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🎓 Indiana School Choice, ESAs & Scholarships

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

Homeschool statusA homeschool is a non-public, non-accredited school (IC 20-33-2-12). It is not bound by the curriculum and program requirements in Indiana's education code. The parent must provide instruction equivalent to that given in the public schools (IC 20-33-2-27, -28). The law doesn't define equivalent. Compulsory school age starts at 7 (IC 20-33-2-8), and IDOE says homeschooled students complete schooling at 18.
Notice requiredNone to the state. Reporting your homeschool's enrollment to IDOE (IC 20-33-2-21) is optional and done once. If you withdraw a child from school, tell the school, preferably in writing. For a high school student, the parent signs the Withdrawal to Non-Accredited Nonpublic School form (IC 20-33-2-28.6). Otherwise the student counts as a dropout and can lose a learner's permit or driver's license.
Days and records180 days of instruction in each academic year (July 1 to June 30). Days already spent in a public or accredited school that year count. Keep a daily attendance record (IC 20-33-2-20) and show it if the Secretary of Education or your local public school superintendent asks. There is no required form and no daily hours requirement.
TestingNone. Indiana doesn't require homeschool testing, and a homeschooled student can't take IREAD or ILEARN unless enrolled in at least one class at a public or accredited school. IDOE recommends periodic standardized achievement testing, which you can arrange privately.
Indiana tax deduction
,000 per qualifying child per tax year for unreimbursed education expenses of a homeschooled or private-school child: curricula, textbooks, workbooks, software, school supplies (not computers), tutoring materials, tuition and fees (IC 6-3-2-22). Claim it on Schedule 2 of Form IT-40 (line 8 on the 2025 form) or Schedule C of IT-40PNR. The child must be enrolled at least 180 days in the calendar year.
INESA statusOpen to K–12 students with a disability who have an Indiana IEP, service plan or choice special education plan, and to their siblings. That includes children learning at home, but they take part as ESA students, not homeschoolers, and must take the statewide assessments. For 2026–27: up to 0,000 for a student with a disability, up to $8,000 for a sibling. Applications ran March 1 to September 1, 2026.

What Indiana offers homeschool families, and what it doesn't

The money: Indiana's two large private school programs, the Choice Scholarship (voucher) and scholarships from tax-credit Scholarship Granting Organizations (SGOs), pay tuition at participating private schools. A homeschool can't receive them. What a homeschool family can use is the

,000-per-child state income tax deduction for education expenses, and for high schoolers in grades 10 to 12, the Career Scholarship Account (CSA). The Treasurer's CSA page lists "a student who is educating at home" among eligible applicants.

Children with disabilities are the exception. The Indiana Education Scholarship Account (INESA) gives students with an IEP, service plan or choice special education plan, and their siblings, an account of up to

0,000 (or $8,000 for a sibling) for 2026–27. It can pay for tutoring, therapies, curriculum, classes and private school tuition from approved providers. Home education is one of the listed options, but a child using INESA is classified as an ESA student, not a homeschooler, and must take the statewide assessments.

Read the full section in our Indiana guide

INESA: the special-needs ESA, and how it works for children learning at home

The Indiana Education Scholarship Account (INESA, IC 20-51.4) gives "tax-free scholarship funds to students who are seeking educational opportunities that are an alternative to enrollment in public schools." Under IC 20-51.4-2-4, as quoted in the program's parent agreement, an eligible student has legal settlement in Indiana and is at least 5 and under 22 (by October 1 of the school year). The student must also have a disability requiring special education and an individualized education program (IEP), a service plan under 511 IAC 7-34, or a choice special education plan under 511 IAC 7-49. Since July 1, 2024, a sibling of an eligible student with a disability can also qualify. A sibling is a child with a parent in common by blood, adoption or marriage. The law borrows the Choice Scholarship's income rule, and IDOE reports that rule was dropped for Choice starting July 1, 2026. IDOE's 2026–27 ESA award-amount document describes eligibility with no income test.

Can a home-educated child use it? Yes, as an ESA student. Nothing in the eligibility definition requires attending a school. The rule is about public schools: enrolling in a public school, online public school, K–12 digital learning school, charter school or magnet school that receives state funding "violates the INESA law" and ends the account. The Treasurer's family page lists "Home education" among INESA options, next to a participating private school, individual courses, therapists and tutors. But the program's FAQ says an ESA student who learns at home is not a homeschooler: homeschools are non-accredited nonpublic schools exempt from state testing, while "Students who are approved for an ESA must take the statewide assessment or an alternative test as outlined in the student's IEP/ISP, and must meet any program regulations approved by the state." A homeschooled child with a service plan from the local district meets the disability test, but using INESA means following ESA rules instead.

How to apply: through the ESA portal on Access Indiana. The 2026–27 application ran March 1 to September 1, 2026. A priority window to April 15 went first to students with disabilities funded the year before, then to students with disabilities and siblings, first come, first served. IDOE said the application opens March 1 "consistent with previous years," but has not yet posted 2027–28 dates. You'll need the IEP or service plan, proof of Indiana residency and a birth certificate. Questions go to IDOE at ESA@doe.in.gov or 317-232-0723.

