We exist to empower parents with educational choice
You Have the Power to Unlock Your Child’s Highest Potential
Have you ever wished you could send your child to a private school, but felt you could not afford it?
Perhaps your child has a learning disability, and you know a specialized school is the best choice, but the costs seem insurmountable.
Or maybe you always wanted the option to choose the best school to
match your child's potential, and you never dreamed a scholarship was available to help out.
Each year financial hardship stands in the way of a quality education for hundreds of deserving children. We're here to empower you to change your child's future.
Who Should Apply?
Every child deserves an education that best meets their unique needs. Scholarships are available to families of all income levels at APSTO. The only requirement to become eligible for scholarship funding is your child must be enrolled - or in the process of enrolling - in an Arizona K-12 private school.
When to Apply
APSTO’s open enrollment for the new school year begins in June. If you’re a returning applicant, you’ll receive an email or be directed through your parent portal when its time to re-apply. Unlike other STO's, we don’t have application deadlines, so if you are new to APSTO, it’s never too late to apply with us.
How to Apply
We're here to help you every step of the way. There are two ways to apply:
Apply online. Once you apply and create your Parent Portal account, you
will be able to:
- Edit or update your application
- Be notified about award decisions
- View award history
- Re-apply each year
- Access APSTO's valuable custom resources
Pre-apply online if your child will start attending private school as a new student in the 2024-2025 school year. This is the perfect time to plan ahead, please click this helpful link for New Student Information to learn more.
Supporting Documentation
All applications require varying supporting documentation. For your convenience all documentation
requirements are listed below and within the application.
If your child attended a public or charter school last year, you need to submit the:
If your child was homeschooled last year, you need to submit proof of homeschooling along with the:
If your child moved from another state or country and transferred directly to an Arizona private school, you need to submit proof of your move along with the:
If your child received a scholarship from another organization other than APSTO,
you need to submit the:
If your child received an ESA scholarship but has now left the program, you need to submit proof of cancellation/withdrawal from ESA along with the:
If your child has a disability that qualifies them through an Arizona public school, you need to
submit a copy of either an IEP, 504, plan or MET issued by an Arizona public school. This document does not
need to be current to qualify However, it does need to be submitted with your child’s application.
If your child is or has ever been in the Arizona foster care system, you need to submit the:
How to Submit Documentation
- You will have the option to upload your documentation when you complete your online application, or you may upload
these documents at a later date by logging in to your Parent Portal account.
- Applications are not considered complete and cannot be processed until all required documentation has been
submitted.
Scholarships Available to Your Child
There are four different scholarships funded by four different tax credits. Open the links below to learn more about each scholarship.
Original Tax Credit
Original Tax Credit Scholarships: are funded through the Original Tax Credit Law, A.R.S. 43-1089. Any child who attends private school grades K-12 (or a
preschooler with disabilities) in the state of Arizona will qualify for this tax credit scholarship.
Switcher (Overflow/PLUS) Tax Credit
Switcher (Overflow/PLUS) Tax Credit Scholarships: are funded by the Switcher Tax Credit
Law, A.R.S 43-1089.03. To be eligible for this tax credit scholarship, your
child need only meet just one of the following prerequisites:
- Your child attended an Arizona public or charter school as a full-time student for at least 90 days,
or a full semester in the prior school year and transferred to a private school. A Public School
Verification Form should be completed to submit with the application.
- Your child was homeschooled before transferring d/irectly to an Arizona private school. A Transfer Student Verification Form should be completed to submit with proof of homeschooling.
- Your child moved to Arizona from another state or country and transferred directly to an Arizona private school. A Transfer Student Verification Form should be completed to submit with proof of your move.
- Your child participated in the Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) program and did not renew the account or accept the Empowerment scholarship in order to accept an STO scholarship. A Transfer Student Verification Form should be completed to submit with proof of ESA cancellation/withdrawal.
- Your child is enrolling or currently enrolled in private school kindergarten.
- Your child is a dependent of a member of the U.S. Armed Forces who is stationed in Arizona
under military orders. A copy of the military orders is required.
- Your child previously received a Switcher or Corporate scholarship and has attended private School
continuously since. New applicants should complete a Scholarship
Verification Form or provide an STO Award Letter specifying the scholarship type to submit with the
application.
Low-Income Corporate Tax Credit
Low-Income Corporate Tax Credit Scholarships: are funded by the Corporate Low-Income Tax
Credit Law, A.R.S. 43-1183. To be
eligible for this tax credit, your child must meet both criteria A and B below:
Your household must be considered low income. A family is considered low income
if total household income is 185% or less of the income level set by the USDA’s Federal
Reduced Lunch guidelines. Please refer to the chart below to see if you fall into this category.
| Federal Reduced Price Lunch Guidelines 2024-2025 School Year |
Income Maximums for AZ Low-Income Corporate Tax Credit Scholarships |
| HOUSEHOLD SIZE |
ANNUAL GROSS INCOME
(185% of poverty level) |
ANNUAL GROSS INCOME
(185% of Amount in Column 2) |
| 1 |
$27,861 |
$51,543 |
| 2 |
$37,814 |
$69,956 |
| 3 |
$47,767 |
$88,369 |
| 4 |
$57,720 |
$106,782 |
| 5 |
$67,673 |
$125,195 |
| 6 |
$77,626 |
$143,608 |
| 7 |
$87,579 |
$162,021 |
| 8 |
$97,532 |
$180,434 |
| Each additional member |
$9,953 |
$18,413 |
If your household income is less than
the listed amount (in purple) for your household
size, your child should meet this criterion.
