When I got my tax bill earlier this year, the sting of how much I owed was mostly soothed by the knowledge that I could pay my taxes with a credit card — and finish the spending requirement for a welcome bonus I had been working on. Taxes are way more fun when they help me get to Hawaii!
Generally, you’ll be charged a fee between 1.75% and 1.85% if you opt to pay your taxes with a credit card. This fee can be worth paying if you’re using a card with a good flat earning rate. If you use the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card, for instance, you’ll earn a 3.7% return according to TPG’s April 2025 valuations — double what you’ll be charged in fees.
But if you’re like me and able to put your tax bill toward a new card’s welcome bonus? That fee is even less of an issue.
Let’s say, for instance, you have a $1,000 tax bill. If you pay it with a credit card, you’ll end up paying around $18.50 in fees — for a total of $1,018.50.
If you just opened the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (now is a great time, as you may have heard) and are working on the minimum spending requirement of $5,000 in the first three months after account opening, your $1,000 tax bill alone will get you 20% of the way toward your spending requirement. That means you’ll get your 100,000-point bonus — and the vacation booking of your dreams — even faster.
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