You pay California state income taxes through the Franchise Tax Board (FTB), and the simplest way to do it is Web Pay, the FTB’s free system that pulls the money straight from your checking or savings account. If you’d rather use a credit card, mail a check, or call in the payment, all three work. Once you cross certain dollar thresholds, though, the FTB stops letting you choose: payments must be electronic from then on. Payroll taxes and sales taxes are handled by different agencies with their own portals, so this covers income tax first and points you to the right place for the rest.
Web Pay: The Default Method
Web Pay is free and runs through the Automated Clearing House (ACH) system, debiting your bank account directly.1Franchise Tax Board. Pay by Bank Account (Web Pay) Go to the FTB’s website, select Web Pay, then enter your Social Security Number (SSN) or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) and last name. Businesses use the ID number the California Secretary of State assigned them, or an FTB-issued number if they aren’t registered with the SOS. You pick the payment type and tax year, enter your bank routing and account numbers, and confirm. Save the confirmation number the system returns; that’s your receipt.
You can schedule a payment in advance, which is useful for California’s estimated tax installments because you can set them all up at once. A Web Pay request can be canceled up to two business days before its scheduled date.2Franchise Tax Board. Help With Bank Account Payments (Web Pay) A MyFTB account gives you the added ability to view past payments and manage scheduled ones.
Credit Card
The FTB accepts credit cards through ACI Payments, a third-party processor that charges a 2.3% service fee the FTB does not control or waive.3Franchise Tax Board. Pay by Credit Card On a $5,000 balance, that’s $115 added on top. The math works if you’re chasing card rewards worth more than the fee or you need a short float; otherwise, Web Pay costs nothing. Credit cards are accepted for estimated tax, extension payments, return balances, and bill payments, personal or business.
Check or Money Order
Make the payment out to “Franchise Tax Board.” Write your SSN, ITIN, or FTB ID and the tax year on the check itself, and include a copy of your notice, bill, or payment voucher.4Franchise Tax Board. Check, Money Order, and Cashier’s Check
The address depends on what you’re paying, and this is where people trip up. The FTB routes different forms to different PO Boxes:
- Form 540 (tax return with payment): Franchise Tax Board, PO Box 942867, Sacramento, CA 94267-0001
- Forms 540-ES and 3519 (estimated tax, extensions, vouchers): Franchise Tax Board, PO Box 942867, Sacramento, CA 94267-0008
- Forms 100-ES, 3522, 3536 (business payments): Franchise Tax Board, PO Box 942857, Sacramento, CA 94257-0531
A check sent to the wrong box will get sorted eventually, but in the meantime your account can show a balance due.5Franchise Tax Board. Mailing Addresses
Phone
Call 800-554-7500 to pay by phone. It’s the same ACH debit as Web Pay, so keep your bank routing and account numbers ready.6Franchise Tax Board. Pay-by-Phone Option for Individuals
When Electronic Payment Is Required
Two triggers pull you into mandatory e-pay: an estimated or extension payment over $20,000, or a return with a tax liability above $80,000. After either happens, every subsequent payment must be electronic, no matter the size, tax type, or year.7State of California Franchise Tax Board. Mandatory e-Pay for Individuals The triggering payment itself doesn’t have to be electronic, but everything after it does. Ignore the rule and send a check anyway, and the FTB adds a 1% noncompliance penalty on the payment amount.8State of California Franchise Tax Board. 2025 Instructions for Form 540-ES
2026 Deadlines
Personal income tax returns (Form 540) are due April 15, 2026. California automatically grants a six-month filing extension to October 15, 2026, but the tax itself must still be paid by April 15 to avoid late-payment penalties.9Franchise Tax Board. Instructions for Form 540-ES Estimated Tax for Individuals
Business deadlines split by entity. S-corporations, partnerships, and multi-member LLCs filing as partnerships file by March 16, 2026, with extensions to September 15, 2026. C-corporations and single-member LLCs follow the April 15 date with extensions to October 15.
Estimated Tax: The 30/40/0/30 Split
California does not split estimated tax into four equal quarterly payments. Its schedule is 30/40/0/30:9Franchise Tax Board. Instructions for Form 540-ES Estimated Tax for Individuals
- 1st installment, 30%: April 15, 2026
- 2nd installment, 40%: June 15, 2026
- 3rd installment, 0%: September 15, 2026 (no payment)
- 4th installment, 30%: January 15, 2027
This catches people used to the federal 25/25/25/25 pattern, who then underpay in June and overpay in September. You can skip the fourth installment if you file your 2026 return by January 31, 2027, and pay the balance in full at that time.
