Federal tax guide · Tax year 2026
The standard federal estimated-tax calendar for tax year 2026 has four payment periods. The final installment is due in January 2027.
IRS sources checked October 24, 2026.
The standard calendar
The fourth payment for 2026 falls in the following calendar year.
First installment
Income period: January 1–March 31, 2026
Source
Second installment
Income period: April 1–May 31, 2026
Source
Third installment
Income period: June 1–August 31, 2026
Source
Fourth installment
Income period: September 1–December 31, 2026
Source
The dates above are the standard calendar-year schedule. A different tax year or a specific IRS postponement can change the date that applies.
When the standard dates may not tell the whole story
If a due date falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday (including a federal holiday treated as a legal holiday for the deadline), the IRS treats payment made on the next day that is not a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday as on time. Check the IRS calendar for the date that applies to you.
The IRS may postpone certain estimated-tax deadlines for eligible taxpayers in or connected to a federally declared disaster area. Relief can also cover an individual or fiduciary whose books, records, or tax professional’s office is in the covered area, and recognized government or charitable organization relief workers assisting there. The declaration determines the covered locations, people, and postponed deadlines.
If income is uneven or concentrated in one period, such as a sizable capital gain, you may be able to annualize income and align an estimated payment with the period when that income was received. IRS Form 2210 Schedule AI is used for the annualized-income installment method.
Notice 2026-3 provides limited relief from a portion of the section 6654 penalty for estimated-tax underpayments attributable to a qualified sale or exchange of qualified farmland property to a qualified farmer when a section 1062(a) election is properly made. This narrow rule is not a general waiver of estimated-tax payments or penalties.