U.S Withholding tax on a UK SIPP

curiousinvestor25

Can anyone assist me in finding out how to claim back the 30% US Tax on Dividend Income received in my SIPP? Whilst I understand that it can be done I cant' seem to find out how to do it.

kempiejon

curiousinvestor25 said:

Can anyone assist me in finding out how to claim back the 30% US Tax on Dividend Income received in my SIPP? Whilst I understand that it can be done I cant' seem to find out how to do it.

I mean wouldn't your SIPP provider be the best people to ask. I think you can claim back a 15% tax credit if you do self assessment. Did yo do your W8-BEN? A form for your broker then submitted to US tax officials I think. I never fancied the idea of giving Uncle Sam any details about me, put me off US shares.
As I understand it it depends on the arrangement your specific broker has. I had Israeli tax withheld and the process of shuffling paper back and forth for a few quid every year didn't seem worth it. 

Hoenir

Didn't your platform require you to complete a W8-BEN before allowing you to trade? 

EdSwippet

curiousinvestor25 said:

Can anyone assist me in finding out how to claim back the 30% US Tax on Dividend Income received in my SIPP? Whilst I understand that it can be done I cant' seem to find out how to do it.

Any US withholding tax reduction (or reclaim) has to be done by your SIPP provider. You cannot do it yourself.

From: Reclaim withholding tax on foreign dividends in an ISA or SIPP - The International Investor

... you may want to consider reclaiming the WHT yourself. Unfortunately, this is only possible for ISAs and standard dealing account – a SIPP is legally a different entity to you and the reclaim must be done by the SIPP administrator.

curiousinvestor25

Many thanks for the guidance. I have a W8 Ben in place and funds are being received less 15% which seemingly is the maximum percentage that the Broker can provide which is why I am wondering if there is an alternative mechanism to recover the difference. It looks like I have to go to the Sipp Provider and ask for this, but does anyone know if there is a specific form that they need to complete?

EdSwippet

Who is your SIPP provider? Anecdotally (I hold neither), AJ Bell and Hargreaves Lansdown are reported to reclaim all US dividend tax withholding on SIPPs held with them. A search turns up nothing much for other providers, which suggests that most others don't bother.