When Is Franchise Tax Due in Texas? May 15, Extensions, Penalties

Texas franchise tax is due May 15 every year, covering the privilege period that began the previous January 1. If May 15 falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or state holiday, the deadline rolls to the next business day. You can extend the filing deadline to August 15, and in some cases to November 15, but neither extension buys you more time to pay. Miss the date without an extension and the penalty starts at 5 percent of the tax owed and climbs from there.¹²

The May 15 Deadline

Every taxable entity doing business in Texas, including corporations, LLCs, partnerships, professional associations, and financial institutions, must file its annual franchise tax report by May 15.¹ The report covers the entity’s accounting period that ended during the prior calendar year, so a 2026 report filed by May 15, 2026 reflects the accounting period that closed in 2025.

When May 15 lands on a weekend or state holiday, the due date shifts to the following business day.² That shift is automatic. You do not request it.

First-Year Businesses

If your business first becomes subject to franchise tax during a given calendar year, your first annual report is due May 15 of the following year. The accounting period for that first report starts on the date you became subject to the tax and ends on your last federal income tax accounting period ending date within the same calendar year.³ A Texas LLC formed in June 2025 with a December 31 fiscal year-end, for example, would owe its first report on May 15, 2026, covering June through December 2025.

Getting More Time to File

Texas allows up to two filing extensions. Both come with payment requirements, and neither extends the time to pay.

First Extension to August 15

Any taxable entity can request a first extension by submitting a request or an extension payment on or before May 15. The new filing deadline is August 15. To keep the extension valid, you must pay either at least 90 percent of the tax that will be due on the current year’s report, or 100 percent of the tax reported in the prior year.⁴

Second Extension to November 15

A second extension, pushing the filing date to November 15, is available only to entities required to pay by electronic funds transfer. The request must be submitted on or before August 15, either through the Webfile portal or by making a timely TEXNET payment, and you must have properly filed and paid under the first extension.⁴ Businesses that paid $10,000 or more in franchise tax during the prior state fiscal year (September 1 through August 31) are the ones required to pay electronically.⁵

If your final tax liability turns out to be more than what you paid with the extension, interest accrues on the difference. Interest begins 61 days after the original May 15 due date, at an annual rate of 7.75 percent for 2026.⁶

Penalties and Interest if You File Late

Missing May 15 without an extension starts the penalty clock immediately. The amounts stack by how late you are:

One to 30 days late: 5 percent penalty on the tax due.
More than 30 days late: 10 percent penalty on the tax due, which replaces the 5 percent rather than adding to it.²

Interest on past-due tax runs at 7.75 percent annually for 2026, starting 61 days after the due date and continuing until you pay in full. The rate is recalculated each year based on the prime rate plus one percent.⁶

If you were required to pay electronically and did not, a separate 5 percent penalty applies on top of the late-filing penalty.⁵

What Happens if You Still Don’t File

Penalties and interest are the opening move. The serious consequences start when the Comptroller sends a forfeiture notice.

Forfeiture of the Right to Transact Business

If your entity fails to file a required report or pay the tax, penalty, or interest within 45 days after the Comptroller mails a forfeiture notice, the Comptroller forfeits your right to transact business in Texas.⁷ A forfeited entity loses the right to sue or defend itself in Texas courts, which can be devastating for a business with active contracts, pending disputes, or outstanding collections.

Personal Liability for Directors and Officers

Once privileges are forfeited, each director or officer becomes personally liable for business debt created or incurred in Texas between the date the overdue report or payment was originally due and the date the entity’s standing is restored. The liability is treated as though the person were a general partner.⁸ A director can escape liability only by showing the debt was created over their objection, or that it was incurred without their knowledge and reasonable diligence would not have revealed it. Reinstating the entity later does not erase the personal liability that already attached.

Getting Reinstated

Restoring a forfeited entity requires clearing the tax delinquency with the Comptroller before the Secretary of State will act. The steps are to file all delinquent reports, pay the outstanding tax, penalties, and interest through the date of your request, obtain a tax clearance letter from the Comptroller, and submit Form 801 (Application for Reinstatement and Request to Set Aside Tax Forfeiture) to the Secretary of State with a $75 filing fee. Nonprofits pay no fee. If another entity has claimed your business name while you were forfeited, you cannot reinstate under the original name and will need to amend your certificate of formation with a new one.⁹

You Still Have to File if You Owe No Tax

For the 2026 report year, entities with annualized total revenue of $2,650,000 or less owe no franchise tax, and they are not required to file a No Tax Due Report, which the Comptroller discontinued starting with the 2024 report year.¹⁰¹¹ The threshold is adjusted periodically; it was $2.47 million for the 2024 and 2025 report years.

Owing nothing does not mean filing nothing. By May 15, you still have to submit either a Public Information Report (for corporations, LLCs, limited partnerships, professional associations, and financial institutions) or an Ownership Information Report (for most other entity types, such as general partnerships and trusts). Failing to file a completed and signed PIR or OIR can lead to forfeiture of your entity’s right to transact business, even when no tax is due.¹² The May 15 deadline is a filing deadline first; the payment, if there is one, rides along with it.

1
State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 171.202 – Annual Report
2
Texas Comptroller. Franchise Tax
3
Texas Comptroller. Franchise Tax Frequently Asked Questions
4
Texas Comptroller. Franchise Tax Extensions of Time to File
5
Texas Comptroller. 2025 Franchise Tax Instructions
6
Texas Comptroller. Interest Owed and Earned
7
State of Texas. Tax Code Chapter 171 – Franchise Tax
8
State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 171.255 – Liability of Director and Officer
9
Office of the Texas Secretary of State. Form 801 – Instructions for Application for Reinstatement and Request to Set Aside Tax Forfeiture
10
Texas Comptroller. 2026 Franchise Tax Instructions
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Texas Comptroller. No Tax Due Reporting for Report Year 2024 and Later
12
Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Texas Franchise Tax Public Information Report and Ownership Information Report