Overview:  
A refundable income tax credit between $5,000-$7,500 is allowed for eligible Oklahoma taxpayers who pay, or expect to pay, qualified expenses such as tuition and fees to an eligible private school on behalf of an eligible student that attends or plans to attend an eligible private school during that school year. The Oklahoma Tax Commission can only authorize $250 million of tax credits for the 2025-2026 school year. Priority will be given to Applicants claiming credits for eligible students whose parents or legal guardians have a combined federal Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) that does not exceed One Hundred Fifty Thousand Dollars ($150,000) (“priority applicants”). To receive priority consideration, Applicants must submit their applications on or before 60 days after the application opens. Those applications that are approved will receive the credit in two installment payments. Income will be determined using federal AGI from two years prior to the year in which the credit application is being submitted. 
 

1. Taxpayer: An eligible taxpayer is someone who is subject to the tax laws of the state of Oklahoma and who is a biological or adoptive parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle, legal guardian, custodian, or other person with legal authority to act on behalf of the eligible student. 
   
   
2. Student: An eligible student is a resident of Oklahoma and is eligible to enroll in an Oklahoma public school for grades pre-k through 12th grade. Please note that the child must be 4 years old on or before September 1st of the ensuing school year to qualify. Additionally, the student must be enrolled in and attending or planning to enroll in an eligible private school in Oklahoma. 
   
   
3. School: An eligible school must be located in Oklahoma and accredited by the Oklahoma State Board of Education or another accrediting association. The Oklahoma Tax Commission is not an accrediting association. Each eligible school must complete the School Participation Form in order for its students to participate in the program.

There is not an application period for the Spring 2025 semester. Pursuant to the new legislation, HB3388, the Spring 2025 semester is a transition, or “bridge”, to transition the credit from a tax year credit to a school year credit. Only those taxpayers that received a credit for Fall 2024 are eligible to receive a credit for Spring 2025.

Students who attended an accredited private school physically located in Oklahoma and were approved and received the credit for Fall 2024 will automatically be approved for the Spring 2025 semester without having to reapply. The credit amount payable for Spring 2025 will be based upon the Fall 2024 installment disbursement payment amount.

Please note, the automatic approval and payment is for the Spring 2025 semester only. Any taxpayer wishing to participate in the program for the 2025-2026 school year must apply when applications open on February 18, 2025.

Taxpayer Eligibility

• An eligible taxpayer is someone who is subject to the tax laws of the state of Oklahoma, and who is a biological or adoptive parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle, legal guardian, custodian, or other person with legal authority to act on behalf of the eligible student. 
• A nonresident military service member stationed in Oklahoma qualifies as an eligible Oklahoma taxpayer. 

Student Eligibility

• An eligible student is a resident of Oklahoma and is eligible to enroll in an Oklahoma public school for grades pre-k through 12th grade. Please note that the child must be 4 years old on or before September 1st of the ensuing school year to qualify. Additionally, the student must be enrolled in and attending or planning to enroll in an eligible private school in Oklahoma. 

School Eligibility

• An eligible school must be physically located in Oklahoma and accredited by the Oklahoma State Board of Education or another accrediting association. The Oklahoma Tax Commission is not an accrediting association. Each eligible school must register with the Oklahoma Tax Commission on OkTAP and complete the School Participation Form in order for its students to participate in the program. 

Browse through the list of participating schools to see if your school is participating. Click the link below to download the most updated list of accredited schools.

Participating Accredited Schools List

The application is expected to become available for taxpayers to complete on February 18, 2025. 

Yes. In addition to taxpayer and student identification information and an Enrollment Verification Form for each student, active military service members stationed in Oklahoma will need to submit their Form 1040 Federal Tax Return for the tax year 2023. 

In the case of having multiple eligible students, the taxpayer may receive the tax credit for each eligible student. For example, if the federal Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) of the parent or legal guardian of the student is $75,000 or less, the Taxpayer may qualify for up to $7,500 per year per eligible student. It is important to note that separate Enrollment Verification Form numbers are required for each student. 

Beginning school year 2025-2026, and for all subsequent school years, the credit amount per eligible student is equal to the Maximum Credit Amount Per Student, as shown in the table below, or the anticipated private school tuition and fees for the school year, whichever is less. The anticipated tuition and fees for school year must be reflected in the student’s Enrollment Verification information provided by the eligible school. The Maximum Credit Amount is determined by the total federal Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) of the student's parent/legal guardian during the second preceding tax year. For example, if you are participating in the program for school year 2025-2026, the second preceding tax year would be 2023.

For school year 2025-2026, the OTC cannot authorize more than $250 million in tax credits. 

Once a completed application is submitted, taxpayers may log on to their OkTAP account to view the status of the application.

For tax credits awarded to students enrolled in an eligible private school, the Oklahoma Tax Commission (OTC) will send the tax credit payments directly to the school in two installments. Each installment payment will not exceed half of the allowable credit for the applicable school year. While the payments are sent to the school, the checks will be made payable to the taxpayer submitting the application. Taxpayers will be required to personally appear at the school to either sign the check over to the school or collect the check from the school if tuition and fees have already been paid.

The credit must be issued in two installment payments. 

The first installment payment is expected to be issued in August 2025; payments will be processed in the order applications are approved. The installment payments will be disbursed by paper check made payable to the taxpayer. Checks will begin processing on a weekly basis and will be sent directly to the schools.  

 
Second installment payments are expected to be issued beginning January 2026. 

Yes. If your application is denied, you will receive a letter with more information as to the reason the application was denied and instructions on how to request a hearing before the Oklahoma Tax Commission. The hearing will be in-person and will give you the opportunity to appear and provide further documentation and/or information to show why you believe your application should be approved.

Yes. The Oklahoma Tax Commission will work directly with the Taxpayer to recapture any misallocated funds. Schools assist with validating enrollment via an annual reconciliation. Should a check be mailed to a school for a student who no longer attends their school, please notify the Oklahoma Tax Commission of the error, so that the check may be returned.

For schools that are new to the program beginning in 2025, please be aware that there is not an application period for taxpayers to receive the credit for the Spring 2025 semester. Pursuant to the new legislation, HB3388, the Spring 2025 semester is a transition, or “bridge”, to transition the credit from a tax year credit to a school year credit. Only those taxpayers that received a credit for Fall 2024 are eligible to receive a credit for Spring 2025.

Students who attended an accredited private school physically located in Oklahoma and were approved and received the credit for Fall 2024 will automatically be approved for the Spring 2025 semester without having to reapply. The credit amount payable for Spring 2025 will be based upon the Fall 2024 installment disbursement payment amount.

Please note, the automatic approval and payment is for the Spring 2025 semester only. Any taxpayer wishing to participate in the program for the 2025-2026 school year must apply when applications open on February 18, 2025.