Quick answer: The New Hampshire Education Freedom Account (EFA) is a state-funded account that lets New Hampshire families pay for private school tuition, online learning programs and other approved education costs. For 2026-27, a New Hampshire student who can enroll in public school and is not full time in a district or charter public school can apply with no income test, within a 12,500-student cap that priority groups do not count against. Children’s Scholarship Fund New Hampshire (CSFNH) runs the program, families apply through its ScholaVia portal, and tuition is paid from the account to a provider that CSFNH has approved.
This guide walks through how the New Hampshire EFA works for a family weighing an online private school: who qualifies after the 2025 expansion, what the account holds, how to apply, which providers can be paid, what the money can buy and how a payment moves from the account to the school. The rules come from CSFNH’s own pages and handbooks, which I read on October 10, 2026. For the wider picture across states, see our hub on school choice, ESAs and vouchers for online school.
Table of Contents
Who is eligible for the New Hampshire Education Freedom Account?
New Hampshire passed the EFA law, RSA 194-F, in 2021. In June 2025 Governor Kelly Ayotte signed a bill that removed the income limit, which had been 350% of the federal poverty guidelines. CSFNH’s Parent Handbook (updated August 2026) now lists these requirements:
- Residency. The parent and the student must both be New Hampshire residents.
- Age and grade. The student must be eligible to enroll in the local public elementary or secondary school (K-12) and must be 5 years old by September 30 of the school year.
- Not full time in public school. A student cannot take part while enrolled full time (more than 50% of instructional time) in a district public school or a public charter school. The handbook includes VLACS in this group. If a child moves to full-time public school during the year, the family must exit the child from the program, or the family is liable for state funds the child was not entitled to.
- Yearly renewal. Families reapply each year, sign a program agreement and submit a Record of Educational Attainment by July 15.
Income is no longer a requirement. It still matters for priority, as the next section shows.
Priority groups and the 2026-27 enrollment cap
The legislature sets a cap on total enrollment. For 2026-27 the cap is 12,500 students. CSFNH’s press release of August 13, 2026 reports 13,443 eligible students and 943 on a waitlist after all 12,500 places filled. The handbook says that if enrollment reaches 90% of the cap in a year, the cap rises 25% the next year, which puts 2027-28 at 15,625.
Four priority groups are not subject to the cap and can apply at any time in the school year. The grant is prorated by the date the application is complete. The handbook cites RSA 194-F:5-a for these groups.
| Your situation | Status | What CSFNH asks for |
|---|---|---|
| Child already in the EFA | Priority | Requalification application, Record of Educational Attainment, proof of residency |
| New child whose sibling is in the EFA | Priority | Application for the new child |
| Child with a disability as defined in RSA 186-C:2 (identified and evaluated by a school district, eligible for special education) | Priority | Evidence of the district’s evaluation and special education eligibility |
| Family income at or below 350% of the federal poverty guidelines | Priority, if you choose to verify it | Current federal 1040, or a SNAP/TANF letter, or a Social Security or VA letter with IRS verification of non-filing |
| Any other eligible New Hampshire student | Standard enrollment, subject to the cap and space available | Application and residency proof; may be placed on the waitlist if places are full |
| Child full time in district public or public charter school | Not eligible while enrolled | Not applicable |
The handbook says there is no appeal for priority status, and that a student who misses priority can still join through standard enrollment if space allows. The press release tells families to keep applying even after the cap is reached.
How much money is in a New Hampshire EFA?
CSFNH describes the account as the state adequacy grant set aside for each New Hampshire child. A CSFNH fact sheet from November 2025 reports an average grant of about $4,800. Your child’s amount can differ from the average. Families can qualify for more through differentiated aid, which the Parent Handbook adds for each of these verified factors:
- Household income at or below 185% of the federal poverty guidelines (verified every year)
- English Language Learner status, based on a public school English proficiency assessment score below 4.5
- A qualifying disability under 34 CFR 300.8, shown by an IEP from a public school district, a signed Medical Certification of Disability form or other documentation from a licensed medical professional
The handbook says your estimated award and your eligibility date appear in the ScholaVia Application Dashboard once your application is complete. CSFNH’s page also links a “Grant Amounts Explained” video. Use your own dashboard figure, not an average, when you compare the account to a school’s tuition.
