Self employed people, as you can see, still have to pay FICA, federal, state and local taxes. Unlike being employed, where the employer takes money out every pay period, a self employed individual may not have that option. This doesn’t mean a self employed person has the ability of waiting until the tax filing deadline to pay all their taxes.
The IRS wants to be paid now rather than later. It is recommended that single member LLCs and sole proprietors make estimated tax payments in four quarterly payments spread out over the year. These payments are called “estimated taxes” and are used to cover income taxes and FICA (aka social security and medicare taxes).
If you do not pay enough estimated tax payments or they are made late, it could lead to being charged a penalty by the IRS.