When Are Quarterly Estimated Tax Payments Due for Texas Small Business Owners?

If you run a small business in Texas — whether you’re a freelancer, a sole proprietor, an LLC owner, or an S-Corp shareholder taking distributions — there’s a good chance the IRS expects you to pay your income taxes four times a year, not just once at filing time. These are called quarterly estimated tax payments, and missing them can cost you real money in penalties, even if you pay everything you owe by April.

The good news: once you understand the system, it’s straightforward to stay on top of it. This guide covers exactly when payments are due, how to calculate what you owe, how to actually send the money, and what happens if you fall behind.

The IRS requires you to pay estimated taxes if you expect to owe at least $1,000 in federal income tax after subtracting any withholding and credits. That threshold catches most self-employed people and small business owners, including:

• Freelancers and independent contractors — no employer is withholding taxes from your checks
• Sole proprietors — all business profit flows to your personal return
• Single-member and multi-member LLC owners — same as above unless you’ve elected S-Corp or C-Corp status
• S-Corp shareholders — if you take distributions beyond your W-2 salary, those distributions aren’t subject to withholding
• Partners in a partnership — your share of partnership income is self-employment income

If you also have a W-2 job on the side, your employer withholding may cover enough of your tax bill that you don’t need to make separate estimated payments — but you’ll want to run the numbers to be sure.

One Texas-specific note: Texas has no state income tax. That means you only need to worry about federal estimated payments. No separate state quarterly filings, no Texas income tax forms. It’s one of the genuine perks of running a business here.

A few things worth noting about these dates:

• Q2 is not three months long. It only covers April and May — just two months. This trips up a lot of business owners who assume each quarter is equal.
• Q4 is due in January of the following year, not December. You have a little extra breathing room after the holiday season.
• If a due date falls on a weekend or federal holiday, it shifts to the next business day — which is why Q2 2025 is June 16 instead of June 15.
• You can skip the January 15 Q4 payment entirely if you file your full tax return and pay any balance due by January 31.

You don’t need to predict your income perfectly. The IRS gives you two safe harbors — meet either one and you won’t owe an underpayment penalty, even if you end up owing more at filing time.

Safe Harbor Option 1: Pay 100% of last year’s tax Look at your prior year Form 1040, line 24 (total tax). Divide that number by four. Pay that amount each quarter. Done. If your prior year adjusted gross income was over $150,000, you need to pay 110% of last year’s tax instead of 100%.

Safe Harbor Option 2: Pay 90% of this year’s actual tax Estimate your current year income and calculate 90% of what you’ll owe. This option is more accurate if your income has dropped significantly from last year, but it requires more ongoing bookkeeping to get right.

A simple formula for each quarterly payment:

1. Estimate your net profit for the year (revenue minus deductible expenses)
2. Multiply by your self-employment tax rate (approximately 14.13% after the deduction adjustment)
3. Add your estimated federal income tax based on your tax bracket
4. Divide the total by four
5. Pay that amount each quarter

For example: if you expect $80,000 in net profit, your self-employment tax is roughly $11,304, and your federal income tax (after deductions) might be around $8,000 — totaling about $19,304 for the year. Divided by four, you’d pay approximately $4,826 per quarter.

There are three main ways to pay the IRS:

1. IRS Direct Pay (free, no account required) Go to irs.gov/payments and select "Make a Payment." Choose "Estimated Tax" as the reason, enter your bank account information, and submit. You’ll get a confirmation number immediately. This is the simplest option for most people.

2. EFTPS — Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (free, account required) The Electronic Federal Tax Payment System at eftps.gov requires a one-time enrollment, but once you’re set up, you can schedule payments in advance and view your full payment history. This is the preferred option if you want to automate or schedule payments ahead of time.

3. By Mail with Form 1040-ES Download Form 1040-ES from the IRS website, fill out the payment voucher, write a check payable to "United States Treasury," and mail it to the address listed for your state. This works, but it’s slower and there’s no instant confirmation. If you go this route, send it certified mail so you have proof of the postmark date.

Missing a quarterly estimated tax payment doesn’t trigger a notice or a late fee the way a missed credit card payment would. Instead, the IRS calculates an underpayment penalty when you file your annual return.

The penalty is essentially interest on the amount you should have paid, calculated from the due date of each missed payment through the date you actually paid (or the filing deadline). The current rate is the federal short-term rate plus 3 percentage points — in recent years, that’s been around 7–8% annually.

It’s not catastrophic, but it’s money you didn’t need to spend. And if you’ve been underpaying for several quarters, those small penalties add up.

Waiting until April to think about taxes. By then, you’ve already missed three quarterly deadlines. The penalty clock started in April of the prior year.

Confusing gross revenue with taxable income. Your estimated payment should be based on net profit — revenue minus legitimate business expenses — not your total deposits.

Forgetting self-employment tax. Self-employment tax (Social Security and Medicare) is 15.3% on net earnings up to the Social Security wage base. It’s often larger than income tax for small business owners, and it’s easy to forget when estimating payments.

Not adjusting after a big month. If Q3 was unexpectedly strong, your Q3 payment should reflect that. Paying the same flat amount every quarter when your income fluctuates can leave you short.

Assuming Texas has state estimated taxes. It doesn’t. But if you have clients or operations in other states, those states may have their own estimated tax requirements — something worth checking with a tax professional.

Quarterly estimated taxes are only as accurate as your books. If your income and expense records are months behind, you’re guessing — and guessing usually means either overpaying (tying up cash you need) or underpaying (and owing penalties).

A good bookkeeper keeps your records current month by month, so when a quarterly deadline approaches, you already know where you stand. They can flag upcoming due dates, pull your year-to-date profit numbers, and help you calculate a payment that’s accurate without being excessive. That kind of ongoing visibility is what turns tax season from a scramble into a routine.

At The Gap ProAdvisors, we work with small business owners across Texas and nationwide — 100% remotely, so you never need to come into an office. Our team includes IRS Registered Tax Return Preparers who understand the full picture: bookkeeping, quarterly estimated taxes, annual filing, and the planning that connects all three.

We help clients:

• Set up clean, current books so estimated tax calculations are accurate
• Calculate quarterly payments based on real numbers, not guesses
• Stay ahead of IRS deadlines with proactive reminders
• File annual returns with no surprises because the groundwork was done all year

Whether you’re just starting out or you’ve been running your business for years and want to get more organized, we’re here to help.

Don’t wait until a deadline is two weeks away to figure out what you owe. The earlier you get your books in order, the easier every quarterly payment becomes.

Contact us to talk through your situation — no pressure, just a straightforward conversation about where you are and what would help.

Or explore our services to see how our bookkeeping and tax preparation packages work for Texas small business owners.