Tax Due Dates and Filing Calendar
Deadlines shift whenever a date falls on a weekend or a federal holiday. This page explains the rule behind each deadline as well as the date, so you can work out the current year’s calendar for yourself.
How to read these dates
Federal tax deadlines follow a simple rule: if the due date falls on a Saturday, a Sunday or a legal holiday, the deadline moves to the next business day. That is why the individual filing deadline is April 15 in most years but 17 or April 18 in others, and why quarterly estimated payments sometimes land on the 16th or 17th.
The dates below are the standard ones. Confirm the exact date for the current year before you rely on it — if you are a client of this firm we will send you a reminder, and the IRS publishes the authoritative list each year.
The calendar
| Date | What is due |
|---|---|
| January 15 | Fourth-quarter estimated tax payment The final installment of the previous year’s estimated tax for individuals and, where applicable, corporations and trusts. |
| January 31 | Wage and contractor statements Employees must have their Form W-2 and contractors their Form 1099-NEC by this date. The same filing is due to the Social Security Administration and to the IRS. |
| February 28 | Paper information returns Paper filing of Forms 1099 and 1096 with the IRS. Electronic filing gives you until March 31, but most preparers file electronically. |
| March 15 | Partnership and S corporation returns Form 1065 and Form 1120-S are due, or Form 7004 must be filed to extend them for six months to September 15. Partners and shareholders use the Schedule K-1 to file their own returns. |
| March 31 | Electronic information returns Electronic filing deadline for Forms 1099 and 1096, and for the annual federal unemployment return, Form 940, if you have not already filed it. |
| April 15 | Individual and C corporation returns Form 1040 and Form 1120 are due. This is also the deadline for the first-quarter estimated payment, for prior-year contributions to an IRA or a health savings account, and for the Report of Foreign Bank Accounts (FBAR). |
| June 15 | Second-quarter estimated tax payment US citizens living abroad who are not self-employed receive an automatic two-month extension to file, but the first-quarter payment was still due in April. |
| September 15 | Extended pass-through returns and third-quarter estimates Extended partnership and S corporation returns are due, along with the third-quarter estimated tax payment for individuals. |
| October 15 | Extended individual and corporate returns The last filing date for individual and C corporation returns placed on extension. Filing late after an extension carries no further extension — penalties begin the next day. |
| December 31 | Year-end planning actions The last day for most moves that affect the current tax year: retirement plan contributions for the business, equipment purchases, charitable gifts, and payments made by check. |
Extensions are not extra time to pay
This is the single most expensive misunderstanding in tax filing. Filing Form 4868 for an individual, or Form 7004 for a business, moves the date the return is due. It does not move the date the tax is due. If you owe money and file for an extension without paying, interest and a late-payment penalty start accruing from the original deadline.
If you are waiting on a late Schedule K-1 or a missing document, extend and pay an estimate. It is far cheaper to reconcile later than to pay a penalty for a payment that could have been made.
Estimated payments and safe harbours
If you have income that is not subject to withholding — business profit, rental income, investment income — you generally have to pay tax in quarterly installments. There is usually no penalty if you pay in at least 90 percent of the current year’s tax, or 100 percent of last year’s tax (110 percent if your income was above the threshold). Many clients use the prior-year figure because it is knowable in advance.
Payroll deadlines, which are monthly as well as quarterly
Payroll deposits are generally due semi-weekly or monthly depending on the size of your payroll, and that schedule is not covered by the table above. The quarterly return, Form 941, is due at the end of the month following the end of each quarter. See payroll services for how we handle this.
Florida deadlines
Florida has no personal income tax, so most individuals have no state return to file. Businesses may owe Florida corporate income tax, which follows the federal return but generally has a different due date, and Florida sales and use tax returns are filed monthly or quarterly depending on the volume of sales. If you are unsure which of these applies to you, please ask us.
What we do about deadlines
Clients of this firm receive reminders before each applicable date, and we track which returns have been extended and which have been filed. If you would rather not think about the calendar at all, that is a perfectly reasonable thing to delegate — call the office and we will take it from here.
This calendar is general information, not tax advice, and it does not cover every filing obligation. Every situation is different — please confirm your own deadlines with our office or with the Internal Revenue Service before relying on a date shown here.
Stay ahead of it
Never miss a filing date again
If we prepare your return we also track your deadlines, tell you when documents are due, and warn you before an estimated payment comes round.
Next step
Ready to get your books and returns in order?
Call the office, tell us what you are dealing with, and we will set up a time to go through it. Appointments are recommended, and existing clients can usually be seen at short notice.