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🎓 Kentucky School Choice, ESAs & Scholarships

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

Notice to the districtA homeschool is a private school (KRS 159.030). Send a letter of intent to the superintendent of your local board of education within the first two weeks of the school year, or within two weeks of withdrawing from public school, with each child's name and age and your home address (KRS 159.160; KDE packet, May 2026). Send it again every year. The district must accept it, and there is no approval, fee or business registration.
Records and school termKeep attendance and scholarship reports (KRS 159.040). KDE lets you keep attendance on paper or digitally, and says scholarship reports should list the courses completed and the grade given. Records are open to inspection by the district's Director of Pupil Personnel and KDE. KDE says there is no minimum school term for a non-certified homeschool but recommends 1,062 hours over at least 170 days. We found no state testing requirement.
Compulsory school ageKRS 159.010 sets attendance from age 6 to 16 and lets districts raise it to 18; once 55% of districts did, all districts had to. KDE's enrollment page says children must attend between the ages of 6 and 18. KDE's homeschool packet says to send your notice if your child is 6 by August 1.
School choice statusAs of October 2026, Kentucky has no ESA, voucher, state tax-credit scholarship or state education tax credit for K–12 families. The 2021 Education Opportunity Account program (HB 563) was struck down by the Kentucky Supreme Court on December 15, 2022. Voters rejected Amendment 2 on November 5, 2024 (64.8% no). On February 19, 2026 the Court also struck down the 2022 charter school funding law (HB 9). Kentucky has opted into the federal scholarship tax credit: the General Assembly overrode Governor Beshear's veto of HB 1 on March 16–17, 2026.
Federal scholarship tax credit (from 2027)Kentucky is on the IRS list of states taking part for 2027 (as of October 22, 2026). Starting January 1, 2027, an individual may claim a federal credit of up to
,700 ($3,400 if filing jointly) for cash gifts to a listed scholarship granting organization (SGO). The Secretary of State collects SGO declarations and must send Kentucky's list to the U.S. Treasury by January 1, 2027 (KRS 14.125). Sixteen organizations had filed declarations as of October 12, 2026.
Dual credit and college aidThe Dual Credit Scholarship covers Kentucky homeschool students in grades 11 and 12: one general education dual credit class for 2026–27, at up to $99 per credit hour, with a separate homeschool application (KHEAA). KEES: homeschool graduates earn an award based only on their highest ACT or SAT score, not on high school GPA. CAP grants and the Kentucky Tuition Grant are need-based and use the FAFSA.
Homeschool statusNo state program pays for homeschool costs, and KDE gives homeschool families no financial help. Homeschool students can't play KHSAA high school sports for a public school unless enrolled there full time. What homeschool families can use: the Dual Credit Scholarship, KEES ACT/SAT awards, district special education evaluations (child find), and possibly federal tax credit scholarships from 2027, depending on federal rules and each SGO.

Where Kentucky stands on school choice (October 2026)

What exists today: no state-funded private school choice program. Kentucky has no education savings account (ESA), no voucher, no state tax-credit scholarship and no state income tax credit or deduction for K–12 education costs that we could find. KDE says the state provides no financial assistance to families who homeschool. The one new piece is federal: Kentucky has opted into the federal scholarship tax credit that begins in 2027 (see below).

The Education Opportunity Account program (HB 563, 2021): the General Assembly created the Education Opportunity Account Program, a state tax credit of up to 95% of gifts to account-granting organizations, capped at

5 million a year for tax years 2021 through 2025 (KRS 141.500–141.528). Accounts were for students in households at or below 175% of the reduced-price school meal income limit, and could pay for tutoring, curriculum and instructional materials, online courses, therapies, dual credit, exam fees and services from a public school. Students in counties of 90,000 or more people could also use them for private school tuition. HB 563 passed the House 51–45 on March 11, 2021 and the Senate 21–15 on March 16, and the House concurred in the Senate version 48–47 the same day. Governor Beshear vetoed it on March 24, 2021, and both chambers overrode the veto on March 29, 2021 (House 51–42, Senate 23–14). It became 2021 Ky. Acts ch. 167.

The court ruling: on December 15, 2022, in Commonwealth ex rel. Cameron v. Johnson (2021-SC-0518-TG), the Kentucky Supreme Court held that the Education Opportunity Account Act violates Section 184 of the Kentucky Constitution, which bars raising or collecting money for education other than in common (public) schools without a vote of the people. The struck-down sections still appear in the KRS with a note recording the ruling. A 2026 bill to repeal them, HB 28, stayed in committee.

Constitutional Amendment 2 (2024): the General Assembly then proposed letting voters decide (HB 2, 2024; House 65–32, Senate 27–8; 2024 Ky. Acts ch. 8). The amendment would have added this to the Constitution: "The General Assembly may provide financial support for the education of students outside the system of common schools," notwithstanding Sections 59, 60, 171, 183, 184, 186 and 189. On November 5, 2024 it failed: 1,302,466 no (64.8%) to 707,819 yes (35.2%), according to the certified official results.

