IRS Federal Scholarship Tax Credit (FSTC), Official Program Page

The IRS maintains an official program page for the §25F Federal Scholarship Tax Credit (FSTC), the federal credit also known as the Educational Choice for Children Act (ECCA). It is the authoritative source for the program’s forms, procedures, and updates, and is where new guidance is posted as it is released.

Visit the official IRS FSTC page →

• That a State (or the District of Columbia) must choose to participate and submit a list of qualifying Scholarship Granting Organizations (SGOs) to the IRS before a donor can contribute to an SGO in that State and claim the credit.
• That, beginning January 1, 2027, individual taxpayers may claim a credit of up to $1,700 for cash contributions to approved SGOs. (The IRS page states the $1,700 figure without specifying whether it applies per taxpayer or per return; the statute caps the credit “to any taxpayer for any taxable year.” Treasury’s October 2026 proposed rules settle it: spouses filing jointly are treated as separate taxpayers, so a joint return can claim up to $3,400 when each spouse makes and designates their own gift, under proposed § 1.25F-2(a)(2).)
• Links to Form 15714, the Advance Election to Participate Under Section 25F, the form States (not donors) use to elect in for 2027.
• State submission timing: Form 15714 is filed on or after January 1, 2026 and before the final date a State may submit its SGO list. The October 2026 temporary regulations now fix both dates for 2027: Form 15714 on or before January 1, 2027, and the SGO list on or before February 15, 2027 (§ 1.25F-5T(c)(3)).

As of October 1, 2026, the IRS has not published the form donors will use to claim the §25F credit on their federal income tax return; the first returns that can claim it are for tax year 2027, filed in early 2028. Also not yet available: the IRS SGO portal where SGOs must register, the IRS State section 25F portal for state elections and lists, the IRS SGO list itself, and the area median gross income figures the IRS will publish each year in the Internal Revenue Bulletin.

Update, October 1, 2026: Treasury and the IRS have issued the proposed regulations and temporary regulations. The proposed rule names the donor claim form, Form 8525, Federal Scholarship Tax Credit, which has not been released, and treats each spouse on a joint return as a separate taxpayer for the $1,700 cap. The proposed regulations are not final; comments are due December 1, 2026. The temporary regulations take effect without a comment period and apply from September 1, 2026.