Everything You Need to Understand and Operate a Section 25F Scholarship Program
The Education Freedom Tax Credit begins January 1, 2027. This center collects the explainers, checklists, definitions, state data, and updates that organizations, donors, families, and partners need while preparing — written in plain language and kept deliberately conservative about what remains subject to guidance.
Six Places to Find What You Need
Guides and Downloads
Explainers, readiness checklists, worksheets, and operating references organized by audience.
8 materials
Program Updates
A dated record of federal guidance developments, state activity, and platform changes.
5 entries
Glossary
Plain-language definitions of the statutory and operational terms used across the program.
Program terminology
FAQ Center
Answers organized by audience: organizations, donors, families, schools, providers, and tax professionals.
Answers by audience
State Directory
Recorded participation status, election activity, and SGO listing stage for every state and the District of Columbia.
51 jurisdictions
Compliance References
The recurring obligations of a participating SGO and the controls and reporting that support each one.
Operating reference
The Three Documents Most Organizations Read First
Explainer · Donors
The Education Freedom Tax Credit in Plain Language
How the federal credit under Section 25F works: who contributes, which organizations receive contributions, and how scholarships reach eligible students.
Checklist · SGOs
SGO Qualification and Readiness Checklist
The statutory conditions an organization must satisfy to operate as a Scholarship Granting Organization, paired with the operational capabilities each condition implies.
Worksheet · SGOs
Program Launch Timeline and Sequencing Guide
A working sequence for organizations preparing to operate a scholarship program: governance decisions, state monitoring, fundraising readiness, and application-cycle planning.
What Changed Recently
Program conditions are still developing. These entries record what has changed, when, and what it means operationally.
· Operational readiness
Readiness window narrows ahead of the January 1, 2027 start
Organizations intending to operate a scholarship program at launch should be resolving governance decisions, account-segregation design, and application-cycle planning now rather than after state listings are published.
· State activity
State participation tracker expanded to all 50 states and the District of Columbia
Every jurisdiction now has a recorded status entry, election-date field, and SGO listing stage. Statuses remain informational and should be verified against official state and federal sources.
· Federal guidance
Several credit mechanics remain subject to final Treasury and IRS guidance
Filing-status treatment of the applicable annual maximum and certain substantiation details are not yet final. PSC materials state open items explicitly rather than assuming a favorable interpretation.
Quick reference
- Program start
- January 1, 2027
- Statute
- Internal Revenue Code Section 25F
- Applicable annual maximum credit
- $1,700 per taxpayer
- Carryforward
- 5 years
- Guidance status
- Pending final Treasury and IRS guidance