Missouri MOScholars calculator for 2026-27

How MOScholars amounts work in 2026-27

• Private school, pre-K: Not covered. Students qualify once they're eligible for kindergarten (age 5 by Aug 1), so pre-K isn't covered.
• Private school, grades K-12, with an IEP: Up to $12,503.75 per child. With an IEP, a scholarship can be up to $12,503.75, which is 175% of the $7,145 adequacy target in state law. Your EAO decides the actual amount based on the money it has raised. The state paid schools on a lower $6,750 target this year; if your EAO uses that, the cap is $11,812.50.
• Private school, grades K-12, without an IEP: Up to $7,145 per child. Most students can get up to $7,145, the adequacy target in state law. Students who qualify for free or reduced price lunch can get up to $8,931.25, and English learners up to $11,432. Your EAO decides the actual amount based on the money it has raised. The state paid schools on a lower $6,750 target this year; if your EAO uses that, the caps are lower.
• Homeschool, pre-K: Not covered. Students qualify once they're eligible for kindergarten (age 5 by Aug 1), so pre-K isn't covered.
• Homeschool, grades K-1: Check the age rule. Home-based families take part through a Family Paced Education (FPE) school, which enrolls children from age 7. Most kindergarten and some first grade children are too young for this route.
• Homeschool, grades 2-12, with an IEP: Up to $12,503.75 per child. With an IEP, a scholarship can be up to $12,503.75, which is 175% of the $7,145 adequacy target in state law. Your EAO decides the actual amount based on the money it has raised. The state paid schools on a lower $6,750 target this year; if your EAO uses that, the cap is $11,812.50.
• Homeschool, grades 2-12, without an IEP: Up to $7,145 per child. Most students can get up to $7,145, the adequacy target in state law. Students who qualify for free or reduced price lunch can get up to $8,931.25, and English learners up to $11,432. Your EAO decides the actual amount based on the money it has raised. The state paid schools on a lower $6,750 target this year; if your EAO uses that, the caps are lower.

When the money arrives

• Private school and homeschool: State law lets you ask for four payments a year or one lump sum at the start of the year. Each EAO sets its own dates and hasn't published them, so check with yours.

Good to know

• Pre-K isn't covered. Kindergarten eligibility starts at age 5 by Aug 1.
• Scholarships are run by nonprofit Educational Assistance Organizations (EAOs), mostly funded by tax credit donations, so the money is limited and many awards are below the maximum. The 2025-26 average was about $6,780.
• Students with an IEP qualify at any income. Everyone else needs household income at or below 300% of the free and reduced price lunch level and must have attended public school full time for a semester in the last 12 months, be starting kindergarten or first grade, or be a sibling of a current scholar.
• Returning scholars and their siblings get funds first, then students with special education needs and lower income families.
• A regular home school can't enroll a MOScholars student. Families teaching at home can join through a Family Paced Education (FPE) school: no more than four unrelated children, ages 7 and up, 1,000 hours of instruction a year.
• Families apply through an EAO from about October to April the year before. The $7,145 target is the state's calculated adequacy target for 2026-27.

Last checked Oct 29, 2026. Official program site: treasurer.mo.gov. Your award notice is final.

Keeping receipts? The ESA and Allotment Tracker logs every purchase against your deposits and shows what's left, in Google Sheets or Excel.