Form 1099-DIV: Dividends Boxes, Qualified vs Ordinary
Form 1099-DIV, titled Dividends and Distributions, shows total ordinary dividends in box 1a, of which the part that qualifies for the reduced capital gains rates is shown in box 1b; capital gain distributions go in box 2a. The IRS form and instructions linked from its About page were marked Rev. January 2024 when we checked on November 2, 2026, and have the payer file for dividends and distributions of $10 or more (and $600 or more as part of a liquidation), while Publication 1099 (2026) lists $10 or more, except $2,000 or more for liquidations, and January 31 for the recipient’s statement.
Maintained by Archie Chang · Sources checked against IRS text on November 2, 2026 · Methodology & sources
Who files Form 1099-DIV and what it reports
The IRS describes the form in one line on its About page:
“Form 1099-DIV is used by banks and other financial institutions to report dividends and other distributions to taxpayers and to the IRS.”
The Instructions for Form 1099-DIV list who gets one, with an amount for each case:
“File Form 1099-DIV for each person:
To whom you have paid dividends (including capital gain dividends and exempt-interest dividends) and other distributions valued at $10 or more in money or other property,
For whom you have withheld and paid any foreign tax on dividends and other distributions on stock,
For whom you have withheld any federal income tax on dividends under the backup withholding rules, or
To whom you have paid $600 or more in money or other property as part of a liquidation.”
They then list what is not reported on Form 1099-DIV, and the payees that are not covered:
“You are not required to report on Form 1099-DIV the following.
1. Taxable dividend distributions from life insurance contracts and employee stock ownership plans. These are reported on Form 1099-R.
2. Substitute payments in lieu of dividends.
[…]
3. Payments made to certain payees. These include a corporation, tax-exempt organization, IRA, Archer MSA, health savings account (HSA), U.S. agency, state, District of Columbia, U.S. possession, or registered securities or commodities dealer.”
“Certain distributions commonly referred to as “dividends” are actually interest and are to be reported on Form 1099-INT. These include so-called dividends on deposit or on share accounts in cooperative banks, credit unions, domestic building and loan associations, domestic and federal savings and loan associations, and mutual savings banks.”
Revision and tax year
The IRS About Form 1099-DIV page linked a form and instructions that are both marked Rev. January 2024. Publication 1099 is marked 2026 and carries the Guide to Information Returns used below for the amount and the due dates.
| Document | Revision printed on the document | Catalog number |
|---|---|---|
| Form 1099-DIV | Form 1099-DIV (Rev. January 2024) | Cat. No. 14415N |
| Instructions for Form 1099-DIV | Instructions for Form 1099-DIV (Rev. January 2024) | Cat. No. 27978B |
| Publication 1099 | Publication 1099 (2026) | Catalog Number 46963K |
“Form 1099-DIV and these instructions have been converted from an annual revision to continuous use. Both the form and instructions will be updated as needed.”
The boxes in the table below are the ones printed on that Rev. January 2024 form. This page covers the Rev. January 2024 form and does not compare it with earlier revisions.
The threshold: two IRS documents, two amounts for liquidations
The Rev. January 2024 instructions put the liquidation amount at $600. Publication 1099 (2026) carries a row for Form 1099-DIV with $2,000 for liquidations, and its What’s New section states the $2,000 threshold for tax years beginning after 2025:
“For tax years beginning after 2025, the minimum threshold amount for reporting certain payments required to be reported on certain information returns and/or perform backup withholding on those payments increased to $2,000 and will be adjusted for inflation beginning in calendar year 2027. Previously, the threshold amount was $600.”
| Document | Amount for Form 1099-DIV |
|---|---|
| Instructions for Form 1099-DIV (Rev. January 2024) | Dividends and other distributions valued at $10 or more in money or other property; $600 or more in money or other property as part of a liquidation; foreign tax withheld and paid on dividends and other distributions on stock; federal income tax withheld on dividends under the backup withholding rules |
| Publication 1099 (2026), Guide to Information Returns | $10 or more, except $2,000**** or more for liquidations |
The two documents carry different years and different amounts, and this page does not decide which one applies to a particular liquidation. The 1099 reporting thresholds page shows the same Form 1099-DIV amounts next to the other 1099 forms.
Qualified versus ordinary dividends
Box 1a is the total of ordinary dividends. The instructions say what box 1a includes, and Copy B says what box 1b may be eligible for:
“Enter dividends, including dividends from money market funds, net short-term capital gains from mutual funds, and other distributions on stock. Include reinvested dividends and section 404(k) dividends paid directly from the corporation. Box 1a includes amounts entered in boxes 1b and 2e and it also includes the amount of the recipient's share of investment expenses that you report in box 6.”
