Your Q2 Estimated Tax Payment Is Due Next Week. Here's Exactly What to Do.

If you're a freelancer and you just checked the calendar — yes, the second quarterly estimated tax payment of 2026 is due in the middle of June. There's no reminder email from the IRS, no invoice, and no automatic withholding. You calculate it yourself, send the money yourself, and do it again in three months. Miss the deadline and you'll owe a penalty that accrues daily until you pay, and it'll still be sitting there when you file in April.

Who has to pay quarterly estimates

If you expect to owe more than $1,000 in federal taxes for the year and your withholding won't cover it, the IRS expects you to pay as you go — four times a year. For most freelancers, that means all of you. The 2026 deadlines:

• Q1 (January–March income): due April 15, 2026
• Q2 (April–May income): due June 16, 2026
• Q3 (June–August income): due September 15, 2026
• Q4 (September–December income): due January 15, 2027

Most states with income tax have their own parallel deadlines, often on the same dates. Check your state revenue department's site to confirm.

What you actually owe this quarter

There are two legitimate ways to calculate your Q2 payment. Pick the one that fits your situation:

• Safe harbor method: Pay 25% of last year's total tax liability (line 24 on your 2025 Form 1040). If your four quarterly payments together equal 100% of what you owed last year — or 110% if your adjusted gross income exceeded $150,000 — you'll avoid the underpayment penalty at filing even if you earned more this year.
• Actual income method: Add up your 2026 earnings through May, project the rest of the year, subtract expected deductions, and estimate your combined income tax plus self-employment tax (15.3% on net earnings). Pay roughly 25% of that annual estimate for each quarter. More work, but more accurate if this year looks very different from last.

If you haven't tracked your income closely so far this year, do it now. You'll need real numbers for Q3 and Q4 regardless.

Your fast payment checklist

Everything you need to do before June 16:

• Calculate what you owe using the safe harbor or actual income method above
• Pay through the IRS Direct Pay portal — no account needed, just your bank routing and account numbers — select 'Estimated Tax' and the 1040-ES payment type for tax year 2026
• Alternatively, use EFTPS (the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System) if you prefer a saved account tied to your EIN
• Schedule it at least one business day before June 16 to allow for bank processing
• Pay your state's Q2 estimate at the same time using your state's direct-pay portal
• Set a calendar reminder right now for September 15 (Q3) before you close this tab
• If you don't have a dedicated tax savings account, open one this week and automate 25–30% of every incoming payment into it

If you're already behind on Q1

Pay what you can now. The penalty for a late estimated payment is based on the current IRS underpayment rate (8% annualized as of early 2026) and how long the payment was overdue. It won't break you, but it compounds each quarter. Paying late is still far better than not paying at all. When you file in April, Form 2210 calculates the exact penalty owed — and if you overpay your Q3 or Q4 estimates to compensate, that reduces the final bill.

Quarterly estimated taxes are one of the most disorienting parts of going freelance — not because the math is hard, but because nobody warns you they exist. Most freelancers learn about them from their first brutal April and spend the following years scrambling to set the money aside. The simpler version: move 25–30% of every client payment into a separate account the day it arrives, pay quarterly on schedule, and never panic about where the money went. HelmBill tracks your income in real time, so when the next deadline rolls around, you can run your quarterly estimate in minutes instead of digging through months of bank statements.