Ok ... first take deep breath ... this is not the end of the world. You have until 1/5/20 to make an estimated payment to the feds & state if needed. So let us look to see if it is needed ... did you have enough withheld to cover 100% of the 2018 tax liability ... if so your problem is nil.
To avoid an underpayment penalty, you should make estimated tax payments for the current tax year if both of the following apply:
- 1. You expect to owe at least $1,000 in tax for the current tax year, after subtracting your withholding and credits.
- 2. You expect your withholding and credits to be less than the smaller of: 90% of the tax to be shown on your current year’s tax return, or 100% of the tax shown on your prior year’s tax return. (Your prior year tax return must cover all 12 months.)
IRS payment website for Direct Pay for the estimated tax payment - https://www.irs.gov/payments
What I have a big issue with is an employer paying bonuses outside of the payroll system ... that is illegal in most cases.
This answer has been verified for accuracy by an Intuit expert employee