How to apply through Children’s Scholarship Fund New Hampshire
Families apply on the ScholaVia portal at nhefa.scholarshipfund.org, linked from CSFNH’s EFA program page. Applications are rolling, and the page lists these points:
- Submit one application per family. Several applications can delay processing.
- Upload proof of New Hampshire residency and your child’s age. A P.O. box does not count as proof of residency.
- Sign the annual program agreement. In it you agree to share information with CSFNH and your child’s providers, to provide an education in the core knowledge domains (science, mathematics, language, government, history, health, reading, writing, spelling, the history of the New Hampshire and U.S. constitutions, and exposure to art and music) and to submit the yearly record.
- Wait for CSFNH to verify every document. The application counts as complete only after verification, and CSFNH then sends an email saying the application is “complete and verified.”
The date on that email is your date of eligibility. Only receipts and invoices dated on or after it can be paid from the account. If you pay a school before that date, the payment cannot be reimbursed from the EFA.
Two dates matter. An application completed and verified by July 15 can receive the full grant for the coming school year. CSFNH’s page says families can apply for a prorated grant for the current year through February. The page also advises sending all documents by July 1 to allow time for verification, and warns that its own application notes may lag behind the ScholaVia portal, so treat the portal as the final word.
Which schools and providers can be paid from the EFA?
Every provider who teaches your child must be approved by CSFNH, whether you pay directly or ask for reimbursement. CSFNH’s Provider Handbook defines an education service provider as a person or organization that receives payments from education freedom accounts to provide educational goods and services. Schools, virtual programs, tutors, therapy providers and learning centers can all qualify. Retail stores do not need approval.
The approval steps cost the family and the provider nothing:
- The provider completes CSFNH’s registration form and uploads credentials, such as licenses, teaching certifications or degrees.
- The provider documents how it keeps students safe, for example with a background check policy.
- After CSFNH approves the application, the provider can set up a ClassWallet account and verify its bank details. The provider then appears on the approved provider list, and you can pay it directly from your child’s account.
Providers agree not to refund, rebate or share EFA money with parents or students. The provider requirements I read do not include an accreditation test for schools. The Provider Handbook says CSFNH does not warrant the information providers submit and that parents should review each provider they choose.
Can you use the New Hampshire EFA for an online private school?
Yes, when the school is an approved provider. The Parent Handbook lists two categories that can cover a full online school:
- Private school tuition and fees (RSA 194-F:2 II.(a)). A private school here is a nonpublic school approved, at a minimum, for attendance purposes by the New Hampshire Department of Education or by the department of education of the state where the school is located. Eligible fees include enrollment, technology, book, test, activity and uniform fees. The New Hampshire Department of Education lists approved New Hampshire nonpublic schools on its Pathways to Education page.
- Online learning programs that are nonpublic (RSA 194-F:2 II.(b)). The handbook says these can be individual courses or a whole online school program, and names Acellus Academy, Outschool, Penn Foster High School, Power Homeschool and Time4Learning as examples.
CSFNH decides which category a given school falls in when it reviews the provider’s registration and each invoice. Ask your school how it is registered and what it will call its tuition line.
What else can the account pay for?
The handbook lists these categories next to the statute: tutoring in the core knowledge domains, textbooks and curriculum required by a course, computer devices and technology services, educational software, fees for assessments and test preparation, qualifying academic camps and programs, career and technical school while the student is still in high school, special education services and therapies, and a fee-for-service bus to a provider. Unused money stays in the account from quarter to quarter and year to year until the student leaves the program or graduates from high school, unless the account is closed for suspected intentional misuse. The handbook also prohibits several items, including cash, gift cards and anything bought for resale, so check its prohibited list before a purchase.
How payments work: from the state to the school
The state transfers the grant to CSFNH, and CSFNH deposits it in a ClassWallet digital wallet in your child’s name. The handbook gives a four-part deposit schedule:
| Deposit month | Share of the yearly grant | Illustration at $4,800 | Running total |
|---|---|---|---|
| September | 20% | $960 | $960 |
| November | 20% | $960 | $1,920 |
| January | 30% | $1,440 | $3,360 |
| April | 30% | $1,440 | $4,800 |
The $4,800 column is arithmetic on the CSFNH average, not a promise of what your child will receive. It shows why timing matters. If a school bills the full year in September, the balance in the wallet that month is the first deposit. Ask CSFNH how it handles an invoice larger than the current balance, and ask the school whether it can bill in installments that match the deposits.
