Florida School Choice Scholarships: Eligibility, Awards, and Deadlines

Florida school choice scholarships are state-funded awards that pay for private school tuition, home-education expenses, or an escape from an unsafe public school, and since House Bill 1 took effect in 2023 any Florida resident eligible to enroll in kindergarten through grade 12 can apply regardless of family income.¹ Private school awards for 2025–26 range from roughly $7,400 to nearly $12,000 depending on the student’s district and grade level, and students with documented disabilities can receive substantially more through a separate education savings account program.² Applications run entirely online through approved Scholarship Funding Organizations.

The Four Scholarship Tracks

Florida runs four distinct programs. Each serves a different student population and operates under its own rules, so identifying the right one is the first step.

Florida Tax Credit Scholarship and FES-EO

The Florida Tax Credit Scholarship (FTC), established under F.S. § 1002.395, is funded by voluntary corporate tax credit contributions and covers private school tuition for eligible students.³ The Family Empowerment Scholarship for Educational Options (FES-EO), governed by F.S. § 1002.394, provides similar assistance using state funds.⁴ Both share universal eligibility after HB 1 removed the income cap, and both pay the same award amount based on the student’s district and grade level. Most families apply for whichever has available funding, and the Scholarship Funding Organization handles placement.

Family Empowerment Scholarship for Unique Abilities

FES-UA is the program for students with documented disabilities. It operates as an education savings account, meaning parents direct funds toward a broad menu of approved services rather than simply paying one school’s tuition. Award amounts are tied to the student’s level of need, with the highest awards for 2025–26 reaching approximately $39,000 in certain districts.⁵ The qualifying disability list is broad and includes autism, cerebral palsy, Down syndrome, intellectual disabilities, speech and language impairments, specific learning disabilities like dyslexia, visual and hearing impairments, traumatic brain injury, muscular dystrophy, rare diseases, and several other conditions.⁴

Hope Scholarship

The Hope Scholarship under F.S. § 1002.40 provides a way out of a public school where a student has experienced a specific safety incident. Qualifying incidents include battery, harassment, hazing, bullying, kidnapping, physical attack, robbery, sexual offenses, threats or intimidation, and fighting at school.⁶ Once the incident is reported, the school principal must investigate and notify the parent of scholarship eligibility within 15 days or upon conclusion of the investigation, whichever comes first. The student can then transfer to another public school with capacity or use the scholarship at a private school.

Personalized Education Program

The Personalized Education Program (PEP) was created by HB 1 for families pursuing home education or a hybrid learning model. PEP functions as an education savings account, giving parents flexibility to assemble a custom learning plan using approved providers, curricula, and services. For the 2026–27 school year, participation is capped at 140,000 students, and Step Up For Students has reported the program is already at capacity for new applicants.⁷ The cap grows by 40,000 students each year and is set to be removed entirely in a future year. PEP families must develop a Student Learning Plan annually and submit it through their Scholarship Funding Organization’s online portal before any funds are released.⁸

Who Qualifies

Before HB 1, FTC and FES-EO were limited to families below certain income thresholds. That restriction is gone. Any student who resides in Florida and is eligible to enroll in kindergarten through grade 12 in a public school can now apply for a private school scholarship or PEP.¹ The student does not need to have attended public school previously.

FES-UA has its own lane. A student must have a documented disability recognized under F.S. § 1002.394, be between ages 3 and 22, and not yet have graduated high school.⁴ Applicants need either a medical diagnosis from a licensed physician or an active Individualized Education Program (IEP) through the school district. The disability categories extend well beyond the most commonly known conditions, so families who aren’t sure whether their child qualifies should review the full list in the statute or contact a Scholarship Funding Organization directly.

For the Hope Scholarship, the student must be currently enrolled in a Florida public school and must have reported a qualifying incident to school administration. The district handles the investigation and notifies the parent of available options.⁶

Income Priority Tiers

Universal eligibility does not mean first-come, first-served for everyone. When demand exceeds available spots, Florida law requires Scholarship Funding Organizations to prioritize students from lower-income households. The priority tiers for the 2026–27 school year, based on federal poverty guidelines published in January 2026, work like this:⁹

Priority 1: Household income at or below 185% of the federal poverty level, or the student is in foster care or out-of-home care. For a family of four, this means income up to $33,000.
Priority 2: Household income between 186% and 400% of the federal poverty level. For a family of four, this covers income up to $132,000.
No priority: Families above 400% of the federal poverty level can still apply but are served after Priority 1 and Priority 2 students are funded.

