State estimated tax — 2026

Missouri Estimated Tax Payments 2026

Who has to make Missouri quarterly estimated payments, the 2026 due-date calendar, the safe-harbor rules that avoid an underpayment penalty, and how to pay through MyTax Missouri.

Who must pay

Missouri requires MO-1040ES declarations once your 2026 Missouri tax is expected to be $100 or more after withholding and credits — one of the lowest dollar triggers of any state on ustax.tools, set by Section 143.521.1, RSMo.

2026 due-date calendar

Installment	% of annual estimate	Due date	Note
Q1	25%	April 15, 2026	—
Q2	25%	June 15, 2026	—
Q3	25%	September 15, 2026	—
Q4	25%	January 15, 2027	—

Missouri divides the required annual payment into four equal 25% installments if you’re liable from the start of the year. First becoming liable later compresses the schedule to three installments (from June 15), two (from September 15), or one (the January 15 voucher alone) — and if no declaration was required earlier in the year, you can skip the January 15 voucher entirely by filing and paying in full by January 31. Farmers and fishermen whose Missouri farm gross income is at least two-thirds of their total gross income can skip quarterly declarations altogether: pay 100% of the estimated tax in one lump sum by January 15, or file and pay the complete MO-1040 return by March 1.

Safe harbor — avoiding the underpayment penalty

Missouri’s underpayment addition to tax disappears once your timely payments reach whichever is smaller: 90% of your actual 2026 tax (66⅔% for qualifying farmers) or 100% of last year’s Missouri tax, so long as that 2025 return spanned a full 12 months and showed a liability. Missouri doesn’t raise this bar for high earners — several other states on this list step the prior-year figure up to 110% above a set income threshold, but Missouri’s flat 90%/100% test holds at every income level.

How to calculate your payment

Estimate your annual Missouri tax, test it against the safe harbor above, then split the required annual payment across the installments in the calendar. The site's quarterly planner handles the math and the federal side together.

Open the quarterly estimated tax calculator → Check your underpayment penalty exposure →

How to pay

Pay online through MyTax Missouri, or mail a check or money order with the Form MO-1040ES voucher.

Penalty basics

Rather than a flat percentage penalty, Missouri computes interest on each underpaid installment via Form MO-2210. The Department of Revenue redetermines its underpayment interest rate annually under §32.065, RSMo, tied to the September adjusted prime rate — 7% for calendar year 2026, down from 8% in 2025.

Missouri-specific notes

Missouri’s top individual rate held at 4.7% for 2026 rather than stepping down further — the state’s SB 3 revenue-trigger mechanism, which can ratchet the top rate toward 4.5% when General Fund growth outpaces a statutory benchmark, was not activated for tax year 2026.
Missouri sets no high-income tier for its safe harbor — the identical 90%/100% test applies whether your income is $50,000 or $5 million.
Kansas City and St. Louis each levy a separate 1% local earnings tax on wages, administered entirely by the city (not the Department of Revenue) — it has no connection to the MO-1040ES estimated-tax system on this page.
Farmers and fishermen get two distinct escape hatches: pay the full year’s estimate in one January 15 payment, or skip estimated tax altogether by filing and paying the complete return by March 1.

See the Missouri 2026 tax brackets for current rates, or the Missouri state tax calculator to estimate your full-year liability.

Frequently asked questions

When are Missouri estimated tax payments due in 2026?

The four Missouri due dates for 2026 are April 15, 2026, June 15, 2026, September 15, 2026, January 15, 2027. Missouri divides the required annual payment into four equal 25% installments if you’re liable from the start of the year. First becoming liable later compresses the schedule to three installments (from June 15), two (from September 15), or one (the January 15 voucher alone) — and if no declaration was required earlier in the year, you can skip the January 15 voucher entirely by filing and paying in full by January 31. Farmers and fishermen whose Missouri farm gross income is at least two-thirds of their total gross income can skip quarterly declarations altogether: pay 100% of the estimated tax in one lump sum by January 15, or file and pay the complete MO-1040 return by March 1.

Does Missouri’s flat tax rate keep dropping every year?

Not automatically — Missouri’s individual income tax rate can step down under a revenue-trigger mechanism when General Fund growth outpaces a statutory threshold, but the Department of Revenue confirmed the trigger was NOT activated for tax year 2026, so the top rate holds at 4.7%, the same as 2025.

Is Missouri’s estimated-tax threshold really only $100?

Yes. Missouri requires a declaration once your expected 2026 tax is $100 or more after withholding and credits (Section 143.521.1, RSMo) — among the lowest dollar triggers of any state, well beneath California’s $500 minimum or Colorado’s $1,000 minimum.

Do the Kansas City and St. Louis earnings taxes affect my Missouri estimated tax?

No. Both cities’ 1% earnings tax is a separate local levy administered by the city itself, not the Department of Revenue — it isn’t part of the MO-1040ES calculation and has its own filing and payment process.

How do I pay Missouri estimated tax?

Pay online through MyTax Missouri, or mail a check with the Form MO-1040ES voucher.

Estimated tax in other states

Compare how Missouri stacks up against the other states with a Rising search trend for estimated-tax rules.