Do I report dividend reinvestment for the Age Pension?
Treat each allocation as a change to report. A dividend reinvestment allocation adds shares, and the online shares form asks for the total number of shares, so the total last given is no longer right. The official pages read do not name dividend reinvestment separately: report the new total, and confirm with Services Australia. Source: Services Australia, online account help for updating shares; Guide to Social Security Law 3.4.1.50, read 28 Sep 2026.
Do buys need reporting at all?
Yes. The Guide to Social Security Law 3.4.1.50 lists buying or selling shares, by the recipient or their partner, among the events an Age Pension recipient must notify within the 14-day notification period. An answer that says buys generally do not need reporting is wrong on the text. Source: Guide to Social Security Law 3.4.1.50, read 28 Sep 2026.
Why are dividend reinvestments missed so often?
No trade is placed and no contract note is read: the shares simply arrive. On a history they sit among cash dividends, which do not change the number of shares, so they are easy to read past.
Worked example
A client's EXC dividend is reinvested as 41 shares, 637 becoming 678, on Fri 18 Sep 2026. Day 14 is Fri 2 Oct 2026, a working day, so the report-by date is Fri 2 Oct 2026 (national holidays only; set your state and its public holidays move it too). The adviser reports the new total of 678 or confirms first; either way the date is the one above.
The event classes
The rule. Report a change in shares within 14 days. Named in the sources: a buy, a sale, bonus shares. Any other change to the total number of shares the form asks for: report or confirm. A price movement is not on the list; listed shares are revalued on 20 March and 20 September. Every rule and its source.
What it takes. Trade lines only: date, code, buy or sell, quantity. Recognised account and holder numbers are removed; nothing leaves your browser until you save.
Who publishes it. The Art of Service, not affiliated with Services Australia; not financial advice. Check a history.