You may have heard it called the Educational Choice for Children Act (ECCA), or the Federal Scholarship Tax Credit (FSTC), or the Education Freedom Tax Credit (EFTC). They all refer to one thing: a federally funded tax credit scholarship program for elementary and secondary education created when the One Big Beautiful Bill Act was signed into law in July of 2025.

Many states, 18 to be exact, already have state level tax credit scholarship programs, but this is the first nationwide program. Currently, 31 states have indicated they will opt into the program. States have until the end of the day on January 1, 2027 to officially opt-into the program.

The Federal Scholarship Tax Credit program has two separate components that families and supporters can participate in:

It is important to note that donating to an approved SGO works separately from applying to receive a scholarship. Anyone with federal income tax liability can donate, and about 96% of families in participating states are expected to be eligible to receive scholarships. Families can choose to participate in one or both parts of the program. For more information on each branch of the FSTC program, click below!