State estimated tax — 2026

Pennsylvania Estimated Tax Payments 2026

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

Who must pay

You must make PA-40 ES declarations if you expect at least $14,000 of 2026 income not subject to Pennsylvania withholding — about $430 of tax at the flat 3.07% rate — and your withholding and credits will fall short of the safe harbor below. The $14,000 figure is itself a moving target: Pennsylvania is phasing the income threshold up each year (2024: $9,500 · 2025: $11,000 · 2026: $14,000 · 2027: $17,000 · 2028: $20,000), so a threshold you saw quoted for an earlier year is already stale.

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	—

Four equal 25% installments apply if you first meet the requirement before April 1. If you first become liable later in the year, PA compresses the schedule (50/25/25 if you start by June 1, 75/25 if you start by September 1, or 100% with the final voucher if you start after September 1). Farmers can skip quarterly declarations entirely by paying 100% of the estimated tax by January 15, or by filing and paying the full PA-40 by March 1.

Safe harbor — avoiding the underpayment penalty

Pennsylvania avoids the underpayment penalty if your timely payments equal the smaller of 100% of your 2025 PA tax liability (computed at the current rate, and only usable if you filed a full-year 2025 PA-40) or 90% of the actual tax due on income earned in each period. Unlike California, New York or New Jersey, Pennsylvania does not step the prior-year percentage up to 110% for high earners — the 90%/100% test applies at every income level. Taxpayers who qualified for 100% Tax Forgiveness in the prior year are automatically exempt from the underpayment penalty under Act 85 of 2012.

How to calculate your payment

Estimate your annual Pennsylvania 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 myPATH, or mail a check or money order with the Form PA-40 ES (I) voucher. Payments of $15,000 or more must be made electronically through myPATH — a non-electronic payment at or above that threshold triggers a 3% penalty, capped at $500.

Penalty basics

Pennsylvania charges interest — not a flat percentage penalty — on each underpaid quarter, computed as the number of days late multiplied by a daily interest rate and the underpayment amount. REV-1630’s 2025/2026 worked example uses a daily rate of 0.000192 (roughly a 7% annualized rate); interest on any one quarter stops accruing at the return’s due date, generally April 15 of the following year.

Pennsylvania-specific notes

Pennsylvania has no state standard deduction or personal exemption at all — every dollar of each of the eight taxable income classes (compensation, interest, dividends, business/profession/farm net profits, property gains, rents/royalties/patents/copyrights, estate/trust income, and gambling/lottery winnings) is taxed from the first dollar.
Local Earned Income Tax (EIT), typically 0.5%–4% depending on municipality and school district, is a completely separate system administered by local tax collectors — it is not part of the PA-40 ES estimate on this page.
Farmers can avoid quarterly declarations by paying the full estimate by January 15 or filing and paying the complete PA-40 by March 1.

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

Frequently asked questions

When are Pennsylvania estimated tax payments due in 2026?

The four Pennsylvania due dates for 2026 are April 15, 2026, June 15, 2026, September 15, 2026, January 15, 2027. Four equal 25% installments apply if you first meet the requirement before April 1. If you first become liable later in the year, PA compresses the schedule (50/25/25 if you start by June 1, 75/25 if you start by September 1, or 100% with the final voucher if you start after September 1). Farmers can skip quarterly declarations entirely by paying 100% of the estimated tax by January 15, or by filing and paying the full PA-40 by March 1.

Why did Pennsylvania’s estimated-tax income threshold jump for 2026?

Pennsylvania is phasing its declaration-of-estimated-tax income threshold up on a multi-year schedule set by the Department of Revenue: $9,500 for 2024, $11,000 for 2025, $14,000 for 2026, $17,000 for 2027, and $20,000 for 2028. At the flat 3.07% rate, $14,000 of unwithheld income works out to roughly $430 of tax for 2026 — a figure that itself keeps rising each year the phase-in continues.

Does Pennsylvania have a higher safe-harbor percentage for high earners?

No. Pennsylvania applies the same 90% (of current-year tax) or 100% (of prior-year tax) safe-harbor test to every taxpayer, regardless of income. That is different from California, New York and New Jersey, which all step the prior-year percentage up to 110% once prior-year income exceeds a set threshold.

Does this cover the Philadelphia Wage Tax or local Earned Income Tax?

No. Pennsylvania’s state PA-40 ES estimate is separate from local Earned Income Tax (EIT), which Philadelphia and most other municipalities and school districts levy and collect on their own. Check your local jurisdiction’s EIT rate and payment schedule independently.

How do I pay Pennsylvania estimated tax?

Pay online through myPATH, or mail a check with the Form PA-40 ES (I) voucher. Payments of $15,000 or more must be made electronically through myPATH — a non-electronic payment at or above that threshold triggers a 3% penalty, capped at $500.