Your child then needs to fall under one of the
following four categories:
- Switcher: Your child qualifies as Switcher if they meet one of the
following prerequisites:
- Your child attended an Arizona public or charter school as a full-time student for at
least 90 days, or a full semester, in the prior school year, and transferred to a
private school.
- Your child was homeschooled and transferred directly to an Arizona private school.
- Your child moved to Arizona from another state or country and transferred directly to an Arizona private school.
- Your child has directly exited the ESA (Empowerment Scholarship Account) to participate in the tuition tax credit program.
- Your child is enrolling or currently enrolled in kindergarten.
- Your child is a dependent of a member of the U.S. Armed Forces who is stationed on
Arizona under military orders.
- Your child previously received a Switcher or Corporate scholarship and has attended
private School continuously since.
- Kindergarteners (or Preschoolers with disabilities):
Any child entering kindergarten into an Arizona private school will qualify. Preschoolers with
disabilities will also qualify if their school provides services for their disability.
- Military:
Your child is the dependents of a member of the U.S Armed Forces, stationed in Arizona
pursuant to military orders.
- Previous Scholarships:
Your child has previously received a scholarship (in the prior school year) from any of the
tax Credit scholarship programs (Original, Switcher, or Corporate (Low-Income or
Disabled/Displaced) and have continued in private school since receiving the award.
Disabled/Displaced (Lexie’s Law) Tax Credit
Disabled/Displaced Tax Credit Scholarships: are funded by the Displaced Students or
Students with Disabilities Tax Credit Law (Lexie’s Law), A.R.S. 43-1184. To be eligible
for this tax credit your child must meet one of the following criteria:
- Disabled:
Children who are identified as having a disability under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, or by a school district, must
provide a copy of either an IEP, 504 plan, or MET issued by an Arizona public school. This
document does not have to be current to qualify. However, it does need to be submitted with your
child’s application.
- Displaced:
Children who are (or have been) placed in the Arizona foster care system at any time before
graduating high school. For children who qualify under this provision, a Displaced
Verification Form should be completed to submit with the application.
What Is the Process?
- Once your child’s application has been submitted, you will receive an email confirmation.
- APSTO will review and process the application over the next 5-7 business days.
- If you are missing documentation or something is not complete, we will contact you.
- APSTO’s board meets monthly to review submitted applications for approval.
- Once your child’s application is reviewed and approved by our board, your child’s application status in your
Parent Portal account will be updated. This update will reflect your child’s registration status and tax
credit eligibility for the current school year.
- At this point, your student will be approved to participate in the tax credit program with APSTO for the
current academic school year.
How the Program Can Work for You
Funding for scholarships come from the tax credit donations of individuals and corporations. And you can actively promote the tax credit program for the tuition benefit of your own child(ren). Your participation is a great way to increase funds available for your child's scholarship awards.
Once your child’s application has been approved, you can tell family, friends and anyone who pays Arizona income taxes about the tax credit program. And since a donation is no net cost to those who participate, it's an easy way for them to help you and their community.
In fact, Arizona taxpayers may make recommended donations to APSTO - suggesting your child as a recipient for a tuition tax scholarship. Once APSTO's board approves the recommended donation for your child, the scholarship will be awarded during the next award cycle.
How Can You Help Secure Funds for Your Child?
We have valuable resource tools located within the Parent Portal to help you maximize this program for your child:
Custom Brochures
Create your own custom PDF brochure featuring your child or family! Put a picture of your child(ren) or family on the brochure cover, your child(ren) and school name(s) in the recommendations section of the donation form and then print or email your brochure to friends and family!
Our brochures are embedded with a 2 minute video that explains the tax credit program so you don't have to.
Custom Donation Pages
Create and customize a one-page donation website specifically designed for your individual child(ren) or family. Your custom donation page is automatically generated from your child(ren)'s application(s). Once you submit your application, you will have immediate access to this page. You can then post, text or email your website link to family, friends and tax payers to promote donations for your child(ren)'s tuition!
APSTO's Tax Credit Video
Below is a two-minute video link you can share that explains the tax credit program and how it works:
Understanding Donor Recommendations
As mentioned above, donors can recommend a specific child to benefit from their donation. We welcome these recommendations and do our best to honor them. But it’s important for parents to understand how the award process works and be aware that not every child is eligible for every type of scholarship award. There are also some rules you should be aware of regarding Program Eligibility & Restrictions.
Anything Else You Should Know?
- APSTO awards monthly. We start our cycle on the 1st of each month and funds are typically offered
and awarded to schools by the third week of each month.
- All donations made to APSTO are confidential.
- Please understand all programs and eligibility restrictions. Here's a helpful link STO Credits At-A-Glance that summarizes
each program and all eligibility restrictions.
If you have further questions about this program and how it works, please visit our very helpful Parent
FAQ or contact us we are always here to help.
Questions? Call 480-256-1001 or email info@APSTO.org