ORLANDO, Florida (AP) — Wesley Snipes must begin his three-year prison sentence for failing to pay taxes before the holidays as originally ordered.

Snipes asked a judge if he could surrender on Jan. 6 in Pennsylvania instead of on Thursday. The motion says Snipes has four young children and the “surrender date is in the middle of the holiday season.”

But a Florida judge denied his request Monday. The judge wrote that Snipes had plenty of time to prepare “for the impact that his incarceration will have upon members of his family” since he was sentenced more than two years ago.

The 48-year-old star of the “Blade” trilogy was convicted in 2008 on three misdemeanor counts of willful failure to file income tax returns.

TMZ first reported the denial.

Copyright 2010 The Associated Press.