ESA Questions and Answers
The SC School Choice website and South Carolina School Choice Alliance are not affiliated with the South Carolina Department of Education, ClassWallet or FACTS. Our general information resources are not official state government assets and are provided as a public service to encourage you to apply for an ESTF scholarship. For details on your specific child’s eligibility, including the previous public school attendance requirement and the family income threshold, please consult the SC Department of Education.
If you have additional questions, please head to our Contact Page here.
Basic Questions
An ESA, or Education Scholarship Account, is a concept that allow parents or guardians of eligible and approved K-12 students to use a portal (website) to electronically transfer funds from a specially sequestered state account set up for that parent to an education service providers (often a private school).
Through the South Carolina ESA program, known as ESTF (Education Scholarship Trust Fund), parents are empowered to customize an education experience that meets the individual needs of their child, using their online account to pay for approved services like tuition, therapy, tutoring, textbooks, and more.
Already working successfully in other states, ESAs are a powerful, proven innovation that creates an additional pathway for South Carolina students to have an education that equips them to reach their full education potential. Note: Some states use debit cards to pay providers, some states reimburse parents for allowable expenses. South Carolina uses an online portal alone (only) and not debit cards or reimbursement mechanisms.
An ESA, or Education Scholarship Account, is a concept that allow parents or guardians of eligible and approved K-12 students to use a portal (website) to electronically transfer funds from a specially sequestered state account set up for that parent to an education service providers (often a private school).
Through the South Carolina ESA program, known as ESTF (Education Scholarship Trust Fund), parents are empowered to customize an education experience that meets the individual needs of their child, using their online account to pay for approved services like tuition, therapy, tutoring, textbooks, and more.
Already working successfully in other states, ESAs are a powerful, proven innovation that creates an additional pathway for South Carolina students to have an education that equips them to reach their full education potential. Note: Some states use debit cards to pay providers, some states reimburse parents for allowable expenses. South Carolina uses an online portal alone (only) and not debit cards or reimbursement mechanisms.
No. While there is a natural learning curve for everyone using something new, parents of all income levels routinely navigate financial decisions like housing costs, car loans, healthcare expenses, and more. Consumer data shows that millennial parents, across all demographics, are well-versed in the use of online banking and similar products.
Parents of all income levels in other states have proven it possible, and ESAs will empower South Carolina parents with the same options as their counterparts around the country. The vendor selected by the South Carolina Department of Education, ClassWallet and their partner FACTS, have navigators available to assist by phone or email. Additionally, SCDE partners with Outbridge to offer individualized counseling for parents on how to use their scholarship funds.
Yes and No. Both ESAs and vouchers are forms of school choice and the terms are often mistakenly used interchangeably. But the most recent new voucher program was passed back in 2018. ESAs are the overwhelming trend in America since 2020.
The key aspect that distinguishes ESAs from vouchers is parent control and customization. Instead of the state sending funds directly from the state to a specific private school, the state instead deposits funds into a parent-controlled account. These funds can then be spent on a wide array of approved education services, not only private school tuition like in voucher programs.
State law gives us a specific list of qualifying expenses that the Education Scholarship Trust Fund can be spent on (our notes specified in italics):
- tuition and fees for attendance at an education service provider or eligible school;
- textbooks, curriculum, or other instructional materials including, but not limited to, any supplemental materials or associated online instruction required by either a curriculum or an education service provider;
- tutoring services approved by the department;
- computer hardware or other technological devices that are used primarily for a scholarship student’s educational needs and approved by the department or a licensed physician;
- tuition and fees for an approved online education service provider or course;
- fees for approved national norm-referenced examinations, advanced placement (AP) examinations, or similar assessments; industry certification exams; or examinations related to college or university admission (eg, SAT/ACT);
- educational services for pupils with disabilities from a licensed or accredited practitioner or provider including, but not limited to, occupational, behavioral, physical, and speech-language therapies;
- approved contracted services from a public school district, or a public charter school including individual classes, after school tutoring services, transportation, or fees or costs associated with participation in extracurricular activities;
- contracted teaching services and education classes approved by the department;
- fees for transportation paid to a fee-for-service transportation provider for the scholarship student to travel to and from an eligible provider as defined in this section, but not to exceed three thousand dollars for each school year;
- fees for interdistrict public school transfers;
- cost of school uniforms which are required for attendance;
- any consumables and items necessary to complete a curriculum or that are otherwise applicable to a course of study that has been approved by the department (think things like school supplies);
- any other educational expense approved by the department to enable personalized learning consistent with the intent of this act.
