Shareholders who are resident in the UK or EEA can elect to join the Dividend Reinvestment Plan (DRIP) and use their cash dividend to purchase ordinary shares in The British Land Company PLC (British Land). Under the DRIP, the cash dividend (after deduction of any withholding tax) will be used to buy whole shares as soon as possible after the dividend payment date, with any residual cash being carried forward and added to the next dividend payable to you. The DRIP incurs commission costs of 1% and stamp duty reserve tax, currently at 0.5%.
This is a convenient facility provided by Equiniti Financial Services Limited. For additional information please contact:
Dividend Reinvestment Plans
Equiniti Limited
Aspect House
Spencer Road
Lancing
West Sussex
BN99 6DA
You can manage your dividend reinvestment options at Equiniti Shareview.
For UK capital gains tax purposes, the base cost of British Land ordinary shares bought on your behalf under the DRIP, for the purpose of calculating the chargeable gain or allowable loss arising on the sale, will be the price of the shares on the day they were purchased plus the stamp duty reserve tax and any transaction costs. Below are the purchase prices of British Land ordinary shares at close of business on the dividend payment dates:
Date | Share Price |
5 January 2024 | 395.4p |
As a result of the introduction of the DRIP, we suspended our SCRIP scheme. Accordingly, all SCRIP measures are automatically suspended.
Important note
This summary of tax consequences for shareholders is intended to provide only a general outline of the subjects covered. It should be regarded as neither comprehensive nor sufficient for making decisions, nor should it be used in place of professional tax advice. The British Land Company PLC accepts no responsibility for any loss arising from any action taken or not taken by any person using this material.
Dividends and our obligations as a REIT
As a Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT), British Land must follow certain rules relating to money it distributes to shareholders, and how those distributions are taxed. 90% of the tax-exempt profit from British Land's property rental business has to be distributed to shareholders. This is known as a Property Income Distribution, or 'PID'. British Land can also distribute taxed income from its other activities, known as a Non-Property Income Distribution, or 'non-PID'.
These distributions are commonly made by way of dividend payments. Dividends can be entirely PID, entirely non-PID, or a combination of the two; the Board will decide the most appropriate make-up on a dividend-by-dividend basis. Further, the PID/non-PID make-up of the Scrip Dividend Alternative may be different to that of the underlying cash dividend.
More information on scrip dividend alternative are in our Dividend FAQs below.
PID & non-PID dividend payments
Shareholders should note that the tax treatment of PID and non-PID dividends differs. PIDs are taxable as property letting income in the hands of tax-paying shareholders, but treated separately from any other property letting income which shareholders may receive.
Profits distributed as PID dividends are paid out of British Land's tax-exempt profits and therefore are potentially fully taxable in shareholders’ hands as property letting income. PID dividends are normally paid after deduction of withholding tax at the basic rate of income tax (20%), which the REIT pays to HMRC on behalf of the shareholder. Certain classes of shareholder are eligible to receive gross PID dividends. Examples of such classes are:
UK Companies
Charities
Local Authorities
UK Pension Schemes
Managers of PEPs, ISAs and Child Trust Funds
Forms for claiming exemption from withholding tax on PID dividend payments are provided:
REIT DECLARATION - BENEFICIAL OWNER FORM PDF
REIT DECLARATION - INTERMEDIARY FORM PDF
For UK resident individuals who receive tax returns, the PID from a UK REIT is included on the tax return as Other Income.
If completing the return online, in the section "Other UK Income" tick the bottom box "Any other income". On the next page enter the total amount of the PID received (including tax) in "Other taxable income – before expenses and tax taken off", enter the tax deducted in "Tax taken off" and in the box for description of other taxable income state "PID from The British Land Company PLC".
If completing a paper tax return, on page 3 enter the total amount of the PID received in box 17 and enter the amount of tax shown as deducted in box 19. In box 21, state that the Other Income is "PID from The British Land Company PLC". (Box references are to 2023 return).
The non-PID element of dividends will be treated in exactly the same way as dividends received from other non-REIT UK companies. The tax free Dividend Allowance will apply to the non-PID element of dividends received by UK resident shareholders subject to UK income tax. It should be noted that the Allowance does not apply to the PID element of dividends. Please refer to HMRC guidance for the Allowance available here.
For UK resident individuals who receive tax returns, any normal dividend paid by the UK REIT is included on the return as a dividend from a UK company. Your dividend voucher will show your shares in the company, the dividend rate and dividend payable.
Sale of shares by UK and non-UK resident shareholders
From 6 April 2019 the gain on sale of British Land shares will be within the charge to UK tax for all shareholders, whether UK resident or non-UK resident, subject to possible tax treaty relief for non-UK residents or any exemption for tax exempt investors.
The gain for non-UK residents will be calculated by deducting the value at 5 April 2019 from the net sale proceeds, with the option to elect instead to deduct original cost. The value of British Land shares on 5 April 2019 was £5.984 per share.
Gains realised by non-UK resident individuals must generally be reported to HM Revenue & Customs within 30 days of the disposal. Gains realised by UK residents should be reported on the tax return in the usual way. Further details can be found on HM Revenue & Customs website here.
Reinvesting dividends
For shareholders who wish to re-invest their British Land dividends in the company, we offer a Scrip Dividend Scheme which enables shareholders to receive new Ordinary Shares in lieu of cash, for dividends where a Scrip Dividend Alternative is offered.
Dividend FAQs
British Land pays dividends twice a year, announced with the full and half year results in May and November respectively. The dividend announced at the half year will be an interim dividend and paid in February. The dividend announced at the full year results will be a final dividend and, subject to approval by shareholders at the AGM, will be paid in August.
To receive a dividend, shares must have been purchased or transferred to you by the ex-dividend date for that dividend, so that your name appears on the share register on the record date. These dates are announced ahead of each dividend payment.
