To provide a method for dividing a semiconductor substrate by which light-emitting elements, which have an excellent optical-property and reliability and can be closely arranged, are obtained.

To divide the semiconductor substrate 1, on which a plurality of light-emitting junctions 21 are scattered like a matrix in a wafer 2, into the light-emitting elements 20 of a predetermined size, a process for forming a dicing notch 6, which does not reach a depth of the light-emitting junctions 21, on a surface S2 of a side opposite to a light-emitting surface S2, a process for forming a scriber line 7 on a bottom of the dicing notch 6, and a process for cleaving the semiconductor 1 at a position of the scriber line 7 and dividing in into each of the light-emitting elements 20 are carried out.