“Box 1b. Shows the portion of the amount in box 1a that may be eligible for reduced capital gains rates. See the Instructions for Form 1040 for how to determine this amount and where to report.”
The instructions define qualified dividends and list the dividends that are not:
“Except as provided below, qualified dividends are dividends paid during the tax year from domestic corporations and qualified foreign corporations.”
“Exceptions. The following dividends are not qualified dividends.
Dividends the recipient received on any share of stock held for less than 61 days during the 121-day period that began 60 days before the ex-dividend date. See the instructions for box 1b, later. When determining the number of days the recipient held the stock, you cannot count certain days during which the recipient's risk of loss was diminished.”
The capital gains tax calculator covers the rates the IRS calls the reduced capital gains rates, and the net investment income tax page covers the separate tax on investment income. For the foreign tax credit, see the Form 1116 page.
Form 1099-DIV box by box
One row per box on the Rev. January 2024 form. The third column is the instruction to the payer and the fourth is the text on Copy B, the recipient copy, each copied from the IRS documents.
| Box | Label on the form | IRS instructions to the payer | Copy B text to the recipient |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1a | Total ordinary dividends | Enter dividends, including dividends from money market funds, net short-term capital gains from mutual funds, and other distributions on stock. | Shows total ordinary dividends that are taxable. Include this amount on the “Ordinary dividends” line of Form 1040 or 1040-SR. Also report it on Schedule B (Form 1040), if required. |
| 1b | Qualified dividends | Enter the portion of the dividends in box 1a that qualifies for the reduced capital gains rates. | Shows the portion of the amount in box 1a that may be eligible for reduced capital gains rates. See the Instructions for Form 1040 for how to determine this amount and where to report. |
| 2a | Total capital gain distr. | Enter total capital gain distributions (long-term). | Shows total capital gain distributions from a regulated investment company (RIC) or real estate investment trust (REIT). See How To Report in the Instructions for Schedule D (Form 1040). |
| 2b | Unrecap. Sec. 1250 gain | Enter any amount included in box 2a that is an unrecaptured section 1250 gain from certain depreciable real property. | Shows the portion of the amount in box 2a that is unrecaptured section 1250 gain from certain depreciable real property. See the Unrecaptured Section 1250 Gain Worksheet in the Instructions for Schedule D (Form 1040). |
| 2c | Section 1202 gain | Enter any amount included in box 2a that is a section 1202 gain from certain qualified small business stock. | Shows the portion of the amount in box 2a that is section 1202 gain from certain small business stock that may be subject to an exclusion. See the Schedule D (Form 1040) instructions. |
| 2d | Collectibles (28%) gain | Enter any amount included in box 2a that is a 28% rate gain from sales or exchanges of collectibles. | Shows the portion of the amount in box 2a that is 28% rate gain from sales or exchanges of collectibles. |
| 2e | Section 897 ordinary dividends | Enter any amount included in box 1a that is section 897 gain from dispositions of USRPI. | Shows the portion of the amount in box 1a that is section 897 gain attributable to disposition of U.S. real property interests (USRPI). |
| 2f | Section 897 capital gain | Enter any amount included in box 2a that is section 897 gain from dispositions of USRPI. | Shows the portion of the amount in box 2a that is section 897 gain attributable to disposition of USRPI. |
| 3 | Nondividend distributions | Enter nondividend distributions, if determinable. | Shows a return of capital. To the extent of your cost (or other basis) in the stock, the distribution reduces your basis and is not taxable. Any amount received in excess of your basis is taxable to you as capital gain. See Pub. 550. |
| 4 | Federal income tax withheld | Enter backup withholding. | Shows backup withholding. A payer must backup withhold on certain payments if you did not give your TIN to the payer. |
| 5 | Section 199A dividends | Enter the qualified REIT dividends paid by a REIT or section 199A dividends paid by a RIC to the recipient. This amount is included in the amount reported in box 1a. | Shows the portion of the amount in box 1a that may be eligible for the 20% qualified business income deduction under section 199A. See the instructions for Form 8995 and Form 8995-A. |
| 6 | Investment expenses | Enter the recipient's pro rata share of certain amounts deductible by a nonpublicly offered RIC in computing its taxable income. | Shows your share of expenses of a nonpublicly offered RIC, generally a nonpublicly offered mutual fund. This amount is included in box 1a. |
