Frequently asked questions

Key shareholder dates such as financial results announcements, dividend payments and the Annual General Meeting can be found at key dates and events.

You need a broker to buy or sell Telstra shares. For help finding a broker, please visit the ASX. 

Alternatively, in relation to selling shares, Telstra’s share registry MUFG Corporate Markets (AU) Limited (formerly Link Market Services), offers a share sale facility to issuer sponsored shareholders who wish to sell their entire shareholding. More information is available at the MUFG Share Sale Centre. If you wish to speak to a team member, call +61 1300 886 677 or email [email protected].

You should seek your own professional advice before deciding to buy or sell shares.

There are a number of options.

1. Contact your local stockbroker. A US broker should be able to help you buy international shares.
2. Contact an Australian stockbroker (see above for information on how to find a stockbroker).
3. Purchase shares through the American Depositary Receipts (ADR) program. 

Please note that we do have restrictions on foreign shareholding in Telstra. 

You should seek your own professional advice before deciding to buy or sell shares.

Go to the Telstra Investor Centre to manage your shareholding online. Select the Portfolio Login to securely access your shareholding. If you don’t have a Portfolio Login, click 'Register Now' to create your login. Add your Telstra shareholding to your portfolio by entering your Shareholder Reference Number (SRN) commencing with the letter “I” or Holding Identification Number (HIN) commencing with the letter “X”. 

Select the relevant menu option to access and update your details. Shareholders who are broker/CHESS sponsored must contact their sponsoring broker to change their address. Joint and/or Company shareholders are required to download, print and sign a change of address form and return it to the share registry.

As a Telstra shareholder there are many options available to ensure you receive the communications you need in the form that you prefer. Receiving your shareholder communications electronically is the best way to stay informed.  We encourage you to make the switch to paperless communications by providing us with your email address under the Communications menu when you log in to your Portfolio (see above for details on how to do this).

You can make an election as to how you would like to receive your Annual Reports, Notices of Meetings and other documents related to shareholders’ meetings (“Shareholder Documents”) and your payment statements as follows:

1. You can make a standing election to receive some or all of your Shareholder Documents and payment statements in physical or electronic form. You can also tell us if you don’t want to receive a hard copy of the Annual Report. See below for details on how to update your options online.
2. You can make a one-off request to receive a Shareholder Document in physical or electronic form-by contacting the registry on [email protected]
3. You will always be able to access Shareholder Documents such as our Annual Report, Notice of Meeting and other documents relating to shareholder meetings when they are published on our Investor Centre page and made available on the ASX platform.

To update your Communication preference, log in to your online Portfolio (see instructions above under “How do I access my shareholder information online?”)

Once you have accessed your shareholding, select the 'Communications' menu, then 'Preferences' and follow the prompts to select one of the following six communication options which are available to you: 

Shareholder communication options

^ We will notify you in hard copy of the website where to access and download a copy of the Notice of Meeting and other documents related to shareholder meetings.

If you would like to explore an alternative standing election, email  [email protected]

MUFG Corporate Markets (AU) Limited provide a range of services to assist you with dealing with a deceased estate. For help please call 1300 303 991 or visit the MUFG website.

Telstra has examined shareholder discount and reward programs a number of times. These programs are very expensive to administer and would constrain our ability to offer programs to all of our loyal customers and shareholders.

Our Telstra Plus program is designed to thank our customers for their continuing loyalty and support. Visit our Telstra Plus website to take advantage of any of the customer rewards you may be entitled to.

Refer to our dividend page.

The Telstra capital management framework dividend principle is: Maximise fully-franked dividend and seek to grow over time.

The dividend is subject to no unexpected material events and is subject to Board discretion having regard to financial and market conditions, business needs and maintenance of financial strength and flexibility consistent with Telstra’s capital management framework.

Telstra usually pays two dividends each year; interim dividend and final dividend. The current year's dividend announcement dates, ex-dividend dates and payment dates are available on our key dates and events page.

These terms relate to how a company determines a dividend.

‘Ex-dividend' is a date after a dividend is declared from which buyers of shares are not entitled to receive the last dividend declared. That is, when Telstra's share price is quoted 'ex-dividend', the dividend belongs to the seller, not the buyer. If you buy shares prior to the ex-dividend date, then you are entitled to the recently announced dividend. This is known as going ex-dividend. Before this date the shares are said to be cum-dividend. The market price will reflect whether the shares are 'cum' or 'ex' the dividend entitlement. The ex-dividend date can be found on the key dates and events page.

'Record date' is the date used to determine the shareholders on the register who are entitled to receive the dividend and the number of shares on which it will be paid. The record date is the date where all changes to registration or banking details must be made for them to apply to the relevant payment.

The basis of the imputation system of company taxation is that Australian shareholders who receive assessable dividends from a company are entitled to a tax offset (or refund) for the Australian tax paid by the company on its income. It is called an imputation system because Australian tax paid at the company level is imputed to the shareholders of that company. The Australian company tax paid is allocated to shareholders by way of imputation credits, also known as franking credits, attached to the dividend, i.e. such distributions are called franked distributions.

In effect imputation prevents double taxation at the company and shareholder levels. The Australian company tax rate is 30%. If your marginal tax rate is less than 30%, you will not have to pay tax on the dividend and may be entitled to receive some of the franking credits back as a tax refund. If your marginal tax rate is greater than 30%, then you will have to pay the difference between the company tax rate and your marginal tax rate.

