How to pay Virginia estimated taxes.

Virginia collects its own estimated tax through the Virginia Department of Taxation, separate from the IRS. Here’s who needs to pay, when, and how to pay online.

Do you need to pay?

Starting with tax year 2026, you must make estimated payments (or have more withheld) if your Virginia income tax, after withholding and credits, is expected to be more than $1,000.

You must pay at least 90% of your tax during the year through withholding and timely estimates. No addition to tax applies if each installment meets an exception, including paying at least your prior-year tax liability (prior return covered a full year and showed a liability), using last year's income with this year's rates, the annualized income method, or total underpayments of $1,000 or less. Otherwise the charge is based on the lesser of 90% of this year's tax or 100% of last year's.

If you underpay: Virginia's underpayment interest rate is the federal rate plus 2%: 9% for Q1 2026, 8% for Q2, 9% for Q3, and 9% for Q4 2026. Underpayments are computed on Form 760C.

For how to pick a safe amount, see how much to pay in estimated taxes.

Deadlines

Four equal installments due May 1, June 15, and September 15, 2026, and January 15, 2027, or pay the full amount by May 1. This differs from the federal schedule: the first payment is due May 1, not April 15. You can skip the January payment if you file your 2026 return and pay in full by March 1, 2027.

A date on a weekend or holiday moves to the next business day. Pay at least two business days early.

Paying Virginia, step by step

What you need

Nothing to set up. Virginia Tax estimated payments takes payments without an account.
Your Social Security number and a copy of last year's Virginia return.
Your bank routing and account numbers.

Start at Virginia Tax estimated payments, Virginia's official payment site.

Go to Virginia Tax's Individual Estimated Tax Payments page.
To pay without logging in, open the 760ES eForm. No login or password is required.
Choose the correct voucher number for the quarter you are paying.
Enter your information, the payment amount, and your bank account details. You can schedule the payment for a future date.
Submit and keep the confirmation. With an online services account, log in and select Estimated Tax Payment 760ES instead; you can schedule all four payments in advance.

Other ways to pay: Pay by debit or credit card through Paymentus (choose Individual Estimated Tax Payments); a service fee applies but the percentage is not published on Virginia Tax's page. You can send an ACH credit from your bank, or mail the correct 760ES voucher with a check or money order payable to the Virginia Department of Taxation to P.O. Box 1478, Richmond, VA 23218-1478, or to your city or county.

Virginia will not fill these payments in for you. Your preparer has to enter each estimated payment on your Virginia return. Keep your own record of the date, amount, and confirmation number.

Extension payments

Virginia gives an automatic six-month extension to file (to November 1 for calendar-year filers); no form is needed unless you pay by check, in which case use Form 760IP. It does not extend the time to pay. Pay at least 90% of your tax by May 1 to avoid the extension penalty of 2% per month (up to 12%). Make the payment online through your online services account or eForms, or mail Form 760IP.

Make this year's first estimated payment as a separate transaction, marked as an estimate for the current year.

Good to know

You must pay electronically if any single payment exceeds $1,500 or the sum of all your payments is expected to exceed $6,000. This includes estimated, extension, and return payments.
The estimated payment threshold rose to more than $1,000 for tax years beginning in 2026.
Virginia's first installment is due May 1, matching its May 1 return due date, not April 15.
Farmers, fishermen, and merchant seamen with two-thirds of income from those activities only need to file Voucher 4 by January 15.
Moved this year? You may owe estimates to both Virginia and your other state for the part of the year you lived or earned income in each.
Paying the IRS too? Follow the federal walkthrough. Other states each have a guide of their own.

Official sources

Checked October 2026 against the Virginia Department of Taxation's own publications.

This guide is for general education and reflects rules as of October 2026. Tax law and agency websites change, and your situation may have details that change the answer. Please talk with your tax professional before acting on it.