Ex-date vs record date: when to buy a share to get the dividend, bonus or split

The ex-date is the first trading day on which a share trades without its dividend, bonus or split. The record date is the day the company checks who holds its shares. In India's T+1 settlement the two are usually the same day, so the last day to buy is the trading day before the ex-date.

Checked 28 October 2026. Counts come from Tapetide's corporate actions calendar, built from company filings with NSE and BSE, for actions with an ex-date from 1 January 2024 to 27 October 2026.

#Ex-date and record date at a glance

#Why the ex-date is now the record date

A share you buy is not yours on the register until the trade settles. Under T+1 settlement, a purchase on Monday settles on Tuesday.

For you to be on the register on the record date, your purchase must settle by that day. A trade one session before the record date settles on the record date itself, so that is the last day to buy. A trade on the record date settles a day too late. The exchange therefore makes the record date the first day the share trades without the benefit, and the two dates coincide.

Before 2023, India used T+2 settlement and the ex-date was usually one trading day before the record date. The move to T+1 was completed for all listed shares on 27 January 2023. Many older articles still describe the T+2 gap.

#How often the two dates match

When the record date is a Saturday, Sunday or exchange holiday, there is no trading on it, so the share goes ex on the last trading day before it. The rule that covers both cases: the ex-date is the last trading day on or before the record date. It held for 5,455 of the 5,612 actions (97.2%).

Of the 157 actions that do not fit, 148 had a record date one trading session after the ex-date, 4 had other gaps, and 5 listed the same ex-date and record date on a day with no regular trading. Always use the ex-date the exchange publishes: it is the date that decides whether a buyer gets the benefit.

#Worked example: Infosys interim dividend

Infosys (NSE: INFY) announced an interim dividend of ₹26 a share on 23 October 2026.

A share bought on Monday 2 November settles on Tuesday 3 November, the record date, so the buyer is on the register. A share bought on Tuesday 3 November settles on Wednesday 4 November, so the seller keeps the dividend.

#Worked example: record date on a Sunday

Rites Ltd (NSE: RITES) fixed Sunday 20 September 2026 as the record date for a ₹2.75 dividend. Markets were shut that day, so the share went ex on Friday 18 September 2026. The last day to buy was Thursday 17 September.

#Bonus issues and stock splits work the same way

Bonus shares and splits also go ex on the record date. Bansal Wire Industries (NSE: BANSALWIRE) split its shares from ₹5 to ₹1 face value on 16 October 2026, with the ex-date and record date on the same day. A buyer on 15 October received the split shares; a buyer on 16 October bought shares that already traded at the split price.

On the ex-date of a bonus or split, the price is divided by the factor by which your share count grows, so the value of your holding does not change. A split from ₹5 to ₹1 face value multiplies your shares by 5: 100 shares at ₹1,000 become 500 shares at about ₹200. A 1:1 bonus (one new share for each share held) doubles your shares and roughly halves the price.

#Three mistakes to avoid

1. Buying on the ex-date. The headline "last day to buy" in news alerts refers to the session before the ex-date. Buying on the ex-date itself is one day late.
2. Reading an old T+2 guide. Guides written before 2023 say to buy two days before the record date. Under T+1, one trading day before the ex-date is enough.
3. Expecting a free gain. The price drops by about the dividend on the ex-date. Buying just before the ex-date to "capture" a dividend leaves you with roughly the same total value, and the dividend is taxable income.

#Where to check the dates

• Corporate actions calendar: every announced dividend, bonus, split, rights issue and buyback, with ex-date and record date.
• Upcoming dividends: dividends going ex in the next 7 and 30 days, with the amount per share and the payout as a share of price.
• Bonus shares and stock splits: every bonus and split by year since 2018.
• Each stock page lists the company's recent exchange filings, including the board outcome that declares a dividend, bonus or split.

This guide explains how the dates work. It is not investment advice.