Charter schools: HB 9 (2022) provided for a public charter school project and how it would be funded. On February 19, 2026, in Commonwealth ex rel. Coleman v. Council for Better Education (2024-SC-0022-TG), the Kentucky Supreme Court unanimously held that HB 9 violates Sections 183, 184 and 186 of the Constitution, saying the Constitution "does not permit funneling public education funds outside the common public school system." Charter schools are public schools in any case, not a homeschool option.

The federal tax credit decision (HB 1, 2026): HB 1 elects for Kentucky to take part every year in the federal scholarship tax credit (Internal Revenue Code section 25F) and names the Secretary of State as the official who reports the election and submits the list of scholarship granting organizations (SGOs) to the U.S. Treasury by January 1 each year. It passed the House 79–17 on February 24, 2026 and the Senate 33–5 on February 27. Governor Beshear vetoed it on March 13, 2026. The House overrode the veto 77–14–1 on March 16 and the Senate 31–5 on March 17. It is 2026 Ky. Acts ch. 4, now KRS 14.125. A competing bill, HB 88, which would have given the job to the Auditor of Public Accounts, stayed in committee.

Where the federal credit stands: the IRS lists Kentucky among the states taking part for 2027 (as of October 22, 2026). Starting January 1, 2027, a donor may claim a federal credit of up to

,700 ($3,400 if filing jointly) for cash gifts to a listed SGO. The Secretary of State told a legislative commission on October 21, 2026 that HB 1 took effect July 15, 2026, that Kentucky filed its advance election with the IRS on July 22, 2026, and that 16 organizations had filed SGO declarations as of October 12, 2026. Under the proposed regulation 30 KAR 1:060, an SGO files a declaration with an IRS 501(c)(3) letter and a
5 fee, by a proposed annual deadline of November 30, and files an annual CPA audit. The regulation was still in the comment and review process; the Secretary of State expected legislative review in December 2026. Federal rules, not Kentucky, set which students qualify (the Secretary of State's summary of the proposed federal rules: household income up to 300% of area median income) and which expenses scholarships may pay (those in IRC 530(b)(3)(A)).

What it means for homeschool families: today, no Kentucky program pays for homeschool costs, and none of the failed or struck-down programs is coming back without a new law that passes the constitutional limits the Court described. The federal credit works through SGOs, not through families: it does not give you an account or a refund. Whether an SGO will offer scholarships that cover homeschool costs depends on the federal rules (proposed October 1, 2026) and on each SGO, and that isn't settled. Ask an SGO directly before counting on it.

What's next: the Secretary of State must send Kentucky's first SGO list to the U.S. Treasury by January 1, 2027. We found no official source on school choice bills for the 2027 session and make no prediction. We'll update this section when bills are filed.

Read the full section in our Kentucky guide

Dual credit for homeschool students

Dual Credit Scholarship (KHEAA): open to Kentucky residents in grades 11 or 12 in a Kentucky public or private high school or a Kentucky home school who are enrolled, or approved to enroll, in an approved dual credit class at a participating Kentucky college or university. Students must complete a 30-minute college success counseling session each year. For 2026–27 it covers one general education dual credit class, equal to the college's dual credit tuition and not more than $99 per credit hour. Developmental, remedial, repeated or audited classes don't count. Awards are first come, first served, with 12th graders given top priority.

Read the full section in our Kentucky guide

Other Kentucky programs: college aid, driver's licenses and special education

KEES (Kentucky Educational Excellence Scholarship, KHEAA): students at certified Kentucky high schools earn KEES for each year with a 2.75 GPA or better, plus bonuses. Students who graduate from a Kentucky homeschool or other non-certified school, or who earn a Kentucky GED between ages 18 and 23, earn KEES based only on their highest ACT or SAT score. On KHEAA's current chart (checked October 2026; KHEAA says amounts may change), that runs from $36 a year of college for an ACT of 15 (SAT 830–870) to $500 a year for an ACT of 28 or higher (SAT 1300–1600). KEES is renewed each year based on college GPA.

Work Ready Kentucky Scholarship (KHEAA): for Kentuckians without an associate degree in approved certificate, diploma or AAS programs in high-demand fields (for 2026–27: construction, education, healthcare, manufacturing and logistics, and professional, scientific and technical services). Applicants must be a high school graduate or be enrolled in or have completed a GED program, and file the FAFSA and the 2026–27 WRKS application.

Taxes: we found no Kentucky income tax credit or deduction for homeschool expenses.

Read the full section in our Kentucky guide

Articles for Kentucky families

Official sources

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

More for Kentucky homeschool families

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