Once applications are found to be complete (including supporting documentation), the student will be approved on a first come, first served basis.
Who Is Eligible?
South Carolina’s new law blends the approaches of other successful state ESA laws. The South Carolina ESA is for K-5 through 12th grade students whose families: a) have an annual family income of 300% or less of federal poverty guidelines, and b) attended a South Carolina public school during the 2024-25 school year. (Note: The requirement for previously attending public school does not apply to K-4 children who will be attending K-5 kindergarten in 2024-25 if they have not yet reached the age of six.)
South Carolina’s new law blends the approaches of other successful state ESA laws. The South Carolina ESA is for K5 through 12th grade South Carolina students (not exceeding age 22) whose families have an annual household income of 300% or less of federal poverty (FPL) guidelines based on Adjusted Gross Income and some various nontaxable income sources (see question below). In 2026-27, that income limit increases to 500% FPL.
The following groups have application priority for ESTF:
- Siblings of current ESTF students
- Children of active duty military
- Household income at or below 300% FPL
- Attended a South Carolina public school in the previous school year
No. ESAs do not in any way change these programs. Exceptional SC Tax Credit Scholarships that benefit children with special needs are funded through donations of state tax liability to an independently run non-profit organization that then issues scholarships to eligible students.
The parent tax credit allows parents to deduct expenses for educating their children for tax purposes with special needs in certain circumstances. See https://www.exceptionalsc.org/
A child may not receive both an ExceptionalSC scholarship and an ESTF scholarship. A family may not receive both the parental refundable tax credit and an ESTF scholarship.
Yes. The income limits are firm. However, in 2026-27, income limits will increase to 500% of the federal poverty line, so you might be eligible next year. You can find those numbers here. Applications will be open in January 2026.
Students in the Education Scholarship Trust Fund program are prohibited from attending the public school that they are zoned for. They cannot attend a charter school authorized by their local school district. They are also prohibited from participating in a homeschool program via Options 1, 2, or 3. Parents must certify that their children will not be enrolled in any of these education options while in the ESTF program.
Students attending the following options are eligible to use ESTF:
- Private/independent schools
- Public charter schools authorized by a statewide charter authorizer (South Carolina Public Charter School District, Charter Institute at Erskine, Limestone Charter Association, or Vorhees University Charter Institute of Learning)
- Public schools that are not the school for which the student is residentially zoned
- Online schools
- Microschools
- A parent-led at-home education program customized using the ESTF scholarship (ESTF satisfies compulsory attendance requirements, so students do not have to be and should not be registered with a homeschool association).
Application Questions
The SC Department of Education/ClassWallet portal is open for providers to apply to be a part of the program. As these providers are approved by the Department, they will show up among the options for parents to choose.
Parents can access the list of approved providers in their ClassWallet portal, or you can download the latest spreadsheet of providers from SCDE here. Outbridge’s website has a frequently updated list of providers as well, and you can use the ESTF School Finder to easily locate private schools that accept ESTF.
The SC Department of Education/ClassWallet portal is open for providers to apply to be a part of the program on a rolling basis, so if you have a school, therapist, or other vendor you would like to pay with ESTF funds, ask them to register!
No, if you already have a FACTS user account, you can sign into that previous account and fill out the ESTF application that way. FACTS user accounts can be connected to multiple applications or products, so you can use your existing account for ESTFs.
No, you can skip that requirement if you would like. But, if you ever forget your password, multi-factor authentication can be helpful to get back into your account!
You should give the Department of Education at least 2 weeks after you submit your application for it to be processed. You can log into your FACTS account to see if your supporting documents have been approved, rejected, or are still pending review.
If you would like to call FACTS for an update on your application status or if you just have questions about the application, you can reach their customer service at (866) 539-6359 Monday through Friday from 8 am – 8 pm ET or email FACTS info@factsmgt.com.
To complete the application, you’ll need:
- Proof of guardianship (Tax Return w/Dependents Listed, Birth Certificate, etc)
- Proof of income (2023 or 2024 tax return documentation. If you don’t file taxes, information on income like a Medicaid card or paystubs)
- Proof of residency (Driver’s License or State-issued ID, utility bill, etc.)