| 7 | Foreign tax paid | Enter foreign tax paid on dividends and other distributions on stock. | Shows the foreign tax that you may be able to claim as a deduction or a credit on Form 1040 or 1040-SR. See the Instructions for Form 1040. |
| 8 | Foreign country or U.S. possession | Enter the name of the foreign country or U.S. possession for which the foreign tax was paid and reported in box 7. | This box should be left blank if a RIC reported the foreign tax shown in box 7. |
| 9 | Cash liquidation distributions | Enter cash distributed as part of a liquidation. | Boxes 9 and 10. Show cash and noncash liquidation distributions. |
| 10 | Noncash liquidation distributions | Enter noncash distributions made as part of a liquidation. Show the fair market value as of the date of distribution. | Boxes 9 and 10. Show cash and noncash liquidation distributions. |
| 11 | FATCA filing requirement | Check the box if you are a U.S. payer that is reporting on Form(s) 1099 (including reporting distributions in boxes 1 through 3 and 9, 10, 12, and 13 on this Form 1099-DIV) as part of satisfying your requirement to report with respect to a U.S. account for the purposes of chapter 4 of the Internal Revenue Code, as described in Regulations section 1.1471-4(d)(2)(iii)(A). | If the FATCA filing requirement box is checked, the payer is reporting on this Form 1099 to satisfy its account reporting requirement under chapter 4 of the Internal Revenue Code. You may also have a filing requirement. See the Instructions for Form 8938. |
| 12 | Exempt-interest dividends | Enter exempt-interest dividends from a mutual fund or other RIC. Include specified private activity bond interest dividends in box 13 and in the total for box 12. | Shows exempt-interest dividends from a mutual fund or other RIC paid to you during the calendar year. See the Instructions for Form 1040 for where to report. This amount may be subject to backup withholding. See Box 4 above. |
| 13 | Specified private activity bond interest dividends | Enter exempt-interest dividends paid by a RIC on specified private activity bonds to the extent that the dividends are attributable to interest on the bonds received by the RIC minus an allocable share of the expenses. | Shows exempt-interest dividends subject to the alternative minimum tax. This amount is included in box 12. See the Instructions for Form 6251. |
| 14–16 | State, State identification no., State tax withheld | These boxes, and Copies 1 and 2, are provided for your convenience only and need not be completed for the IRS. | Boxes 14–16. State income tax withheld reporting boxes. |
Capital gain distributions, nondividend distributions and RIC and REIT rules
Box 3 is the nondividend distributions box. Copy B explains it this way:
“Box 3. Shows a return of capital. To the extent of your cost (or other basis) in the stock, the distribution reduces your basis and is not taxable. Any amount received in excess of your basis is taxable to you as capital gain. See Pub. 550.”
Boxes 2e and 2f carry a limit on who completes them:
“Note. Only RICs and REITs should complete boxes 2e and 2f. Boxes 2e and 2f do not need to be completed for recipients that are U.S. individuals.”
“Note: Boxes 2e and 2f apply only to foreign persons and entities whose income maintains its character when passed through or distributed to its direct or indirect foreign owners or beneficiaries. It is generally treated as effectively connected to a trade or business within the United States. See the instructions for your tax return.”
For dividends of a RIC or a REIT declared late in the year, the instructions give a timing rule:
“If a RIC or a REIT declares a dividend in October, November, or December payable to shareholders of record on a specified date in such a month, the dividends are treated as paid by the RIC or REIT and received by the recipients on December 31 of such year as long as the dividends are actually paid by the RIC or REIT during January of the following year. Report the dividends on Form 1099-DIV for the year preceding the January they are actually paid.”
Due dates
Publication 1099 (2026) gives the dates in its Guide to Information Returns. The row for Form 1099-DIV is shown below with its footnotes:
| Form | Amounts to report | Due date to the IRS | Due date to the recipient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Form 1099-DIV | $10 or more, except $2,000**** or more for liquidations | February 28* | January 31** |
“* The due date is March 31 if filed electronically.
** The due date is March 15 for reporting by trustees and middlemen of WHFITs.
****The amount is adjusted for inflation every year. Go to IRS.gov/InflationAdjustment for the current year inflation-adjusted amount.”
“If any filing due date in these instructions falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or a legal holiday, you will be considered to have timely filed if you file by the next day that is not a Saturday, Sunday, or a legal holiday. Legal holidays for this purpose are legal holidays in the District of Columbia or a statewide legal holiday where the return is required to be filed.”
