California personal income tax returns are due April 15, matching the federal deadline, but that single date only answers the question for individual filers. If you run a business, own property, collect sales tax, or pay employees, you have your own schedule to track. So the real answer to when California taxes are due depends on which tax you owe and, for businesses, what type of entity you run.
Here is what to know for each category, along with what happens when a deadline slips.
Personal Income Tax: April 15
Your 2025 California income tax return is due April 15, 2026. If that date falls on a weekend or legal holiday, the deadline shifts to the next business day.
You get an automatic extension to October 15, 2026 without filing anything. No form, no request. The catch: the extension covers paperwork only. Any tax you owe still has to be paid by April 15, or penalties and interest start running on the unpaid balance.1Franchise Tax Board. Due Dates: Personal
Quarterly Estimated Payments
If you expect to owe $500 or more in California tax after withholding and credits ($250 if you’re married or in a registered domestic partnership filing separately), you need to make estimated payments through the year.2Franchise Tax Board. 2025 Instructions for Form 540-ES Estimated Tax for Individuals This catches most freelancers, independent contractors, landlords, and anyone with significant investment income.
The 2026 quarterly due dates are:
- First quarter: April 15, 2026
- Second quarter: June 15, 2026
- Third quarter: September 15, 2026
- Fourth quarter: January 15, 2027
These dates mirror the federal estimated tax schedule.1Franchise Tax Board. Due Dates: Personal Short or missed installments trigger a separate estimated tax penalty calculated on each one.
Business Return Deadlines by Entity Type
The due date for a California business return depends on how your business is organized. All dates below assume a calendar tax year; fiscal-year filers count from their own closing date.
Corporations
C-corporations file by the 15th day of the fourth month after the tax year ends, which is April 15 for calendar-year filers. S-corporations file by the 15th day of the third month, so March 15 for calendar-year filers.3Franchise Tax Board. Due Dates: Businesses C-corporations get an automatic extension to the 15th day of the 11th month (November 15 for calendar-year filers).4Franchise Tax Board. C Corporation Extended Filing Due Date S-corporations can also request an automatic extension.
Every corporation incorporated, registered, or doing business in California owes an $800 minimum franchise tax. Corporations formed on or after January 1, 2020 are exempt from the minimum tax in their first taxable year.5Franchise Tax Board. Corporations
Partnerships and LLCs
Partnerships, limited liability partnerships, and LLCs taxed as partnerships all file by the 15th day of the third month after the close of the tax year. That’s March 15 for calendar-year filers.3Franchise Tax Board. Due Dates: Businesses
Every LLC doing business or organized in California also owes an annual tax of $800, due on the 15th day of the fourth month of the LLC’s taxable year. For a calendar-year LLC, that’s April 15. The $800 is owed every year until you formally cancel the LLC with the state, even if the business had no activity.6Franchise Tax Board. Limited Liability Company The first-year exemption that applied to LLCs formed between January 1, 2021 and January 1, 2024 has expired. LLCs formed after that window owe the $800 in year one.
LLCs with California-source income above $250,000 also owe an additional annual fee that scales with total income, on top of the $800. That fee shares the same payment schedule as the annual tax.7California Legislative Information. California Revenue and Taxation Code 17942
Property Tax Installments
California property taxes on secured real estate are paid in two installments each fiscal year, which runs July 1 through June 30.
The first installment covers July 1 through December 31. It’s due November 1 and becomes delinquent after December 10. The second installment covers January 1 through June 30. It’s due February 1 and becomes delinquent after April 10.8OC Treasurer-Tax Collector. Important Dates, Fiscal Year Begins July 1 When a delinquency date lands on a weekend or holiday, you have until the next business day.
A late installment picks up an immediate 10% penalty. The second installment also carries a small additional cost when delinquent. If neither installment is paid by June 30 of the fiscal year, the unpaid balance starts accruing a 1.5% monthly penalty and enters the county’s formal redemption process.
If you’ve recently bought a property or finished new construction, watch for a supplemental tax bill. The county reassesses the value and issues a separate bill with its own deadlines based on the mailing date, and those bills carry the same late penalties as regular secured taxes.9OC Treasurer-Tax Collector. Supplemental Property Taxes
Sales and Use Tax
The California Department of Tax and Fee Administration assigns each business a filing frequency based on taxable sales: monthly, quarterly, quarterly with prepayment, fiscal yearly, or yearly.10California Department of Tax and Fee Administration. Doing Business in California Publication 51 – Tax and Fee Rates and Filing Frequencies
Whatever your frequency, the return and payment are due by the last day of the month following the end of the reporting period. January sales for a monthly filer, for example, are reported and paid by February 28.11California Department of Tax and Fee Administration. Filing Dates for Sales and Use Tax Returns If the due date falls on a weekend or state holiday, it moves to the next business day.
Payroll Taxes for Employers
If you have California employees, the Employment Development Department requires quarterly reporting on Forms DE 9 and DE 9C. The 2026 quarterly deadlines are:
- Q1 (January–March): April 30, 2026
- Q2 (April–June): July 31, 2026
- Q3 (July–September): November 2, 2026
- Q4 (October–December): February 1, 2027
Weekend and holiday due dates roll to the next business day.12EDD – CA.gov. Payroll Tax Calendar
Unemployment Insurance and Employment Training Tax contributions are always due quarterly. Deposits for withheld State Disability Insurance and Personal Income Tax follow a separate schedule that tracks your federal deposit frequency and the amount you withhold, ranging from quarterly for small employers to next-business-day for the largest.13EDD – CA.gov. Payroll Tax Deposits A late payroll deposit incurs a 15% penalty plus interest.
What Happens If You File or Pay Late
California’s penalties grow the longer you wait, so filing on time matters even when you can’t pay the full balance.
For personal income tax, filing late without an extension costs 5% of the unpaid tax per month or partial month, capped at 25%. If your balance is $540 or less, the penalty is the lesser of $135 or 100% of what you owe.14Franchise Tax Board. Common Penalties and Fees Unpaid tax also accrues interest. From July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026, the FTB charges 7% annual interest on personal income tax underpayments.15Franchise Tax Board. Interest and Estimate Penalty Rates The late-filing penalty and the interest run at the same time.
For sales and use tax, filing or paying late each triggers a flat 10% penalty on the unpaid amount. A business that collects sales tax from customers and fails to remit it faces a 40% penalty on the withheld amount. Fraud or intent to evade adds another 25%.16California Department of Tax and Fee Administration. Regulation 1703 – Interest and Penalties
Disaster Relief Can Push Deadlines Back
If your address is in a federally or state-declared disaster area, California routinely postpones filing and payment deadlines. Following the January 2025 Los Angeles County wildfires, both the FTB and the IRS pushed deadlines originally falling between January 7 and October 15, 2025 to October 15, 2025 for affected taxpayers. The postponement covered individual returns, business returns, estimated tax payments, and LLC annual taxes.17Franchise Tax Board. Los Angeles County Fires
Relief is automatic for taxpayers whose address of record is in the designated area. You don’t need to call or file any special form. Before assuming your normal deadline applies after a major disaster, check the FTB website for the current list of affected counties and extended dates.