Families


The Texas Education Freedom Accounts™ (TEFA) program is no longer accepting applications for the 2026-27 school year.

This first program year saw record-setting demand for the Education Freedom Accounts. Funding will be awarded to students in April based on priority. Please check your email for updates.

Families


The Texas Education Freedom Accounts™ (TEFA) program is no longer accepting applications for the 2026-27 school year.

This first program year saw record-setting demand for the Education Freedom Accounts. Funding will be awarded to students in April based on priority. Please check your email for updates.

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Prioritization

 

TEFA awards are not allocated on a first come, first served basis. Applications are assigned a priority group with the highest priority given to students with a disability whose household income is at or below 500% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines. The next three priority groups are determined solely on household income. 

If eligible applicants exceed available program funding, applicants will be prioritized as follows:

Year 1

For the 2026-27 school year, applicants will be prioritized as follows:

  1. Children with a disability who are members of a household whose total annual income is at or below 500% of the Federal Poverty Level1.
  2. Children who are members of a household whose total annual income is at or below 200% of the Federal Poverty Level. 
  3. Children who are members of a household whose total annual income is between 200% and 500% of the Federal Poverty Level. 
  4. Children who are members of a household whose total annual income is at or above 500% of the Federal Poverty Level. Children who were enrolled in a Texas public school or charter school for at least 90% of the prior school year will be prioritized within this group. Funds for children in this category may not exceed 20 percent of the amount of money appropriated from the program fund for that school year.

Year 2

After year 1, applicants will first be prioritized in the following order, and then will be prioritized within each group in the order stated in the year 1 prioritization:

  1. Siblings of participating children.
  2. New eligible program applicants.
  3. Prior program participants who ceased program participation due to enrollment in a public or charter school.

More About Prioritization

If a child is accepted for participation during an application period, any eligible sibling of that child who applies during the same application period is also accepted for participation during that application period.

Participants who remain in good standing do not need to reapply each year.

1For purposes of prioritization, the term “children with a disability” includes both children with an IEP on file with the Texas Education Agency at the time the application process closes and children who have submitted a program-approved proof-of-disability form with their application. However, only those children with an IEP on file who are accepted into the program are eligible for the increased funding amount available to children with a disability.

Note: Federal Poverty Level Guidelines are set annually by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

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Eligibility and Participation

To be eligible, the parent must provide proof that the child:

Is a citizen or national of the United States or lawfully admitted into the United States.

Is eligible to attend a public school or open-enrollment charter school or be eligible to enroll in a public or open-enrollment charter school’s pre-K or kindergarten program.

Resides in the state of Texas.

If accepted into the program, the child will remain eligible to participate until the child graduates from high school, is no longer eligible to attend a Texas public school, charter school, or pre-K or kindergarten program, enrolls in a Texas public or charter school, or moves out of the state of Texas. 

Pre-K Eligibility

A participating child between the ages of 3-5 is eligible for enrollment in a pre-k or kindergarten program under this section if the child is at least three years of age and:

  1. is unable to speak and comprehend the English language;
  2. is eligible to participate in the national free or reduced-price lunch program;
  3. is homeless, regardless of the residence of the child, of either parent of the child, or of the child’s guardian or other person having lawful control of the child;
  4. is the child of an active-duty member of the armed forces of the United States, including the state military forces or a reserve component of the armed forces, who is ordered to active duty by proper authority;
  5. is the child of a member of the armed forces of the United States, including the state military forces or a reserve component of the armed forces, who was injured or killed while serving on active duty;
  6. is, or ever has been, in:
    • the conservatorship of the Department of Family and Protective Services following an adversary hearing held as provided by Section 262.201, Family Code; or
    • foster care in another state or territory, if the child resides in this state;
  7. is the child of a person who has received the Star of Texas Award as:
    • a peace officer under Section 3106.002, Government Code;
    • a firefighter under Section 3106.003, Government Code; or
    • an emergency medical first responder under Section 3106.004, Government Code; or
  8. is the child of a person employed as a classroom teacher at a public primary or secondary school in the school district that offers a pre-k or kindergarten class under this section.

Private School Notice

A private school is not subject to federal and state laws regarding the provision of educational services to a child with a disability in the same manner as a school district or open-enrollment charter school.

Information regarding rights to which a child with a disability is entitled under federal and state law if the child attends a school district or open-enrollment charter school can be found at Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) | U.S. Department of Education, including rights provided under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. Section 1400 et seq.); and rights provided under Subchapter A of the Texas Education Code.

To learn more about your rights under special education law, please see the Texas Legal Framework for Child-Centered Special Education Practices, Disability Rights Texas’s IDEA Manual and the Notice of Procedural Safeguards from SPEDTEX.


Note: All eligible children are not guaranteed funding; participation will be determined via a lottery process if eligible applicants exceed available program funding. 

Approved Expenses

Approved education-related expenses include:.

Educational Services/Materials

  • Tuition and fees at a private school, higher education provider, online educational course or program, or program that provides training for an industry-based credential approved by the Texas Education Agency.  
  • Textbooks or other instructional materials.  
  • Required uniforms.
  • Fees for classes provided by school districts that do not qualify the child to be included in school’s average daily attendance.

Other Approved Expenses

  • Academic assessment costs.
  • Private tutoring.
  • Transportation to/from approved providers.
  • Educational therapies not covered by any federal, state, or local government benefits (i.e, Medicaid).  
  • Computer hardware or software (must not exceed 10 percent of the total amount transferred to the child’s account that year).  
  • Meals provided by private school.
A child smiling while taking notes at her desk

Funds may not be used to pay a family member.

Funds remaining at the end of the school year will roll over as long as the child remains in the TEFA program.

