How to make advance tax payments for current year without changing W4

You can absolutely make a payment now to catch up on your tax liability, but there are some things to consider about timing and potential penalties. The IRS quarterly estimated tax payment schedule exists to ensure people are paying their taxes throughout the year, not just at filing time. The four deadlines are typically April 15, June 15, September 15, and January 15 of the following year. If you're underpaid at this point and make a payment now, that could help reduce or eliminate any potential penalties. The IRS calculates underpayment penalties based on how much you owe and how long you've been underpaid. So paying sooner rather than later is generally better. To avoid penalties completely, you typically need to have paid (through withholding or estimated payments) either 90% of your current year tax or 100% of your previous year's tax (110% if your AGI was over $150,000).

I went through this exact same situation last year! I started freelancing on the side and realized I was going to owe a bunch at tax time. I tried figuring out the quarterly stuff but it was confusing, so I checked out https://taxr.ai which analyzed my situation. They explained that making a payment now is definitely better than waiting until tax time even if you've missed some quarterly deadlines. The service helped me calculate exactly how much I needed to pay for the rest of the year based on my projected income. They also showed me that in my case, I needed to cover about 85% of my expected tax through withholding or estimated payments to avoid the worst penalties.

Just wanted to update - I tried taxr.ai after asking about it, and it was actually super helpful for my situation! I uploaded my last year's return and entered my expected income changes for this year, and it showed me that I was heading toward a $4200 underpayment. The system calculated that I needed to make a $2700 payment now and another $1500 in December to avoid penalties. It also showed me exactly how much of a penalty I would face if I waited until tax time (about $180 in my case). The peace of mind knowing exactly what I need to pay and when is totally worth it!

If you're struggling to get answers from the IRS about estimated tax payments or penalties, try using Claimyr (https://claimyr.com). I spent DAYS trying to get through to the IRS last year when I had questions about catching up on missed estimated payments. After multiple failed attempts waiting on hold for hours, I used Claimyr and got a callback from an actual IRS agent within 2 hours. The agent walked me through exactly how to make catch-up payments and explained how the penalties would be calculated in my specific situation. You can see a demo of how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c It's honestly a game-changer if you need clarification directly from the IRS rather than trying to interpret their website.

Ok I need to publicly eat my words here. After being completely skeptical about Claimyr, I decided to try it because I was desperate to talk to someone at the IRS about my estimated payments. I assumed it would be a waste of money, but I got a call back in about 45 minutes with an actual IRS agent on the line! The agent confirmed that making a catch-up payment now would reduce my penalties even if it's late for previous quarters. They explained that the penalties are calculated per day, so paying now stops the clock on additional penalties accruing. They also helped me understand how to properly report these payments on my tax return next year. Huge time saver!

One thing nobody has mentioned yet - if you're making estimated tax payments because of self-employment income, remember you may need to make payments for self-employment tax (Social Security and Medicare) as well as income tax. This tripped me up my first year freelancing. I calculated my income tax correctly but completely forgot about the additional 15.3% for self-employment tax. My total tax bill was WAY higher than I had planned for.

If you want to avoid having to figure out estimated payments altogether next year, another option is to increase your withholding from your W-2 job. If you have a decent paying regular job, you can fill out a new W-4 and put an additional dollar amount to be withheld from each paycheck. This approach has a big advantage: Withholding is considered to be paid evenly throughout the year even if it's actually withheld later in the year. So if you realize in November that you're going to owe $2,000 more, you could have extra withheld from your November and December paychecks and the IRS treats it as if you paid it evenly January through December!

Great question! You're right that you can make a catch-up payment now rather than waiting until filing time - that's definitely better for avoiding penalties. The IRS doesn't require you to follow the exact quarterly schedule if you're just trying to true up your withholding shortfall. However, keep in mind that estimated tax payments are applied as of the date received, so a payment made now won't retroactively cover earlier quarters. But it will stop additional penalties from accruing going forward. For your situation with $3,800 withheld vs $5,100 expected liability, making that $1,300 payment now makes sense. You can use the IRS Direct Pay system online - just select "estimated tax" as the payment type. No need for paper forms. One thing to double-check: make sure your $5,100 calculation includes both income tax AND self-employment tax if any of your income is from freelancing or contract work. That 15.3% self-employment tax often catches people off guard!