If you feel your current income situation is not reflected by your 2023 or 2024 tax returns, you can submit supporting documentation to petition for a change in circumstances waiver (eg. a divorce decree, prison sentence for a parent, unemployment paperwork, etc.)
NOTE REGARDING MEDICAID DOCUMENTATION: You need documentation that contains your Medicaid ID number (not your Healthy Connections/First Choice ID). This usually comes in the form of a Medicaid card like this or via a letter from the SC Department of Health and Human Services. It needs to say Medicaid Member ID.
Watch this video for more information on application documents.
Yes. You can submit your initial application without that proof of income information and other supporting documents, but you must have the income documentation uploaded to your application before it is officially considered to be “in line” for a scholarship. FACTS will not start processing your application until all your supporting documents are uploaded. Many applicants for the ESTF program last year were rejected because of issues uploading income documentation in time, so make sure you submit everything that’s needed ASAP.
Once you submit the application, you will be taken to your application profile, which will show what documents are still needed. You will also receive an email listing each document required. This email will contain the link to get you right back into your application summary page to upload documents.
For a walk-through of the application and what documents are accepted, watch this video.
You can upload it as PDF file or an image taken with your phone/tablet, although PDF is preferred and will help your application be processed more quickly. Your application is considered submitted, but not complete, until all the required supporting documents are uploaded. You should get these supporting documents uploaded as soon as you can. Your application is not “in line” for a scholarship until your supporting documents are uploaded. Be careful, as the application will reject uploads that are too blurry.
In addition to the adjusted gross income you would report on your tax return (line 11 of your 1040), you must also report the following non-taxable income in your ESTF application:
- Alimony received
- Worker’s Compensation
- Housing Allowance (Military, Religious, Parsonage, etc)
- Tax-Exempt Interest
- Other Nontaxable Income
You will need documentation for these nontaxable forms of income. These amounts will be used to calculate your income eligibility for the program. Note that if you indicate that you did not file taxes in 2023 or 2024, you will be required to provide other proof of your household income, such as a Medicaid card or paystubs.
DO NOT report the following non-taxable income:
- Child Support
- Veteran’s Payments
- Supplemental Social Security Income (SSI)
You should apply with the tax return that best represents your household income situation currently in 2025.
For example, maybe your household income level was above 300% of the federal poverty line in 2023, but in 2024, your income fell below the line. The ESTF application asks for your 2023 tax returns, but you can submit your 2024 tax returns if you prefer. If, for some reason, your application is denied for financial reasons and you feel it was not justified, the Department has a financial appeals process where you can submit more documentation to prove that you really fall within the income limits of the program.
If your child has a Medicaid card, that can be used in place of tax documents to verify your household income. However, it is not required that your child be on Medicaid to apply; you can use tax documents to verify your income instead.
Make sure that the Medicaid card uploaded is the one actually issued by the SC Department of Health and Human Services. It will have your Medicaid ID number on it – not your Healthy Connections/First Choice ID. Here’s an example of a card that would work. Often, the SC Department of Health and Human Services will issue a letter containing your Medicaid Member ID; this can alternatively be used to prove that you are a Medicaid recipient.
For photos of what Medicaid cards are accepted and which ones are not, watch this video.
The applicant on the ESTF application is the parent’s information and is linked to the information entered on your FACTS user account. Information about the student will be entered later in the application.
The Applicant and/or Co-Applicant (if applicable) will be the current legal guardian(s) of the student(s). This information is collected to match against documentation collected for eligibility confirmation. If Mom fills out the application and she is the custodial parent and divorced, she would just list herself on the application without a co-applicant. If both Mom and Dad live in the household, they would both be on the application.
Yes, you can complete one application for multiple children using the same FACTS account. Under the “student” application in the portal, there is an option to “add student,” so you can list all children in your family in the application.
Students enrolled full time in their residential zoned public school are not eligible to use ESTF funds. Students using ESTF can be enrolled in another public school in their same school district or outside their school district. It just cannot be the school for which they are residentially zoned.
When it comes to public charter schools, a student using ESTF can be enrolled in a public charter school.
If you believe your application was denied because the income documentation submitted does not accurately represent your current income situation (eg. job loss or divorce since the last tax returns were filed, you can appeal your rejection and provide more documentation of your current income situation.
