State-by-State Tax Deadline Calendar

Federal tax obligations for a single-member LLC are a known shape: Schedule C on the personal return, quarterly estimated tax, 1099-NECs in January. What is much messier is the state layer. Each state that taxes the LLC or its owner sets its own deadlines for state income tax, for the LLC franchise tax or annual report, and for sales tax. The dates are scattered across the calendar, the rules vary widely, and missing one often costs more than the underlying tax. This guide lays them out side by side so you can see the year at a glance.

The calendar below is a working reference, not a substitute for your CPA or your state Department of Revenue. Confirm the dates for the current year before each filing — calendar shifts, holidays, and state-specific extensions happen every year.

The federal baseline

Before looking at the state layer, the federal obligations every US single-member LLC must hold in their head:

• Form 1040 + Schedule C: personal return carrying the LLC income — due April 15 (or October 15 with extension).
• Federal quarterly estimated tax: if you expect to owe more than $1,000 in federal tax at year end, pay quarterly. The dates are April 15, June 15, September 15, and January 15 of the following year — with weekend / holiday shifts.
• 1099-NEC filing: every contractor paid $600 or more in a calendar year needs a 1099-NEC filed with the IRS and a copy sent to the contractor, due January 31.
• FICA / self-employment tax: rolled into the personal return — no separate filing, no separate schedule.

If you have these four nailed down, the state layer becomes a finite list of additions rather than a calendar scramble.

How state obligations vary

State rules for LLCs fall into a handful of clearly different shapes. Knowing which shape your state is in helps you triage dates.

• No-income-tax states. The state does not tax personal income, so there is no state return for most LLC owners — but the LLC itself may still file an annual report and pay a small franchise fee. (Examples: Florida, Texas, Wyoming, Nevada, South Dakota, Tennessee, Washington, Alaska, New Hampshire.)
• Franchise-tax-only states. The state taxes neither the individual owner nor the LLC on net income, but it does collect an annual LLC franchise fee. (Delaware is the famous case.)
• Annual + quarterly states. The state taxes the individual and runs an income-tax calendar with quarterly estimated payments and an annual return. Most states are in this bucket. (California, New York, Illinois, Pennsylvania, and the majority of the rest.)
• Pass-through entity tax election states. Many states have introduced an elective entity-level tax (PTET) that lets S-corp and partnership/LLC owners pay tax at the entity instead — used as a workaround for the federal $10,000 SALT cap. The election has to be made and the entity tax paid within the state’s filing calendar, often earlier than the personal return.

Knowing which family your state sits in tells you what kind of calendar you are managing. If you run an LLC in more than one state, you may have two calendars running side by side.

The state-by-state calendar

The table below summarizes the recurring state obligations that touch a single-member LLC or small LLC — annual return / personal income filing dates, quarterly estimated payment due dates, plus any state LLC franchise fee or annual report timing. Where a state has a pass-through entity tax election, the table points at it. Confirm current-year dates against your state Department of Revenue before each deadline.

Common pitfalls

Three traps cost LLC owners the most, year after year.

• Late-filing fees on the annual report. Most states impose a flat late fee per month late, often $50 to $200. Some states compound it. Many LLCs dissolve administratively without noticing — check your state’s dash after a missed period, even after a one-year pause.
• Nexus traps. If you have meaningful business activity in a second state — an employee, a leased studio, repeated business travel, a marketplace that warehouses your inventory — you may be required to register and file there. Sales-tax nexus in particular has its own thresholds and varies state by state.
• Pass-through entity tax election timing. PTET elections are irrevocable for the year and often have a deadline earlier than the personal return. If you intend to make one, set the entity’s estimated payment before the deadline; the personal-side credit will then follow.

How Hushledger keeps these on your radar

If managing a 50-state calendar by spreadsheet is starting to cost more than the bookkeeping itself, see Hushledger pricing — the Studio tier adds state tax-deadline flags for exactly this.