California estimated tax payments for 2026

California does not copy the federal schedule. The Franchise Tax Board collects 30% of the year in April, 40% in June, nothing in September, and 30% in January. Above $1,000,000 of California AGI it also drops the prior-year safe harbor. Pay through Web Pay below, then check the rules that differ from the IRS.

Where to pay

FTB Web Pay for individuals takes an estimated tax payment from a bank account with no fee. A credit card payment goes through a third-party processor that charges a service fee. You can also mail a check with a Form 540-ES voucher.

Once you make a single estimated tax or extension payment over $20,000, or file a California return with total tax over $80,000, every later payment must be electronic. A paper payment after that carries a penalty of 1% of the amount paid.

The 2026 installment schedule

California does not split the year into four equal installments. It collects 70% by June and skips September.

A filer who sends 25% each quarter, on the federal pattern, is 5 points short in April and 15 points short in June. California charges the underpayment penalty on each shortfall from its own due date. The September payment that filer sends is not lost. It counts toward January. It does not stop the penalty already running on April and June.

Who has to pay

You must make estimated payments if you expect to owe $500 or more after withholding and credits, or $250 if you are married filing separately. There is a second test. If withholding will cover less than 90% of this year's California tax, you must make estimated payments even when the balance due is under $500.

The California safe harbor

The amount to prepay for the year is the lower of two figures. One is 90% of this year's California tax. The other is 100% of last year's California tax, or 110% if your California AGI last year was over $150,000 ($75,000 married filing separately). The percentages match the federal rule. The inputs do not. The test uses California AGI, Form 540 line 17, not federal AGI, and last year's tax means the California figure, not the one on Form 1040.

The $1 million rule has no federal equivalent

If your California AGI this year is $1,000,000 or more ($500,000 married filing separately), the prior-year safe harbor does not apply. Your only target is 90% of this year's California tax. Paying 110% of last year's tax does not meet the requirement.

The usual case is a year with a large one-time gain. A filer sells a business or exercises a block of options, crosses $1,000,000 for the first time, pays 110% of last year out of federal habit, and accrues the penalty on the gap all year. If your California income will reach $1,000,000, project the year and pay 90% of the projection.

Where last year's California tax comes from

Last year's tax is not one line. The 2026 Form 540-ES worksheet asks for line 48, line 61, and line 62 of your 2025 Form 540 added together. That is tax after credits, plus alternative minimum tax, plus the Behavioral Health Services Tax. Line 48 alone understates the figure for anyone who owed either of the other two, and every installment built on it comes up short.

If you underpay

California figures the underpayment penalty on FTB Form 5805, the state's counterpart to federal Form 2210. The penalty runs on each short installment from its due date until the payment arrives. Form 5805 also carries the annualized income installment method, so a filer whose income came late in the year can size each installment to what had been earned by that date. Our guides to the annualized income method and the underpayment penalty cover the federal forms, and the mechanics are the same.

Federal and state are separate payments

The IRS and the Franchise Tax Board do not share estimated payments. Each installment is two transactions, one to each agency, each computed under its own rules. Federal deadlines are in our guide to estimated tax due dates. Other states are in state estimated taxes.

Sources: FTB 2026 Form 540-ES instructions · FTB estimated tax payments · FTB 2025 Form 5805 instructions