There is an appeals process for an education provider or school that has been denied. If you feel your application was unjustly denied, reach out to our team at info@scschoolchoice.com, and we’ll see what we can do to help!
Accountability for State Funds
South Carolina’s legislation applies lessons learned in other states with specific checks built-in to prevent intentional or unintentional misuse, such as the use of an online portal (only) for education purchases. Parents will not be able to buy anything with ESA funds outside the portal of approved vendors. This makes ESAs as transparent—if not more—transparent than any other form of education spending.
South Carolina’s legislation applies lessons learned in other states with specific checks built-in to prevent intentional or unintentional misuse, such as the use of an online portal (only) for education purchases. Parents will not be able to buy anything with ESA funds outside the portal of approved vendors, and any returns made will be refunded to parents’ ClassWallet accounts so they cannot pocket the funds. This makes ESAs as transparent—if not more—transparent than any other form of education spending.
(a) to provide, at a minimum, a program of academic instruction for the eligible student in at least the subjects of English/language arts to include writing, mathematics, social studies, and science;
(b) to acknowledge and agree to comply with the education service provider’s prescribed curriculum, dress code, and other requirements of enrolled students;
(c) to ensure the scholarship student takes assessments as referenced in Section 59-8-150 or provides assessments in a similar manner through other means if the scholarship student does not receive full-time instruction from an education service provider;
(d) to use program funds for qualifying expenses only for an approved provider to educate the scholarship student, subject to penalty;
(e) not to enroll their scholarship student in a public school as a full-time student in the resident school district, as defined in this chapter;
(f) not to participate in a home instruction program under Sections 59-65-40, 59-65-45, or 59-65-47;
Participating School Requirements
No. First, there is no obligation for any school to participate in the program. Second, unlike in a traditional voucher program, the only financial transaction involving the state is when the state transfers funds to the parent’s account. The state does not directly choose or pay any education vendors, including private or religious schools.
Whether the parent spends ESA funds (legally, their student’s money not the government’s) on private schooling or some other form of education is up to the parent, so long as it is to a provider listed within the portal.This keeps the government out of independent schools and personal education decisions.The statute contain specific language that prevents the ESA program from expanding the regulatory authority of the state.
No. First, there is no obligation for any school to participate in the program. Second, unlike in a traditional voucher program, the only financial transaction involving the state is when the trustee transfers funds to the parent’s account. The state does not directly choose or pay any education vendors, including private or religious schools.
Whether the parent spends ESA funds (legally, their student’s money not the government’s) on private schooling or some other form of education is up to the parent, so long as it is to a provider listed within the portal. This keeps the government out of independent schools and personal education decisions.
State law contains specific language that prevents the ESA program from expanding the regulatory authority of the state:
(F) An education service provider, not a public school, is not an agent of the state or federal government, therefore:
(1) the department or any other state agency may not regulate the educational program beyond what is set forth in this chapter of an approved education provider that accepts funds from an account;
(2) the creation of the program does not expand the regulatory authority of the State, its officers, or a school district to impose regulation of education service providers beyond those necessary to enforce the requirements of the program;
(3) the freedom of education service providers to provide for the educational needs of scholarship students without governmental control must not be abridged;
(4) an education service provider that accepts payment from an ESTF account pursuant to this chapter is not an agent of the state or federal government; and
(5) education service providers shall not be required to alter their creeds, practices, admissions policy, or curriculum in order to accept payments from an ESTF account.
Schools participating in the ESTF program are require to administer the state test or, as an alternative, schools may administer a nationally norm-referenced formative assessment approved by the South Carolina Department of Education. School may administer these tests to all students, but only ESA scholarship students are required to take these assessments for state accountability purposes. Even though schools must administer the tests, parents are responsible for submitting them to the Department of Education. All students in the ESTF program must submit annual documentation of academic progress.
For grades K5-2, no testing is required, but parents must submit some sort of documentation to prove “academic progress.” This could be a report card or portfolio.
For grades 3-8, parents must submit results from the state test (SC READY) or an equivalent nationally-norm referenced test approved by the Department of Education (Iowa tests are one such test).
For high school, parents must submit results of a nationally-norm referenced test approved by the Department. The easiest tests to submit for high schoolers are their PSAT, SAT, and ACT.
Special needs students do not have to take the tests, but they still must submit some form of documentation like a report card, portfolio, or sample work.