Details of upcoming dividend payments can be found here, when announced.
Dividend cheques are posted to shareholders’ registered addresses. Alternatively, shareholders can elect to have dividends paid directly to their bank or building society accounts. Details of how to sign up for this faster, more secure form of payment can be found here. Shareholders who would prefer to receive new ordinary shares instead of cash dividends have the opportunity to do this via our Scrip Dividend Scheme.
Because British Land is a REIT, it must follow certain rules relating to money it distributes to shareholders, and how those distributions are taxed. 90% of the tax-exempt profit from British Land's property rental business has to be distributed to shareholders. This is called Property Income Distribution, or 'PID'. British Land can also distribute income from its other activities, known as Non-Property Income Distribution, or 'non-PID'. Following the temporary suspension of dividends in 2020, an extension to the PID payment deadline for the year to 31 March 2020 was agreed with HMRC. Part of the required PID for that period would not be fully paid by the extended deadline and the HMRC agreement allows this to be subject to corporation tax instead without impacting our REIT status. Dividends have been resumed and a further PID shortfall is expected for the tax year to 31 March 2021 in respect of which corporation tax has been paid in full. Dividends in subsequent periods are expected to fully cover ongoing PID requirements and no further additional measures or corporation tax payments are expected. Dividends can be entirely PID, entirely non-PID, or a split between the two; the Board will decide the most appropriate split on a dividend-by-dividend basis. Sometimes the treatment of the Scrip Dividend Alternative may be different to the treatment of the cash dividend. The tax treatment of PID and non-PID dividends is different. Non-PID dividends are treated like "normal" dividends paid by non-REIT companies. From 6 April 2016 the tax free Dividend Allowance will apply to non-PID dividends. Previously a tax credit of 10% was deemed to be deducted from the non-PID dividend payment. Because PID dividends are paid out of British Land's tax-exempt profits, they are potentially taxable in the shareholders' hands as property letting income. PID dividends are usually paid to shareholders after the deduction of withholding tax at the basic rate of income tax (20%). British Land is a REIT and a UK property rich entity because more than 75% of its value derives from UK real estate. This means that from 6 April 2019 disposals of shares in British Land by non-UK residents will fall within the charge to UK tax, subject to any tax treaty relief or any exemption for tax exempt investors. The gain for non-UK residents will be calculated by deducting the 5 April 2019 value from the net sale proceeds, with the option to elect instead to deduct original cost. More detailed information can be found here and on the Reita website.
You can calculate the amount paid on your shareholding for a particular dividend using the Dividend Calculator feature. Details of dividends that British Land has paid in the past can be found here.
Shareholders can create an account via the website of our Registrars, Equiniti Limited, at www.shareview.com to view their Portfolio online.
If you receive dividend cheques, a tax voucher will be attached to each cheque relating to that dividend. If your dividends are paid directly into your bank or building society account you will receive an annual consolidated tax voucher each February. Alternative, if your dividends are paid directly into your bank or building society account and you have signed up for an electronic Portfolio on our Registrar’s website www.shareview.com, you can elect to receive electronic tax vouchers. An email notifying you that your electronic tax voucher is available on-line will be sent on each dividend payment, instead of an annual consolidated tax voucher being posted.
If you hold British Land shares in your own name, our Registrars, Equiniti Limited, should be contacted. Equiniti can be contacted by telephone on 0871 384 2233 (lines open 8.30am-5.30pm Monday to Friday) or on +44 121 415 7065 for international callers. Alternatively Equiniti can be contacted by post, by writing to: Equiniti, Aspect House, Spencer Road, Lancing, West Sussex, BN99 6DA. If your shares are held by a nominee, you should contact the person who holds the shares on your behalf. If you receive unsolicited communications from someone suggesting they are acting for British Land or our registrars, before taking any action, please check their details with our registrars, the Financial Services Authority or British Land, as they may be attempting to defraud you. See the shareholder information section for more detail.
Dividends direct to your bank
Would you like to have your dividends paid directly into your bank or building society account?
The advantages of having dividends paid this way are:
more secure than cheques by post
cleared funds are available to you on the dividend payment date
no need to pay in each cheque
avoids the inconvenience of lost, stolen or out-of-date cheques.
To take advantage of this popular and convenient method of payment, shareholders with bank accounts in the United Kingdom should download a PDF of the mandate form (0.02MB). You will need to complete the form and return it to our registrars, Equiniti, at:
Equiniti
Aspect House
Spencer Road
Lancing
West Sussex
BN99 6DA.
For more information you can also visit www.shareview.co.uk.
Overseas payment of dividends
Shareholders whose registered address is outside the United Kingdom may be interested in a payment service that could save them time and money by arranging for their UK dividends to be automatically converted into their local currency and credited directly to their local bank account. Our registrar, Equiniti, can, with your consent, make future dividend payments on your shares via their Overseas Payment Service (by arrangement with Citibank Europe PLC), providing you with:
- Faster access to your dividends: payments normally credited to your account as cleared funds just days after the dividend payment date – no waiting for sterling cheques to arrive by mail.
- Increased security: reduced risk of non-delivery of your dividend by mail and the possibility of fraud by crediting your account direct.
- Very competitive fees: costs generally lower than those incurred when encashing sterling cheques overseas, including a highly competitive exchange rate.
The cost of using the Service is related to the value of each dividend payment. Details of current charges and a full list of countries that the Overseas Payment Service operates in (including the latest terms and conditions and application forms) can be accessed from our registrars
www.shareview.co.uk/ShareHolders/Pages/overseaspayments.aspx
Equiniti
Aspect House
Spencer Road
Lancing
West Sussex
BN99 6DA
United Kingdom.
International Helpline: +44 121 415 7047