Mississippi ESA for homeschool families
Education savings account · Mississippi · 2026-27 · checked Oct 12, 2026 against 4 sources · General information, not legal or financial advice.
Your Mississippi ESA to-do
- Homeschoolers can't use Mississippi ESA.
For children with an active IEP (within 3 years) who leave public school for an eligible private school. The parent agrees not to file a home instruction certificate of enrollment, the application needs a letter of acceptance from an eligible private school, and a home instruction program is not an eligible school. Tutoring and therapies cannot be paid for a home-schooled student.
What Mississippi ESA says
Education Scholarship Account (Equal Opportunity for Students with Special Needs), run by Mississippi Department of Education, Office of Special Education.
- Homeschoolers
- Homeschoolers can't use it
For children with an active IEP (within 3 years) who leave public school for an eligible private school. The parent agrees not to file a home instruction certificate of enrollment, the application needs a letter of acceptance from an eligible private school, and a home instruction program is not an eligible school. Tutoring and therapies cannot be paid for a home-schooled student. - Amount
Who Grades Per year Maximum reimbursement K-12 $8,421 2026-27 maximum. Set each spring and may vary with available funds. Paid on a reimbursement basis in four quarterly disbursements; no lump sums. - What you can spend on
- Tuition and or academic fees from an eligible school
- Textbooks related to academic coursework
- Payment to a tutor (certified or licensed)
- Payment for purchase of curriculum including any supplemental materials required by the curriculum
- Fees for nationally standardized norm-referenced achievement tests, including alternate assessments; Advanced Placement exams or similar courses; and any exams related to college/university admission
- Educational services or therapies from a licensed or certified practitioner or provider, including licensed or certified paraprofessionals or educational aides
- Tuition and fees related to dual enrollment at a postsecondary institution (high school students)
- Textbooks related to dual enrollment academic coursework at a postsecondary institution
- No more than $50.00 in annual consumable school supplies
- Computer hardware and software and other technological devices, if a school, tutor, provider or medical professional verifies in writing that they are essential for the student's goals
- What a receipt must show
- Quarterly Reimbursement Request Form with the ESA account number, student and parent names, current school, and amounts per expense category
- ORIGINAL receipts attached (keep a copy)
- Verification of the student's enrollment with each quarterly request
- Only purchases made after the ESA was awarded
- Itemized expenses; tutor payments need documentation that the tutor is certified or licensed
- Payment to a provider: the provider attests to the amount, with its name, EIN, address and the invoice
- Where you submit
- MDE Office of Special Education quarterly Reimbursement Request Form · site
Reimbursement: you pay, then get paid back - Learning plan
- Yes. In the signed parent agreement, the parent promises an organized, appropriate educational program with measurable annual goals, teaching at least reading, grammar, mathematics, social studies and science.
- Testing
- Yes. Pre- and post-assessments every school year (a teacher-created test, a nationally standardized norm-referenced test, or a state board-approved screener), given at the start and again in the 2nd semester. The school gives the results to the parent, who submits them to MDE by the end of the school year; missing them may forfeit next year's ESA.
- Renewal
- No new application each year: a Recertification Form in the parent portal, April 1-30; missing it loses the scholarship. The child's disability and eligibility must be re-documented with the home school district at least every 3 years.
Created by the Equal Opportunity for Students with Special Needs Act (2015, Miss. Code Ann. 37-181-1 et seq.); House Bill 1229 (2025) amended it (scanned PDF, not read).
Applications are reviewed within 21 business days; incomplete applications are not processed.
When the student leaves the program, computer hardware and technology devices must be donated to the public school or library.
A participating student cannot also use the Dyslexia Therapy or Speech-Language Therapy scholarships.
Applications are reviewed within 21 business days; incomplete applications are not processed.
When the student leaves the program, computer hardware and technology devices must be donated to the public school or library.
A participating student cannot also use the Dyslexia Therapy or Speech-Language Therapy scholarships.
Sources
- Mississippi Department of Education: Education Scholarship Account - Special Education · official · checked Oct 12, 2026
- MDE OSE: Understanding the Education Scholarship Account (ESA), Questions and Answers (rev. 10/2025) · official · checked Oct 12, 2026
- MDE: ESA Reimbursement Request Form, 2026-2027 School Year · official · checked Oct 12, 2026
- MDE: Educational Scholarship Account (ESA) Allowable Expenses · official · checked Oct 12, 2026
General information, not legal or financial advice. Programs change their rules every year; check with Mississippi Department of Education, Office of Special Education before you spend. If something looks wrong, tell us.
How Homepen helps
Homepen keeps your days, hours and records, and reminds you of the testing deadline. A receipt vault (snap a receipt, pick the child and category, mark it submitted) is coming in a later version.
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