A Bloomberg report, which cited two people with knowledge of the matter, revealed that Hunt was looking at cutting the amount shareholders can earn in dividends before they begin paying tax from the current level of £2,000.
Raising the dividend taxation rate under options being modelled by the Treasury's would result in a 1.25% point increase across all three of the UK's tax brackets, which are now 8.75% for the basic rate, 33.75% for the higher rate, and 39.35% for the additional rate, the FT reported.
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt rips up Kwasi Kwarteng's Mini Budget
The reports come as the chancellor gets ready to present an economic package on November 17. According to a Treasury spokesperson, the government has declined to comment on "speculation" regarding tax changes.
Hunt is also looking at increasing the headline rate of capital gains tax, The Telegraph reported later on Thursday (3 October).
According to the newspaper, the chancellor is considering increasing dividend taxes on savers while also exploring modifications to the headline rate, reliefs and allowances on capital gains tax.
Government's fiscal delay 'makes sense' but is not without consequences
Citing Treasury sources, the report said that significant adjustments to capital gains tax, including to the headline rate, are being explored. However, they cautioned that a lot can change before November 17.
Other potential measures include an expanded windfall tax on the profits of oil and gas firms and real-terms cuts to departmental budgets.
In his Mini Budget, the former chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng planned to reduce dividend tax rates by 1.25 percentage points, but Hunt has already undone that change.
