foreign tax in Vgd year-end distribution estimates

Non-investing personal finance issues including insurance, credit, real estate, taxes, employment and legal issues such as trusts and wills.
Post Reply
User avatar
Topic Author
RustyShackleford
Posts: 1682
Joined: Thu Sep 13, 2007 12:32 pm
Location: NC

foreign tax in Vgd year-end distribution estimates

Post by RustyShackleford »

So Vanguard released the estimates of year-end distributions for their funds: http://vanguard.com/pdf/RET891511_122018_final.pdf

This is nice for those of us who like to fine-tune our income at the end of the year, generally to try to fully utilize a low marginal federal tax bracket like the 12% (formerly 15%) one, without spilling over into the next higher bracket.

But there's one glaring omission from these estimates (and really, for the entire year's worth of dividends). On international funds, you don't really know how much of the dividend income is withheld for foreign taxes. But the amount of reportable dividend income on your 1099 (and hence in your taxable income) will be equal to the dividends you actually see PLUS this foreign tax withholding. You don't even see the foreign-tax withholding when the year-end distributions are actually paid near the end of the month; you don't know it till you get your 1099.

Has anyone been able to figure out how to get these numbers ? I suppose the ratio of foreign withholding to total dividends from the previous year is a fairly accurate estimate.
livesoft
Posts: 86079
Joined: Thu Mar 01, 2007 7:00 pm

Re: foreign tax in Vgd year-end distribution estimates

Post by livesoft »

I've never had any luck getting the numbers in a timely fashion. Never.
Wiki This signature message sponsored by sscritic: Learn to fish.
jebmke
Posts: 25476
Joined: Thu Apr 05, 2007 2:44 pm
Location: Delmarva Peninsula

Re: foreign tax in Vgd year-end distribution estimates

Post by jebmke »

livesoft wrote: Tue Dec 11, 2018 2:30 pm I've never had any luck getting the numbers in a timely fashion. Never.
Me neither. But using prior years as a guide has never caused me to miss my estimates of my tax liability by very much.
Don't trust me, look it up. https://www.irs.gov/forms-instructions-and-publications
Post Reply