If you are eligible for a dividend payout, you will receive this amount in your Cash balance in Sarwa Trade. You can then choose to reinvest this amount or withdraw it.
Many companies pay out dividends either on an annual, semi-annual, quarterly, or monthly basis.
Below is an example of a company declaring dividends.
Ex/EFF Date: The ex-dividend date or ex-date marks the cutoff point for shareholders to be credited a pending stock dividend. To receive the upcoming dividend, shareholders must have bought the stock before the ex-dividend date. Share prices usually drop by the amount of the dividend on the ex-dividend date.
Cash Amount: The dividend amount per share to be paid to investors
Declaration Date: This is the date on which the company announces that it will be issuing a dividend in the future
Record Date: This is the cut-off date used to determine which shareholders are entitled to a corporate dividend. To be eligible for the dividend, you must buy the stock at least two business days before the record date.
Payment Date: The date on which the dividends will be paid out.
You can find applicable dividend dates by searching for an asset here: https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/quotes/dividend-history
There are dividend taxes applicable for non-US residents invested in companies trading on the US market. Below are examples for both US and Canadian companies.
US Stocks/Companies:
All assets trading on the US markets are subject to the dividend withholding tax. This is a tax that is deductible from dividends before they are paid out. This tax is 30%. For example, if an ETF is paying a dividend of $1, you would receive $0.7 in your account. This tax is automatically deducted at source, so no action is required on your end.
Taking the example from the graphic above:
ABC Dividend rate= $1.13/share
Total ABC shares owned as of Ex-date = 100 shares.
Eligible dividend= 100 * $1.13 = $113.00
Applicable US Withholding tax of 30%= $113.00 * 0.7= $79.10 - This is the final amount that will be paid
Canadian Stocks/Companies:
When investing in Canadian companies through a US-based broker such as ours, the 30% tax isn't applicable, however there is a 15% withholding tax applied at source.
Please note this tax is not calculated the same as the 30% but rather applied to the dividend rate.
Taking the example from the graphic above (assuming it's a Canadian company now):
ABC Dividend rate= $1.13/share
Rate after Canadian 15% withholding tax= $1.13 * 0.85= $0.9605/share
Total ABC shares owned as of Ex-date = 100 shares.
Eligible dividend= 100 * $0.9605 = $96.05
Please note, our clearing firm holds Canadian dividends for 2 business days after payable date because they have to reflect tax withholding adjustments. These dividends will be paid into your account 2 business days after the payment date.