There are three ways to spend from the wallet, and every transaction goes to a CSFNH review queue before it is approved or denied:
- Direct Pay. You upload a provider’s invoice, and the money goes from the wallet to the approved provider. This is the usual route for tuition.
- Marketplace. You buy books, curriculum, computers and supplies from retailers in the ClassWallet marketplace using wallet funds.
- Reimbursement. You pay first and send proof of payment for review. The handbook says this route takes longer because CSFNH checks each receipt.
What a tuition invoice must show
The handbook says an education service provider invoice for Direct Pay needs, at a minimum:
- The school or provider name
- The student’s name
- A description of the service that shows what it is and that it is allowable (for school tuition, the school year)
- The invoice date (month, day, year) or date of service
- The amount due for the one student, not the whole family
CSFNH prefers an invoice number too. A missing item can lead CSFNH to ask for more documents, so check the invoice before you upload it.
Yearly requirements after you enroll
Each year you reapply, sign the agreement again and send a Record of Educational Attainment by July 15. If the record does not arrive by then, CSFNH makes no further deposits until it does. The handbook accepts one of three records:
- A nationally standardized, norm-referenced achievement test with math and English language arts or reading scores, such as NWEA MAP, Iowa, Stanford, PSAT or SAT
- The New Hampshire statewide assessment, with the same scores
- A signed evaluation letter from a teacher of the student’s portfolio. A parent may not sign the letter for their own child. The handbook adds that a report card from a full-time student’s private school, or a public school outside the resident district, may serve as the portfolio review.
Questions to ask an online school before you pay
- Is the school on CSFNH’s approved provider list, and under what name?
- Which EFA category does CSFNH use for the school: private school tuition or online learning program?
- What is the full-year tuition and every fee, in writing, and does the invoice carry the five items above?
- Can the school bill in installments that follow the September, November, January and April deposits?
- Will the school’s report card count as the Record of Educational Attainment, or does it recommend a test?
- Can the school wait to enroll until your date of eligibility, so no payment falls before it?
Where Forest Trail Academy fits
Forest Trail Academy is a private, accredited, secular online K-12 school in West Palm Beach, Florida. Courses are self-paced, taught by certified teachers, and enrollment is open any week of the year. FTA’s voucher program page lists the New Hampshire Education Freedom Account Program among the ESA programs it accepts, and adds that guidelines vary by state and can change, so families should contact admissions to confirm how their state program applies. The same page states that FTA is registered with the Florida Department of Education. FTA’s New Hampshire page describes its programs for New Hampshire students, and the tuition page lists current prices to compare with your estimated award. Ask admissions to confirm the invoice details and how FTA is registered with CSFNH.
Frequently asked questions
Who is eligible for the New Hampshire EFA?
New Hampshire residents aged 5 by September 30 who can enroll in public school, and who are not enrolled full time in a district public or public charter school. Parents must also sign the yearly agreement.
Is there an income limit for the NH EFA?
No. The 2025 law removed the income limit. Income at or below 350% of the federal poverty guidelines gives priority status, and income at or below 185% adds differentiated aid.
How much money do you get from the NH EFA?
CSFNH reports an average of about $4,800. Your amount can differ, and extra aid applies for low income, English learner status or a qualifying disability. Your ScholaVia dashboard shows your estimate.
Can I use the Education Freedom Account for online school?
Yes. The handbook covers tuition at an approved private school and tuition at nonpublic online learning programs, as long as the provider is on CSFNH’s approved list.
What happens if the enrollment cap is reached?
The cap for 2026-27 is 12,500 and it has been reached. Priority groups are exempt and can still enroll. Other eligible families can join a waitlist and are considered as openings appear.
Do unused EFA funds roll over?
Yes. The handbook says unused funds carry from quarter to quarter and year to year until the student leaves the program or graduates from high school.
Can my child be in public school and have an EFA?
Not full time. A student enrolled more than 50% of instructional time in a district public school or a public charter school, including VLACS, is not eligible.
How do I pay a school with the EFA?
Upload the school’s invoice in ClassWallet and choose Direct Pay. CSFNH reviews it, and the money goes to the school if the school is approved and the invoice is complete.
Book a call with admissions to ask whether your New Hampshire EFA can be applied to Forest Trail Academy tuition.
