(a) Every individual, estate, and trust subject to taxation under section 5822 of this title (other than a person receiving at least two-thirds of his or her income from farming or fishing as defined under the laws of the United States) shall make installment payments of the taxpayer's estimated tax liability for each taxable year. The amount of each payment shall be 25 percent of the required annual payment. For any taxable year, payments shall be made on or before April 15, June 15, and September 15 of the taxable year and January 15 of the following taxable year. In applying this section to a taxable year beginning on any date other than January 1, there shall be substituted, for the months specified in this section, the months which correspond thereto.

(b) In lieu of the estimated payments provided in subsection (a) of this section, a taxpayer who pays federal estimated income tax in annualized income installments may pay for the installment period an amount equal to the 24 percent of the taxpayer's required payment for federal income tax purposes, reduced by a percentage equal to the percentage of the taxpayer's adjusted gross income for the taxable year which is not Vermont income, provided, however, that if a taxpayer's Vermont income exceeds the taxpayer's adjusted gross income, no reduction shall be made.

(c) For purposes of applying this section, the amount deducted and withheld for the taxable year under subchapter 4 of this chapter shall be deemed a payment of estimated tax. An equal part of such amount shall be deemed paid on each due date for such taxable year unless the taxpayer establishes the dates on which all amounts were actually withheld, in which case the amounts so withheld shall be deemed payments of estimated tax on the dates on which such amounts were actually withheld.

(d) If a married couple has filed a joint personal income tax return for the 12-month period immediately preceding any taxable year, the payments of estimated tax required to be made under this section shall be deemed to be a joint obligation of the married couple unless they make separate payments of estimated tax liability for that taxable year. If a married couple has made any payments with respect to a joint obligation to pay estimated tax for any taxable year and those taxpayers thereafter file separate Vermont and federal income tax returns for that taxable year, the total amount of the payments may be treated as the payment of either member of the married couple, or may be divided between them.

(e) The Commissioner may require the filing of a return with the payment of estimated taxes required under subchapter 5 of this chapter. Notwithstanding section 5867 of this title, or any other provision of law, those returns are not required to be signed or verified by the taxpayer. (Added 1966, No. 61 (Sp. Sess.), § 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1966; amended 1967, No. 278 (Adj. Sess.), § 29, eff. March 12, 1968; 1983, No. 59, § 1, eff. April 22, 1983; 1987, No. 278 (Adj. Sess.), § 15, eff. June 21, 1988; 1989, No. 119, § 4, eff. June 22, 1989; 2013, No. 73, § 21, eff. June 5, 2013; 2015, No. 57, § 69, eff. June 11, 2015.)