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Microlesson · 5-min read

AS 13 – Final Dividend: Pre-Acquisition vs Post-Acquisition Treatment

## Final Dividend Treatment under AS 13

### The Core Distinction

When you receive a dividend, the key question is: was the dividend declared for profits earned before or after you acquired the shares?

Dividend onTreatmentReasoning
Opening shares (held from last year-end)Income — credit P&LEarned post-acquisition
CY Purchases (bought during the year)Recovery of Cost — credit Investment A/cPre-acquisition profit embedded in purchase price
Bonus sharesIncome (default)Unless question says otherwise
Right sharesIncome (default)Unless question says otherwise

### Why CY Purchases = Recovery of Cost?

When you buy shares mid-year at a cum-dividend price, part of what you paid is effectively for the upcoming dividend. That dividend is not genuine income — it is a return of overpaid cost. AS 13 requires deducting it from the investment's carrying amount.

### Journal Entries

Dividend on Opening Shares (Income):

```

Bank/CIB A/c Dr ₹50,000

To Dividend Income (P&L) ₹50,000

```

Dividend on CY Purchases (Recovery of Cost):

```

Bank/CIB A/c Dr ₹10,000

To Investment A/c ₹10,000

```

This reduces WAM of remaining shares.

### Investment Ledger

In the three-column ledger (No. of Shares | Div | Amount):

  • Dividend income entries appear in the Div column
  • Recovery of cost entries appear in the Amount column (credit side)

### Default Rule for Bonus & Right Shares

  • Question silent → dividend IS received → Income
  • Question explicitly states 'no dividend' → do not record

Worked example

### Example 1

Example 1 (WN3 — Page 49), Dividend @ 20%:

  • On opening shares (2,500 shares × ₹10 FV × 20%) = ₹5,000 → Income
  • Bank Dr ₹5,000 | To Dividend Income ₹5,000
  • On CY purchases (5,000 shares × ₹10 FV × 20%) = ₹10,000 → Recovery of Cost
  • Bank Dr ₹10,000 | To Investment A/c ₹10,000
  • No dividend on bonus shares and right shares (as stated in question)

### Example 2

Example 2 (Page 50-51), Year ended 31.3.20:

  • Opening shares = 1,500 (held from 31.3.19)
  • Dividend ₹3 per share: 1,500 × 3 = ₹4,500 → Income
  • Bank Dr ₹4,500 | To Dividend Income ₹4,500
  • Note: 'They were purchased in PY but for CY they are opening balance'
  • CY purchase: 1,000 shares (bought 20.05.19), dividend ₹3 per share = ₹3,000 → Recovery of Cost
  • Bank Dr ₹3,000 | To Investment A/c ₹3,000
  • WAM recalculated: (57,500 − 3,000) ÷ 5,000 = ₹10.90, then updated after right shares

⚠️ Common exam mistakes

  • Treating dividend on current year purchases as income — it is recovery of cost (pre-acquisition profit)
  • Treating dividend on opening shares as recovery of cost — it is income (post-acquisition profit)
  • Not reducing Investment A/c and WAM when dividend on CY purchases is received as recovery of cost
  • Not recording dividend on bonus/right shares when question is silent (default is to record it as income)
  • Recording dividend on bonus/right shares when question explicitly says 'no dividend'
Bare-Act text Para 23 (Investment Income) · AS 13 – Accounting for Investments (ICAI) · click to expand
When a dividend from an investment represents distribution of profits which arose before the date of acquisition, such dividend should be deducted from the cost of the investment and is not to be treated as income.
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