Who runs it: the Treasurer of State ran INESA from its 2022–23 launch. Administration moved to IDOE on July 1, 2026. Applications stayed on Access Indiana and payments stayed on ClassWallet. Questions about 2025–26 invoices still go to the Treasurer (ESA@tos.in.gov).

Read the full section in our Indiana guide

What INESA pays for

Money is spent only with approved INESA providers and only for qualified expenses under IC 20-51.4-2-9. Funds arrive quarterly. For 2026–27 the months are August, October, December and February. Providers invoice through ClassWallet. There's no debit card. Under the Treasurer, parents couldn't be reimbursed, but IDOE's 2026–27 guidance says parent reimbursement is allowed under the program's Direct Pay rules with proper documentation. Categories marked (sibling) are also open to siblings without a disability:

Read the full section in our Indiana guide

The
,000 private school/homeschool tax deduction

Indiana's unreimbursed education expenses deduction (IC 6-3-2-22) is the one state benefit every homeschool family can use. You deduct

,000 from Indiana adjusted gross income for each dependent child you homeschool or send to a private school, if you paid education expenses for that child during the year.

Who qualifies: the child must be eligible for a free K–12 education in an Indiana school corporation and be your dependent on your federal return. The child must also be your natural or adopted child, or you must be the court-appointed guardian or custodian. The child must attend a nonpublic school, including a homeschool, that meets Indiana's compulsory attendance law. The 2025 IT-40 instructions add that no deduction is available for a child enrolled in school for less than 180 days in the calendar year. A child enrolled in a public or charter school who gets instruction at home doesn't count.

What counts: tuition, fees, computer software, textbooks, workbooks, curricula, school supplies (other than personal computers), and other written materials used primarily for academic instruction or academic tutoring. Expenses paid by a scholarship, grant or account, such as an ESA, don't count.

How to claim: enter it on Schedule 2 of Form IT-40 (line 8, Private School/Homeschool Deduction, on the 2025 form), or Schedule C of Form IT-40PNR for part-year residents and nonresidents. The deduction is

,000 times the number of qualifying children. A child can be claimed only once a year, and a husband and wife are entitled to only one deduction. Keep your receipts. See DOR Information Bulletin #107.

Read the full section in our Indiana guide

Choice Scholarships, SGO scholarships and the Career Scholarship Account

Choice Scholarship (voucher, IC 20-51-4): IDOE's program report says the income cap was removed in May 2025, so starting July 1, 2026 any student with legal settlement in Indiana who is at least 5 and under 22 can use it. It pays only at a participating Choice school. That must be an accredited Indiana private school that charges tuition, gives the statewide assessment and agrees to enroll the student. A homeschool can't qualify. The 2026–27 full-year award is the lesser of the school's tuition and fees or an amount based on the student's public school corporation, estimated at $6,033.32 to $8,328.56. Applications run March 1 to September 1 for a full-year award and November 1 to January 15 for a half-year award. For 2026–27, the half-year window is November 1, 2026 to January 15, 2027. The school files the application for the family.

SGO scholarships: Scholarship Granting Organizations are charities whose donors get a 50% Indiana tax credit, with a statewide cap of

8.5 million each fiscal year. The scholarships go to students age 4 to under 22 in households at or below 400% of the free or reduced-price lunch income level, toward tuition at private schools that partner with an SGO. They don't pay homeschool costs.

Career Scholarship Account (CSA, IC 20-51.4-4.5): this one is open to homeschoolers. It gives up to $5,000 for 2026–27 to students in grades 10 to 12 enrolled in an approved CSA program, such as an internship of 75 or more hours with a training plan, a modern youth apprenticeship, a registered apprenticeship or other work-based learning. Money is paid in four

,250 disbursements. The Treasurer's student page lists 10th to 12th graders at an Indiana public or private school "or a student who is educating at home," plus Indiana residency. IDOE took over the program on July 1, 2026. The 2026–27 application ran March 1 to October 1, 2026. Contact CSA@doe.in.gov. An INESA student who joins CSA uses the existing INESA account.

Federal Scholarship Tax Credit: Governor Braun opted Indiana in on January 22, 2026, and Indiana is on the IRS list of participating states for 2027 (as of October 22, 2026). Starting January 1, 2027, donors can claim a federal credit of up to

,700 for gifts to participating SGOs. The Governor's office named five Indiana SGOs planning to take part: Institute for Quality Education, Sagamore Institute Scholarship for Education Choice, The Lutheran Scholarship Granting Organization of Indiana, School Scholarship Granting Organization of Northeast Indiana, and Legacy Foundation. The release describes scholarships for children at public and private schools for expenses such as tuition, tutoring, therapies and technology. It doesn't mention homeschooling, and whether these scholarships can pay homeschool costs isn't settled. Ask the SGO before counting on it.

Read the full section in our Indiana guide

Articles for Indiana families

Official sources

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

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