Frequently Asked Questions

Please use this table to determine your household income in relation to the federal poverty level (FPL).  For example, a family of four at 200% FPL is $66,000 annually and a family of four at 500% FPL is $165,000 annually. 
 
Tier 1: Children with qualifying disabilities in a family with a household income at or below 500% FPL. 
Tier 2: Children in a family with a household income at or below 200% FPL. 
Tier 3: Children in a family with a household income above 200% FPL and below 500% FPL. 
Tier 4: Children in a family with a household income above 500% FPL. Additional priority is given to students in tier 4 who were enrolled in public school at least 90% of the 2024-25 school year. 

If you indicated in your application that your child qualifies for special education and you did not receive notification of award, it is likely based on one of three reasons: 

1. Tier 1 funding is for children with a disability AND a household income at or below 500% FPL. If your household income exceeds 500% FPL, your child would be placed in tier 4 and not tier 1 regardless of their IEP or disability status. Although your child does not qualify for the highest priority tier, your child may qualify for additional special education funding if they are awarded an account in Tier 4. 

2. Your Prekindergarten child has a disability but does not meet the Prekindergarten eligibility criteria, which are narrower than the criteria for K-12 students. 

3. Your child’s IEP was not found in any of our attempts to match your application with IEPs on file with TEA. If you remain confident that your child has an IEP that should be on file with TEA from the 2023-24, 2024-25, or 2025-26 school years, please initiate an appeal to assist us in finding your IEP. 

In accordance with state law, students with a current IEP who attend a participating private school may receive up to $30,000 depending on their IEP. No student will receive more than the $30,000 cap in SB 2 and most will receive less. The funding table provided by TEA is located here, and more information about special education funding is available here. By locating your district of residence and the instructional arrangement/setting code on your child’s IEP, you can identify the appropriate amount of funding. 
 
If you indicated in your application that you intend for your child’s educational setting to be homeschool/other, the maximum award for all homeschool/other students is $2,000. 

For all applicants indicating that a current IEP was on file, we attempted to match applications with TEA records. If we were unable to find a match, but parents had otherwise documented their child’s qualifying disability, these students were placed in tier 1 for priority but did not receive additional funding. If you believe an IEP should have been found, please initiate an appeal and provide additional information to assist us in locating your IEP. 
 
If you indicated in your application that your child qualifies for special education but does not have a current IEP, the application prompted you to upload a document demonstrating that your child has a qualifying disability to secure prioritization. These applicants were prioritized in Tier 1 but did not qualify for additional funding since their records were not matched with a current IEP.  
 
Note that only applicants with evidence of a qualifying disability and household income at or below 500% FPL qualify for tier 1 prioritization. Applicants with a confirmed, current IEP on file with TEA are eligible for additional funding, which is based on the IEP. 

Children are eligible to participate if they are U.S. citizens or lawfully present in the United States and are eligible to attend a Texas school district or open-enrollment charter school or pre-K program, including children of a parent who is an active-duty member of the U.S. armed forces. The parent must be a Texas resident.

The amount depends on the child’s situation:
Private school students
State law sets the amount of the transfer at 85 percent of the statewide average amount of state and local funding per student in Texas public schools. The Texas Education Agency (TEA) has determined the amount for the 2026-27 school year is $10,474 per child if the student attends an approved private school.

Students with disabilities who have an individualized education plan (IEP) on file with their school district
May receive more — up to $30,000 per year.

Homeschooled students
May receive up to $2,000 per year.

Not necessarily. If applications exceed available funding, a lottery will decide placement. State law sets this priority order:

Year 1

For the 2026-27 school year, applicants will be prioritized as follows:

  1. Children with a disability who are members of a household whose total annual income is at or below 500% of the Federal Poverty Level.*
  2. Children who are members of a household whose total annual income is at or below 200% of the Federal Poverty Level.
  3. Children who are members of a household whose total annual income is between 200% and 500% of the Federal Poverty Level.
  4. Children who are members of a household whose total annual income is at or above 500% of the Federal Poverty Level. Children who were enrolled in a Texas public school or charter school for at least 90% of the prior school year will be prioritized within this group. Funds for children in this category may not exceed 20 percent of the amount of money appropriated from the program fund for that school year.

*For purposes of prioritization, the term “children with a disability” includes both children with an IEP on file with the Texas Education Agency at the time the application process closes and children who have submitted a program-approved proof-of-disability form with their application. However, only those children with an IEP on file who are accepted into the program are eligible for the increased funding amount available to children with a disability.

Note: Note: Federal Poverty Level guidelines are set annually by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Year 2

After year 1, applicants will first be prioritized in the following order, and then will be prioritized within each group in the order stated in the year 1 prioritization:

  1. Siblings of participating children.
  2. New eligible program applicants.
  3. Prior program participants who ceased program participation due to enrollment in a public or charter school.

If a child is accepted for participation during an application period, any eligible sibling of that child who applies during the same application period is also accepted for participation during that application period.

The parent of the child can submit an application. Parent means a resident of this state who is a natural or adoptive parent, managing or possessory conservator, legal guardian, custodian, or other person with legal authority to act on behalf of a child.

No. Participants in good standing stay in the program automatically. Families only need to confirm they want to continue.

Yes, if the provider applies for approval and is accepted into the program.

Yes. Families may use funds for approved CTE programs.

The Comptroller is required to contract with a private entity to audit accounts and program eligibility at least annually to ensure compliance with applicable law. The State Auditor will also perform periodic audits to verify compliance with eligibility requirements and that funds are used for approved expenses.

The application period ran February 4 – March 17, 2026. Families can sign up for updates regarding the 2027-28 application period.

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