For larger households, the thresholds increase by $5,680 per additional person for Priority 1 and $22,720 per additional person for Priority 2.⁹ These thresholds update each year, so families near the cutoff should check the current chart when applying.

How Much the Award Is Worth

FTC, FES-EO, and PEP scholarships all pay the same amount, calculated from Florida’s per-student public school funding formula and varying by the student’s home district and grade band. For 2025–26, the range runs from about $7,380 (Volusia County, grades 9–12) to $11,950 (Monroe County, grades K–3).² Most large-population districts land between $7,500 and $8,600. Younger students receive somewhat higher awards than high schoolers. Award amounts for 2026–27 are expected to be published in July 2026.¹⁰

FES-UA awards are calculated differently and tend to be significantly higher because they are tied to the student’s exceptional education service level. The highest awards for 2025–26 approach $39,000 in certain districts for students with the most intensive needs.⁵ Students with lower service levels receive smaller but still substantial awards.

These awards may not cover the full cost of private school tuition, especially at high schools with higher price points. Compare the scholarship amount for your district and grade against actual tuition at schools you’re considering before committing to a switch.

What Scholarship Funds Can Cover

How you can spend the money depends on which scholarship you hold. FTC and FES-EO funds go directly toward tuition and fees at participating private schools. The Scholarship Funding Organization typically sends payments straight to the school rather than to the family.

FES-UA and PEP operate as education savings accounts with a much broader menu of approved expenses. Under F.S. § 1002.394, eligible uses include:¹¹

Private school tuition and fees.
Instructional materials, including textbooks, curricula, and supplemental digital learning programs.
Therapy and specialized services such as applied behavior analysis, speech-language therapy, occupational and physical therapy, therapeutic horsemanship, and art or music therapy.
Private tutoring programs or part-time tutoring from a certified teacher.
Testing fees for standardized achievement tests, Advanced Placement exams, and industry certification exams.
Computers, tablets, and assistive technology, with a two-year replacement limit unless pre-authorized sooner.¹²
Contributions to Florida Prepaid or the Florida College Savings Program.
Contracted public school services, such as speech therapy or specialized classes purchased from a district.

Families using FES-UA or PEP funds submit purchase requests through their online account, and the Scholarship Funding Organization reviews each expense before releasing payment.

How to Apply

Applications are submitted online through a Scholarship Funding Organization. The two largest are Step Up For Students and the AAA Scholarship Foundation, both authorized by Florida statute to administer scholarship programs.⁷ Parents create an account, upload documents, and complete the application through the SFO’s portal. The SFO reviews the evidence against state eligibility requirements and posts decisions to the portal dashboard.

Getting documentation together before starting the application prevents most delays. Scholarship Funding Organizations require at least two different document types to verify Florida residency, and each document must be dated within two months of submission and match the parent or guardian’s name and address on the application.⁷ Acceptable residency documents include a current utility bill, a valid Florida driver’s license, or a signed lease agreement.

You will also need official identification for the student, such as a birth certificate or passport, to verify age and legal name. FES-UA applicants provide additional documentation: medical records showing a qualifying diagnosis from a licensed physician, or a copy of the student’s current IEP.⁴ Hope Scholarship applicants need a copy of the formal incident report filed with the school district.

Key Deadlines

The timeline for the 2026–27 school year follows this pattern:¹³

February 1: Applications for the upcoming school year open.
April 30: Deadline for renewing students to submit and maintain priority status.
After April 30: Late renewals are grouped with new applicants and reviewed in order.
November 15: Final deadline for new applications and late renewals.

Some students are exempt from these deadlines entirely. Dependents of active-duty military, students in foster care, and students who have experienced bullying or harassment at a public school can apply at any point during the school year.¹³

Missing the April 30 renewal deadline is one of the most common and most avoidable mistakes. Once a renewal gets lumped in with new applications, the family loses priority status and risks being placed on a waitlist even though the child was funded the previous year.

