Now that your 2024 tax return is hopefully behind you and we’re several months into the 2025 tax year, it’s time to start planning for the next set of federal income tax deadlines.
Following is a heads-up on deadlines and other key dates for the 2025 tax year — the one for which your return is due by April 2026. Mark the deadlines that apply to you on your calendar now, so you don’t forget.
June 16, 2025
This is the deadline for individuals to:
- Pay the second installment of 2025 estimated taxes, which applies to the self-employed and other workers who earn income that isn’t subject to withholding. Use IRS Form 1040-ES to pay this tax.
Sept. 15, 2025
This is the deadline for individuals to:
- Pay the third installment of 2025 estimated taxes, which applies to the self-employed and other workers who earn income that isn’t subject to withholding. Use IRS Form 1040-ES to pay this tax.
Dec. 31, 2025
This is the deadline for individuals to:
- Make 2025 tax-deductible donations to charity. Note that charitable contributions are generally an itemized deduction, meaning you cannot claim them if you take the standard deduction.
- Make 2025 contributions to most workplace retirement plans. These include 401(k) accounts.
- Spend money in health flexible spending accounts, which are also referred to as FSAs. This deadline generally applies if the 2025 health insurance plan year ends Dec. 31. Employers are allowed — but not required — to offer a limited grace period or small carry-over.
- Take 2025 required minimum distributions (RMDs) from qualifying retirement accounts if they turned 74 or older in 2025. Note that the penalty for missing this deadline is steep, as we detail in “4 Tax Penalties That Could Cost Your Retirement Account Thousands — and How to Avoid Them.”
Jan. 15, 2026
This is the deadline for individuals to:
- Pay the fourth installment of 2025 estimated taxes, which applies to the self-employed and other workers who earn income that isn’t subject to withholding. Use IRS Form 1040-ES to pay this tax. One exception: Self-employed people who file their 2025 federal tax return by Feb. 2, 2026, and pay their entire balance due with that return do not have to pay their fourth installment by Jan. 15.
Mid- to late January 2026 (presumably)
This time of year is typically when the IRS:
- Opens Free File, which is one of several ways that eligible taxpayers can get their taxes done for free.
- Officially starts the tax season. The first day of the season is the earliest point at which individuals can submit their income tax returns to the IRS.
March 16, 2026 (presumably)
Generally, March 15 is the deadline for small businesses and any other type of entities that are classified as partnerships to file the following. But since March 15, 2026, falls on a Sunday, the deadline will likely fall on March 16.
- Form 1065: U.S. Return of Partnership Income. Unsure if this requirement applies to you? See the Form 1065 instructions for the IRS’ three-paragraph-long definition of “partnership.”
April 1, 2026
This is the deadline for individuals to:
- Take 2025 required minimum distributions (RMDs) from qualifying retirement accounts if they turned 73 in 2025. This is because the IRS gives taxpayers a few extra months to take their first RMD. For all subsequent RMDs, the deadline will be Dec. 31, as noted above.
April 15, 2026 (presumably)
While the IRS has yet to announce the official date for the next Tax Day, it’s safe to assume it will be April 15, as that date falls on a weekday (Wednesday) rather than a weekend or holiday in 2026. That would mean April 15, 2026, is the deadline for individuals to:
- File their 2025 income tax return and pay any taxes they might owe, or
- Request an automatic extension for their 2025 tax return. Use Form 4868 to request this extension if you can’t file your return on time. Also, note that the extension applies only to filing: You still must pay any taxes you owe by Tax Day to avoid interest charges or penalties.
April 15 is also typically the deadline for individuals to:
- Make 2025 contributions to individual retirement accounts (IRAs). For the contribution limits, see “IRS Hikes Various Retirement Account Limits for 2025 (Including the First IRA Catch-up Hike in Ages).”
- Withdraw excess 2025 contributions to IRAs. Note that the penalty for missing this deadline is 6%.
- Withdraw excess 2025 deferrals to 401(k) and certain other types of workplace retirement plans. The penalty for missing this deadline is essentially being taxed on the excess twice over.
- Make 2025 contributions to health savings accounts. For contribution limits, see “IRS Raises Limits for This Tax-Free Account for 2026.”
- Make 2025 contributions to Archer medical savings accounts. For contribution limits, see IRS Publication 969.
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