corporations later pay out dividends to shareholders, those shareholders may have to pay income tax on them.
What is double taxation and how does it work? ›
Double taxation refers to the imposition of taxes on the same income, assets or financial transaction at two different points of time. Double taxation can be economic, which refers to the taxing of shareholder dividends after taxation as corporate earnings.
What is the double taxation of dividends typically refers to? ›
Most commonly, double taxation happens when a company earns a profit in the form of dividends. The company pays the taxes on its annual profits first. Then, after the company pays its dividends to shareholders, shareholders pay a second tax.
What is an example of a double taxation problem? ›
For example, when capital gains accrue from stock holdings, they represent a second layer of tax, as corporate earnings are already subject to corporate income taxes. Additionally, the estate tax creates a double tax on an individual's income and the transfer of that income to heirs upon death.
What is the double dividend? ›
It refers to the notion that environmental taxes can both reduce pollution (the first dividend) and reduce the overall economic costs associated with the tax system by using the revenue generated to displace other more distortionary taxes that slow economic growth at the same time (the second dividend).
What is the double entry for a dividend? ›
1. If Company X buys shares from Company Y, X becomes the shareholders of Y. So, when dividend is received by X, the double entry is firstly Dr Cash; Cr Dividend (other income), and at the end of year it will be Dr Dividend; Cr Retaining Earnings? 2.
Why is double taxation bad? ›
Opponents of double taxation on corporate earnings contend that the practice is both unfair and inefficient, since it treats corporate income differently than other forms of income and encourages companies to finance themselves with debt, which is tax deductible, and to retain profits rather than pass them on to ...
How do you solve double taxation? ›
Retaining corporate earnings.
You can avoid double taxation by keeping profits in the business rather than distributing it to shareholders as dividends. If shareholders don't receive dividends, they're not taxed on them, so the profits are only taxed at the corporate rate.
What is a double taxation on an investment? ›
Double taxation occurs when a corporation pays taxes on its profits and then its shareholders pay personal taxes on dividends or capital gains received from the corporation.
The profit of a corporation is taxed to the corporation when earned, and then is taxed to the shareholders when distributed as dividends. This creates a double tax. The corporation does not get a tax deduction when it distributes dividends to shareholders.
What is the meaning of taxation of dividends? ›
A dividend tax is a tax imposed by a jurisdiction on dividends paid by a corporation to its shareholders (stockholders). The primary tax liability is that of the shareholder, though a tax obligation may also be imposed on the corporation in the form of a withholding tax.
What is an example of a double dividend hypothesis? ›
For example, the introduction of a carbon tax will decrease carbon emissions and raise revenue, thus permitting a reduction in the rate of income tax or profit tax. The idea of a double-dividend is intuitively compelling, but it has proved difficult to demonstrate in formal models.
What does double taxation mean simple? ›
Double taxation is when you pay income taxes twice on the same source of income. In the case of businesses, double taxation means a corporation is taxed at both the personal and business levels. Businesses that have double-taxed income include: Corporations (C Corps) LLCs that elect to be treated as corporations.
What is meant by the disadvantage of double taxation? ›
Double taxation is a disadvantage of a corporation because the corporation has to pay income taxes at twice the rate applied to partnerships.
What does double taxation mean in Quizlet? ›
It is when two separate tax authorities tax the same corporation.
Are you taxed twice if you reinvest dividends? ›
The IRS considers any dividends you receive as taxable income, whether you reinvest them or not. When you reinvest dividends, for tax purposes you are essentially receiving the dividend and then using it to purchase more shares.
How does an S Corp avoid double taxation? ›
Shareholders of S corporations report the flow-through of income and losses on their personal tax returns and are assessed tax at their individual income tax rates. This allows S corporations to avoid double taxation on the corporate income.
How to avoid C Corp double taxation? ›
Reimburse shareholder expenses: If a C corp directly reimburses business expenses incurred by shareholders, it can deduct these reimbursem*nts and reduce its total earnings, thereby avoiding double taxation. However, the shareholder cannot then turn around and deduct those same expenses on their individual return.
What is the 45 day rule for dividends? ›
The 45-Day Rule requires resident taxpayers to hold shares at risk for at least 45 days (90 days for preference shares, not including the day of acquisition or disposal) in order to be entitled to Franking Credits.