Withdrawing From Public School

A student cannot be enrolled in a public school while receiving and using scholarship funds. Parents are responsible for formally withdrawing the student from their public school before scholarship payments begin. To streamline this, parents can request that the school district complete a Standard Withdrawal Form (Form IEPC-SWF).¹⁴

Mistakes here carry real consequences. If state records show a student is still enrolled in public school after scholarship funds have been deposited, the money gets clawed back. The Scholarship Funding Organization will notify the parent by email, but by that point the family may already owe for tuition or services they expected the scholarship to cover. Confirm the withdrawal is complete before the school year starts.

Annual Renewal and Ongoing Requirements

Receiving a scholarship is not a one-time event. Every year, families must renew their application and meet several ongoing obligations to keep the funding active.

Renewal

Existing recipients renew through their Scholarship Funding Organization’s portal. The renewal application typically mirrors the initial application but requires updated residency documentation and household information. Families must complete this by April 30 to retain priority for the following school year.¹⁰ Missing the deadline doesn’t automatically end the scholarship, but it strips priority status.

Standardized Testing

Private schools participating in scholarship programs must administer a nationally norm-referenced test each year to students in grades 3 through 10. The Florida Department of Education maintains an approved list of over two dozen accepted assessments, including the Iowa Assessments, NWEA MAP, SAT10, and the Classic Learning Test.¹⁵ Schools may instead administer the statewide assessments used in public schools. Students with disabilities for whom standardized testing is not appropriate are exempt.

PEP families handle testing themselves. Parents arrange for their student to take an approved norm-referenced test and submit the results to their Scholarship Funding Organization.¹⁶ If they prefer the state assessment, they can coordinate with the local school district for on-site testing.

Student Learning Plan for PEP

PEP families must develop and submit a Student Learning Plan each year before scholarship funds are released. The plan outlines how instruction will be delivered and identifies the goods and services the family needs to meet the student’s academic goals. For students enrolled in a PEP-eligible hybrid private school, the plan must also describe how the student’s learning time is structured when not on campus.⁸ Failing to submit or update the plan blocks funding.

What Can Cost You the Scholarship

Scholarship Funding Organizations monitor compliance throughout the year, and several actions can result in losing the scholarship entirely. The most common triggers include:¹⁴

Enrolling in public school. Even brief enrollment while holding a scholarship can trigger a clawback of all funds deposited that year.
Misrepresenting information. Providing false or misleading information on the application or reimbursement requests can result in permanent disqualification and potential legal action.
Missing compulsory attendance. Florida’s attendance laws still apply to scholarship students.
Skipping required testing. Students who do not take the required annual norm-referenced test or statewide assessment may lose their scholarship.
Failing to approve quarterly payments. Parents must log in and approve scholarship payments each quarter, and forgetting this step halts funding.
Moving out of state. The student must remain a Florida resident throughout the school year.
Letting someone else manage the account. Allowing a school representative, provider, or other third party to access the scholarship account is grounds for termination.

Fraudulent activity carries the steepest consequences. Taking possession of scholarship funds through refunds, resale, or kickbacks from providers is treated as fraud and can lead to both program disqualification and criminal prosecution. The system flags unusual spending patterns, so this is not a theoretical risk.

1
Florida Senate. House of Representatives Staff Analysis – CS/CS/HB 1 School Choice
2
Step Up For Students. 2025-26 Scholarship Amounts
3
Online Sunshine. Florida Statutes 1002.395 – Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program
4
Online Sunshine. Florida Statutes 1002.394 – Family Empowerment Scholarship Program
5
Step Up For Students. 2025-26 FES-UA Scholarship Amounts
6
Florida Senate. Florida Code 1002.40 – The Hope Scholarship Program
7
Step Up For Students. Personalized Education Program
8
Step Up For Students. 2024-25 Personalized Education Program Family Handbook
9
Step Up For Students. Income Priority Guidelines Chart 2026-27
10
Step Up For Students. Private School Scholarship
11
Florida Department of Education. Family Empowerment Scholarship – Unique Abilities FAQs
12
Step Up For Students. FES-UA Purchasing Guide 2025-2026
13
Step Up For Students. Apply
14
Step Up For Students. 2025-2026 Private School Family Handbook
15
Florida Department of Education. Annual Assessment Requirement
16
AAA Scholarship Foundation. Florida – Personalized Education Program