For further information, please refer to the ATO website.

Our dividend page provides information on Telstra’s DRP including the DRP rules.

The DRP is available to Australian and New Zealand residents only.

You can elect to participate in the DRP by updating your payment preference via your Portfolio. Joint and/or Company shareholders are required to download, print and sign the DRP participation notice (form) and return it to the share registry. Go to the Telstra Investor Centre to access your portfolio.

Telstra pays dividends to Australian or New Zealand bank accounts by direct credit.

Under Telstra’s Constitution, if a shareholder has not supplied banking details to receive their dividend by direct credit, the dividend, and each subsequent dividend, will remain in a holding account for a minimum of 11 calendar months. During this time Telstra will write to the shareholder (at the address held on the share register) and ask for bank account details to be supplied.

If Shareholders don’t supply bank account details by the requested date, then Australian and New Zealand resident Shareholders whose dividend(s) were paid in Australian dollars will have their eligible dividend(s) reinvested (after deducting reasonable expenses) into additional Telstra shares to be held in the shareholder’s name. 

Shareholders who have elected to receive dividends in New Zealand dollars and have not provided a valid New Zealand bank account, will have their dividend payment withheld until valid bank account details are provided.

Please refer to How do I access my shareholder information online?

American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) are negotiable US securities issued by a depositary bank (currently Deutsche Bank Trust Company Americas) that represent ownership of a company's publicly traded ordinary shares. ADRs enable American investors to acquire and trade foreign securities with reduced hassles regarding differing settlement timetables and other problems typically associated with investing directly in overseas equity markets. ADR's are created when a broker purchases a non-US company's shares on the home stock market of that company and delivers those shares to the depositary bank's local custodian bank, which then instructs the depositary bank to issue ADRs to American investors.

ADR holders are entitled to dividends payable on the underlying share and to have these paid in US dollars.

Buying and selling ADRs

If an American investor wishes to purchase shares in Telstra, they can either buy shares directly on the ASX through a broker in Australia, or get their own broker in the US to buy ADRs. The broker can purchase existing ADRs or can arrange for the depositary bank to issue new ADRs. The investors broker will contact a broker in the Australian market who will acquire shares in Telstra. These shares are then deposited with the depositary banks local custodian, which will then issue the corresponding number of ADRs to the US investor via their broker.

If an investor wants to sell their ADRs they can simply sell the ADRs as they would any other US security, or they can cancel their ADRs. When cancelling ADRs, the investor’s broker will instruct the depositary bank to cancel the ADRs and release the underlying shares to a broker in the Australian market. The Australian broker will then sell the shares on the ASX and proceeds will go to the US investor.

Deutsche Bank Trust Company Americas is the depositary bank for Telstra Group Limited’s ADR program. The depositary bank plays a key role in issuance as well as cancellation of ADRs. It also maintains the ADR holder register and distributes the dividends in US dollars.

Some of the advantages of ADRs include the following:

• They offer US investors a convenient means of holding shares in non-US companies.
• They simplify the trading and settlement of foreign equities.  ADRs trade and settle just like US securities, i.e. in US dollars with settlement in the US.
• They may offer lower trading and custody costs when compared with shares bought directly in the foreign market.
• Many US bank and pension fund portfolios may be prohibited by their charters from purchasing shares in non-US companies. ADRs, however, may be recognised as US securities.
• ADRs are denominated in US dollars. Dividend payments on the underlying shares are converted into US dollars by the depositary bank. These features minimise foreign exchange exposure for international and US investors.

Telstra's ADRs are sponsored Level I Depositary Receipts, which trade over the counter (OTC) on the market operated by OTCMarkets and cannot be listed on a US stock exchange. The ADRs trade under the symbol TLGPY. The OTCMarkets is a decentralized market for securities that are not listed on a stock exchange. Trading on OTCMarkets occurs via a network of dealers who carry inventories of securities to facilitate the buy and sell orders of investors.

Under the Telstra ADR program, each ADR represents five Telstra shares.

The US dollar rate paid to holders of ADRs is calculated by applying the exchange rate used to convert the foreign dividend payment (net of local withholding tax) to US dollars, and adjusting the result according to the ordinary share (ADR ratio).

Voting rights are not extended to ADR holders.

Deutsche Bank Trust Company Americas is the current depositary bank for Telstra Group Limited’s ADR program. The depositary bank plays a key role in issuance as well as cancellation of ADRs. It also maintains the ADR holder register, and distributes the dividends in US dollars.

Yes. The Telstra Corporation Act restricts foreign ownership.

That is, foreign persons collectively cannot control more than 35 per cent of the non-Commonwealth owned Telstra shares, and individual foreign persons cannot control more than 5 per cent of them.

Telstra will divest shares if an unacceptable foreign ownership situation arises. Telstra will also keep relevant stock exchanges advised of foreign ownership levels.

If you need more information on Telstra’s current foreign ownership, send an email to [email protected].

Details regarding Telstra Foreign Ownership Regulations can be found in the current Foreign Ownership Regulations document (PDF, 212KB)

For more detailed information on the restrictions on foreign ownership in Telstra Group Limited, refer to our constitution on our Corporate Governance website.