What to Have Ready
Every FTB payment needs identifying information the agency can match to your account. Individuals need an SSN or ITIN.10Franchise Tax Board. 2024 Instructions for Form FTB 3519 Payment for Automatic Extension for Individuals Businesses use their California Secretary of State ID, or an FTB-issued ID if they’re not SOS-registered. The FTB no longer accepts Federal Employer Identification Numbers (FEINs) for MyFTB registration, adding a business to an online account, or requesting a Tax Information Authorization; a California-issued number is required for those.11Franchise Tax Board. Business Entity ID Number Help
You’ll also select a payment type. The FTB’s Web Pay categories include estimated tax, extension, tax return balance due, bill payment, and amended return payment.12California Franchise Tax Board. Web Pay Payment Types Match this to what you’re actually paying, and confirm the tax year is right before you submit.
If You Can’t Pay the Full Amount
The FTB offers installment agreements for balances of $25,000 or less, repaid over no more than 60 months. You must have filed all required returns and not already be on an agreement. There’s a setup fee of $34 for personal accounts and $50 for business accounts, added to your balance.13Franchise Tax Board. Payment Plans Installment Agreement Interest keeps running while you pay, so a shorter plan costs less overall. Balances above $25,000 or timelines beyond 60 months can still be approved, but with periodic financial reviews.14Franchise Tax Board. Installment Agreement Request (FTB 3567)
If you genuinely cannot pay even over time, the Offer in Compromise program lets you settle for less than the full amount. All required returns must be filed, you must agree with what you owe, and you must have exhausted payment plan options. The FTB weighs your assets, current and expected income, expenses, and whether things could change. The offer has to be a lump sum, cannot be zero, and is evaluated independently of anything the IRS may have accepted federally.15State of California Franchise Tax Board. Make an Offer on Your Tax Debt – Offer in Compromise
Penalties and Interest
Two penalties can run at the same time. The late-filing penalty is 5% of the unpaid tax per month, capped at 25%, with a minimum of $135 or 100% of the tax due, whichever is less. The late-payment penalty starts at 5% and adds 0.5% each month the balance stays open, also capped at 25%.16Franchise Tax Board. FTB 1024 Penalty Reference Chart Interest accrues from the original due date. From July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2026, that rate is 7% on personal and corporate income tax underpayments.17Franchise Tax Board. Interest and Estimate Penalty Rates
If your record is otherwise clean, California offers a one-time penalty abatement that doesn’t require proving hardship. The penalty must be for a tax year beginning on or after January 1, 2022, you can’t have used the abatement before, all returns must be filed, and everything else you owe must be paid or on an installment plan. Request it on Form 2918. For repeat situations or more complicated facts, you can request a reasonable-cause abatement, which the FTB defines as failure that happened despite ordinary care and without willful neglect. Serious illness, the death of the person responsible for the filing, and natural disasters are the arguments most likely to succeed.
Business Payments Beyond Income Tax
LLCs, corporations, and limited partnerships doing business in California owe an $800 annual minimum franchise tax whether they had income or not. It’s due every year the entity exists, active or inactive, until you formally cancel with the Secretary of State. The first-year exemption available from 2021 through 2023 has expired, so entities formed in 2024 or later owe the $800 in year one.18Franchise Tax Board. Limited Liability Company
LLCs with California income of $250,000 or more owe an additional annual LLC fee, due June 15:
- $250,000 to $499,999: $900
- $500,000 to $999,999: $2,500
- $1,000,000 to $4,999,999: $6,000
- $5,000,000 or more: $11,790
The $800 franchise tax (Form 3522) and estimated LLC fee (Form 3536), if paid by check, both go to PO Box 942857, Sacramento, CA 94257-0531.
Payroll and Sales Taxes Go Elsewhere
The FTB handles income tax. Two other California obligations are collected by separate agencies with their own systems. Payroll taxes, including Unemployment Insurance, Employment Training Tax, State Disability Insurance, and personal income tax withholding, go to the Employment Development Department through its e-Services for Business portal.19Employment Development Department. Payroll Taxes Sales and use tax, along with various special taxes and fees, goes to the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration through its online services portal.20California Department of Tax and Fee Administration. California Department of Tax and Fee Administration Homepage Checks to the CDTFA should be made payable to the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration with your account number on the face of the check.