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🎓 Georgia School Choice, ESAs & Scholarships

Which Georgia education savings accounts, scholarships and tax credits a homeschool family can use, what they pay for, and where Georgia stands on school choice — from our Georgia guide.

Overseen by	Georgia Education Savings Authority (GESA), created by SB 233 (2024) and a companion entity to the Georgia Student Finance Commission
Administered by	Odyssey (applications, student accounts and the program Marketplace)
Amount per student, 2026–27	Up to $6,500, paid in four quarterly installments. GESA may withhold up to 5% for administration. Up to 50% of a year's award can roll over to the next year.
Who is eligible	A student currently enrolled in a Georgia public school for two consecutive semesters (or a rising kindergartner), zoned to a public school on the state's list of the lowest-performing 25%, whose parent has lived in Georgia at least one year (active-duty military excepted). Students on the Special Needs Scholarship or a tax-credit (SSO) scholarship cannot also take Georgia Promise.
2026 application windows	Students: March 1–31, May 1–31, August 1–31 and November 1–30, 2026. Each window is for enrollment the following semester; the November window is the last one for 2026–27. Families above 400% of the federal poverty level are only considered in the March and May windows. GESA publishes the next year's windows by December 15.
Already homeschooling?	Most families who already homeschool do not qualify, because the child must be coming from a Georgia public school (or entering kindergarten). Home study is an allowed choice for students who do qualify.

How Georgia Promise works for homeschool families

Apply through Odyssey during an open window. Awards are decided after the window closes. When multiple applicants compete for limited funding, priority goes to current participants, then siblings, then families at or below 400% of the federal poverty level, then former participants, then everyone else, with a random draw within the last group considered. After an award, the parent opts in and picks an educational method (participating private school, non-participating private school, or home study). The child stays in public school until the current semester ends, then withdraws before the funded semester begins. A family choosing home study files a Declaration of Intent with the Georgia Department of Education.

Read the full section in our Georgia guide

What the money can pay for

Program rules define these qualified education expenses. Families spend through the program Marketplace, and only GESA-approved providers and offerings are eligible:

Tuition, fees and required textbooks for eligible core and career-technical (CTAE) courses at a participating private school, an accredited community college or postsecondary institution, or a nonpublic online program or course
Curriculum and the supplemental materials it requires, as approved by GESA, for core subjects
Tutoring by an educator certified by the Georgia Professional Standards Commission
Occupational, behavioral, physical or speech-language therapy from a Georgia-licensed physician or therapist
Approved technology such as computers, tablets and accessories, with per-item price caps and per-family limits
GESA-approved tests used to meet the annual testing requirement
Fee-for-service transportation to a participating school or service provider, up to $500 a year
Other expenses approved by GESA or the parent review committee

Read the full section in our Georgia guide

Before you buy

Buy through the Odyssey Marketplace. Georgia Promise does not reimburse families for purchases made outside the Marketplace, except for eligible transportation.
Transportation reimbursement covers paid services such as ride-share or public transit, not gas or mileage, and is capped at $500 a year.
Check the Eligible Expense List before planning a purchase. Curriculum, books and classes must relate to core subjects, and electronics have item price caps and limits on how many a family can buy.
A tutor must hold a Georgia Professional Standards Commission certificate to be paid with program funds.
Funds can't be paid to family members or to businesses they own, including parents, grandparents, siblings, aunts, uncles and first cousins.
No more than 50% of a year's award rolls over, whatever is left in the account. Plan your spending with that in mind.
Amounts, windows and rules can change every year. Confirm anything important at MyGeorgiaPromise.org.

Read the full section in our Georgia guide

Other Georgia programs: special needs, tax-credit scholarships, Dual Enrollment and HOPE

Georgia Special Needs Scholarship: for public school students who had an IEP or a Section 504 Plan in specified areas during the previous school year. It helps pay tuition at a participating private school and cannot be used for home study. A student receiving it cannot also receive Georgia Promise. (GaDOE; O.C.G.A. 20-2-2110 et seq.)

Qualified Education Expense (QEE) tax-credit scholarships: Student Scholarship Organizations award private school tuition scholarships funded by donations that earn a Georgia tax credit. A student who was in a qualifying home study program for at least one year before the scholarship can qualify to move to a private school, but these scholarships do not pay for homeschool costs, and a recipient cannot also take Georgia Promise. The 2026 credit cap of

20 million was fully preapproved as of January 3, 2026. HB 328 (2026) raises the cap to

50 million starting with tax years that begin on or after January 1, 2027, and waives the prior public school attendance requirement for students with an IEP, a Section 504 Plan or certain diagnosed disabilities, and for children of active-duty military stationed in Georgia. (Georgia Department of Revenue; HB 328; O.C.G.A. 20-2A-1, 48-7-29.16)

HOPE Scholarship for home study graduates: a home study graduate can qualify for HOPE by earning at least a 1160 SAT or a 24 ACT composite on a single test administration before graduation. A graduate who doesn't qualify that way can gain HOPE retroactively by earning a 3.0 HOPE GPA after attempting 30 semester hours of college work. (GAfutures)

Read the full section in our Georgia guide

Articles for Georgia families

What Georgia Promise Money Pays For, and the Rules That Trip Families Up
Georgia Promise funds cover tuition, approved curriculum, tutoring by certified teachers, licensed therapies and limited transportation. They do not cover purchases outside the marketplace, family…
Why Most Georgia Homeschoolers Can't Get the Promise Scholarship, and Who Can
The Georgia Promise Scholarship can pay for home study, but it is built for students leaving public school. If your child has been home educated all along, you almost certainly do not qualify. Here…
The Georgia Promise Scholarship in Plain English: $6,500, Who Gets It, How It Works
The Georgia Promise Scholarship puts up to $6,500 a year into an account for eligible students who leave public school for a private school or home study. Here is who qualifies, how the money moves,…

Official sources

Summarized from our Georgia guide (as of October 2026) and articles. Rules change — confirm on the official pages before you act.

More for Georgia homeschool families

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