The school must meet all state and local regulations for health and safety enunciated in the South Carolina Code of Laws, state regulations, and local ordinances. Think things like an occupancy permit and basic food safety.
ESAs and Public Schools
No. Public schools in states that have ESA programs have not been harmed. For each student participating in the South Carolina Education Scholarship Account (ESA) program, a public school will no longer bear the cost of instructing the student. The Arizona program is the nation’s oldest ESA program (2011) and it currently enrolls about 70,000 students.
No. Public schools in states that have ESA programs have not been harmed. For each student participating in the South Carolina Education Scholarship Account (ESA) program, a public school will no longer bear the cost of instructing the student. The Arizona program is the nation’s oldest ESA program (2011) and it currently enrolls about 70,000 students.
No. If parents are pleased with the outcomes of their local public school, they will have no need for an ESA. Many parents are content with the school for which their student is zoned.
The best predictor of the rate of transfers to ESAs from public schools would be to look at the largest and longest-running programs: Arizona and Florida. In Arizona, just a little over 70,000 students participate in the program (out of 1.1 million total students). In Florida (2014), about 83,000 students benefit from Education Scholarship Accounts (out of a 2.8 million student population).
No. ESAs are specifically designed to benefit students who face economic challenges. Often, these are the students who fall behind or are not well-served in traditional education environments.
Renewing an ESA
Once in the ESTF program, the child will remain in the program provided all the requirements continue to be met, for example the income of the parents must remain within the limits set in statute. Fortunately, the income ceiling is being raised over the life of the program—-200% or less of federal poverty (2024-25), 300% (2025-26) and 400% (2026-27). The student is “grandfathered” until graduation from high school, though a renewal application within the portal may be required.In the words of the statute: “The department shall process applications in the order in which they are received, after a preference has been extended to all prior-year participants and their respective siblings”
Once in the ESTF program, the child will remain in the program provided all the requirements continue to be met, for example the income of the parents must remain within the limits set in statute. Fortunately, the income ceiling is being raised over the life of the program—200% or less of federal poverty (2024-25), 300% (2025-26) and 500% (2026-27). The student is “grandfathered” until graduation from high school, though a renewal application within the portal will still be required each year. Parents must annually recertify that they still meet the income limitations and still reside in SC.
Yes. These include—
Payments made by the department must remain in force until a parent or scholarship student is proven to have
* participated in a prohibited activity specified in this chapter,
* a scholarship student returns to a public school in his resident public school district,
* or a scholarship student graduates from high school *or attains twenty-two years of age, whichever occurs first.
A scholarship student who enrolls in his resident public school district is considered to have returned to a public school for the purpose of determining the end of the term.
Homeschooling
The entry of ESAs onto the South Carolina educational landscape will not affect the rights of parents and students using the existing three options for homeschooling in any way. Homeschoolers using all three accountability methods will have the same freedoms and be unaffected by the ESA program.
https://ed.sc.gov/districts-schools/state-accountability/home-schooling/
The entry of ESAs onto the South Carolina educational landscape will not affect the rights of parents and students using the existing three options for homeschooling in any way. Homeschoolers using all three accountability methods will have the same freedoms and be unaffected by the ESA program.
https://ed.sc.gov/districts-schools/state-accountability/home-schooling/
The ESTF law clearly states that parents may not homeschool using the three homeschooling options in SC law. Nothing in the act forbids students from learning at home outside of those three options. Curriculum, online schools, instructional materials, and individual classes from public school districts are all qualifying ESTF expenses, so a parent could choose to customize an educational program for their child conducted primarily at home using ESTF, so long as they are not registered as an option 1, 2, or 3 homeschooler.
Learn more about educating at home with ESTF here.
Co-ops and resource centers for students registered as options 1 through 3 homeschoolers are essentially forms of homeschooling. Students whose parents exercise one of the three options for homeschooling are not permitted to participate in the South Carolina ESA program (ESTF) as it is currently constituted.
This is not to prevent a homeschool co-op teacher from offering tutoring services outside the co-op to students who are using ESAs according to the statute. Additionally, a co-op might wish to register as an education service provider to offer individual classes to families who are creating a customized, at-home education with the ESTF program outside of SC’s three homeschooling options.
Taxable Income
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The scholarship is not taxable. The law says that “[f]unds received pursuant to this section do not constitute taxable income to the parent of the scholarship student or to the student.”
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