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New 3:12 Rules Coming – How to Secure Maximum Dividends in 2026
Updated: July 3, 2025, 15:22 Published: June 19, 2025, 15:55
Do you want to maximize your dividends in 2026? Then it’s time to familiarize yourself with the new 3:12 rules. The government has moved forward with the investigation’s new proposal and submitted it to the Council on Legislation for review. The proposal would include a higher basic amount, the elimination of the requirement to take a salary, and fewer choices – changes that could benefit many if they are approved, but far from everyone.
“This affects virtually everyone who runs a limited company where income is based on their own time and competence – such as consultants, agency owners, freelancers. The proposal involves simplifications, but it also means that some can no longer maximize the dividend in the same way as before,” says Anders Nilsson, tax expert at the automated accounting service Wint.
A Common Rule for All – With a Higher Basic Amount for Many
Today, you must choose between the simplification rule (a fixed amount) and the main rule (which also includes salaries). The new model replaces both with a single way of calculating: each company receives a basic amount of 4 income base amounts (IBB), which for 2026 means SEK 322,400.
If you own the entire company, you get the entire amount. If you own 50%, you get half.
“This is an increase compared to today’s standard amount of 2.75 IBB. For many small business owners, this means a larger dividend space, without having to calculate salaries,” says Anders.
Extra Dividend Space for Those Who Take Out (Enough) Salary
If there are salaries in the company, you can get extra dividend space, but only if there is enough salary to calculate. Here’s how it works according to the proposal:
- You start by looking at the company’s total salary base (including ownership share of subsidiaries).
- From there, a standard deduction of 8 IBB (SEK 644,800 for 2025) is deducted.
- You can then include half of what remains in your dividend space.
“This means that many sole proprietorships with salaries around the limit for state tax – SEK 643,100 – do not receive any salary-based dividend space at all. But for you as a sole consultant who only owns one company to 100%, it only differs by SEK 2,700 for 2026 compared to before.”
More Shareholders – More People Sharing the Same Cake
If you own the company with others, you must share both the basic amount and the salary-based space, and it can quickly become tight.
“When there are several of you in the company, the basic amount is divided up, while at the same time your share of the salary base must exceed SEK 644,800 before any dividend space arises. The result of this is a deterioration that for most amounts to the part of the basic amount that must be shared with others, compared to if you owned the company yourself,” says Anders.
Several Companies? Then You May Lose the Opportunity to Optimize the Dividend
An important change in the proposal is that you who own several companies never get more than 4 IBB in total, regardless of how many companies you have. And you are not allowed to choose how it is distributed. Instead, the space is spread proportionally based on your ownership share in each company.
“This is something that is easily missed. You risk getting dividend space in a dormant company where you do not want to or cannot take a dividend, and lose the flexibility to optimize between several companies,” says Anders.
When Does It Start to Apply – And What Can You Do Now?
The government has moved forward with the 3:12 investigation by submitting a referral to the Council on Legislation. If the rules are approved in the autumn budget negotiations, they could take effect from January 1, 2026. This would then affect the dividends decided during 2026 and declared in the spring of 2027.
“It may be the last year with the current rules. Therefore, review how new rules would affect you and whether it is time to acquire a holding company or close down a dormant company, before the end of the year,” concludes Anders.
3:12 Proposals in Practice – Learn More in Wint’s Free Webinar
What could the new 3:12 rules mean for your dividend? We clarify what is proposed – and for whom it may matter. Don’t miss our extra webinar on 3:12 where we teach you:
- How to set up 2025 to get as much dividend as possible in 2026.
- What distinguishes the new 3:12 rules from the old ones, and how you are affected in practice.
- What you can do to avoid losing dividend space.
External link: Check out our free webinar here!
The article is produced by Brand Studio in collaboration with Wint.
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