The instructions for the form say a statement goes to the recipient:
“If you are required to file Form 1099-DIV, you must provide a statement to the recipient. For information about the requirement to furnish statements to recipients, see part M in the current General Instructions for Certain Information Returns.”
“Nominees. If this form includes amounts belonging to another person, you are considered a nominee recipient. You must file Form 1099-DIV (with a Form 1096) with the IRS for each of the other owners to show their share of the income, and you must furnish a Form 1099-DIV to each.”
Scope of this page
- This page covers Form 1099-DIV as the IRS documents listed under Sources describe it.
- This page does not cover penalty amounts or state filing rules, and it does not explain how any amount is taxed on a return; Copy B and the Instructions for Form 1040 are the IRS’s place for that.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between ordinary and qualified dividends on Form 1099-DIV?
The Instructions for Form 1099-DIV (Rev. January 2024) say box 1a is total ordinary dividends and includes amounts entered in boxes 1b and 2e, and that box 1b is “the portion of the dividends in box 1a that qualifies for the reduced capital gains rates.” Copy B of Form 1099-DIV (Rev. January 2024) says box 1b “may be eligible for reduced capital gains rates” and points to the Instructions for Form 1040 for how to determine the amount and where to report.
What is the Form 1099-DIV reporting threshold?
The Instructions for Form 1099-DIV (Rev. January 2024) have the payer file for dividends and other distributions valued at $10 or more, and for $600 or more in money or other property as part of a liquidation. Publication 1099 (2026) lists Form 1099-DIV as “$10 or more, except $2,000**** or more for liquidations”, and a footnote says the amount is adjusted for inflation every year. The two IRS documents carry different years and different amounts, and this page does not decide which one applies to a particular payment.
Which dividends are not qualified dividends?
The Instructions for Form 1099-DIV (Rev. January 2024) list six exceptions. The first is “Dividends the recipient received on any share of stock held for less than 61 days during the 121-day period that began 60 days before the ex-dividend date.” The list continues with preferred stock, short sales and related positions, certain RIC and REIT dividends, and deductible dividends on employer securities, each with its own conditions, which the instructions spell out.
What are boxes 2a to 2f on Form 1099-DIV?
The Instructions for Form 1099-DIV (Rev. January 2024) say box 2a is total capital gain distributions (long-term) and includes all amounts shown in boxes 2b, 2c, 2d, and 2f: unrecaptured section 1250 gain, section 1202 gain, collectibles (28%) gain, and section 897 capital gain. Box 2e is section 897 ordinary dividends. The instructions say: “Only RICs and REITs should complete boxes 2e and 2f.” Copy B of Form 1099-DIV says: “Note: Boxes 2e and 2f apply only to foreign persons and entities whose income maintains its character when passed through or distributed to its direct or indirect foreign owners or beneficiaries.”
What is box 3, nondividend distributions?
Copy B of Form 1099-DIV (Rev. January 2024) says box 3 “Shows a return of capital. To the extent of your cost (or other basis) in the stock, the distribution reduces your basis and is not taxable. Any amount received in excess of your basis is taxable to you as capital gain.” The Instructions for Form 1099-DIV say to enter nondividend distributions, if determinable.
What is box 5, section 199A dividends?
Copy B of Form 1099-DIV (Rev. January 2024) says box 5 “Shows the portion of the amount in box 1a that may be eligible for the 20% qualified business income deduction under section 199A” and points to the instructions for Form 8995 and Form 8995-A. The Instructions for Form 1099-DIV say the amount is included in box 1a.
When is Form 1099-DIV due?
Publication 1099 (2026) lists Form 1099-DIV with February 28 for the IRS and January 31 for the recipient. Its footnotes give March 31 if filed electronically, and the footnote attached to the recipient date says “The due date is March 15 for reporting by trustees and middlemen of WHFITs.” It also says that when a filing due date falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or a legal holiday, a filer is considered timely if the filing is made by the next day that is not one of those.
Why can a December dividend appear on the earlier year’s Form 1099-DIV?
The Instructions for Form 1099-DIV (Rev. January 2024) say that for a RIC or a REIT, a dividend declared in October, November, or December payable to shareholders of record on a specified date in such a month is treated as paid and received on December 31 of that year “as long as the dividends are actually paid by the RIC or REIT during January of the following year.” They say to report such dividends on Form 1099-DIV for the year preceding the January they are actually paid.