Tax Credit Scholarships

The Illinois Tax Credit Scholarship Program, made possible by the Invest in Kids Act, provides families the opportunity to potentially receive up to 100% of tuition covered! 

Families will apply directly to Scholarship Granting Organizations. We encourage families to apply to both Big Shoulders Fund SGO and Empower Illinois. 

• Big Shoulders Fund Application day is January 12th at 8am
• Empower Illinois application day is January 13th, 6:30pm open, 7pm submit. 

The Illinois Tax Credit Scholarship Program, made possible by the Illinois Invest in Kids Act, provides donors a unique opportunity to contribute to scholarships that help lower-income families send their children to private schools — while reducing their own tax bill on dollars otherwise owed to the state. 

The program enables individuals and corporations to reserve Illinois income tax credits based on contributions made to SGOs. The organizations then provide scholarships for eligible students to attend nonpublic schools, with priority given to low-income students. Taxpayers may apply 75 percent of the total contributed as a tax credit against their Illinois income tax bill. For example, a taxpayer making a $1,000 qualified contribution would be awarded a $750 tax credit. The credits are capped at $1 million per taxpayer per year.

Donors who are new to the program: Go to mytax.illinois.gov to create a MyTax Illinois account. As part of the process of creating an account, you must request a “Letter ID” from the Illinois Department of Revenue via the "Individuals" menu on MyTax Illinois, which will be sent via U.S. mail within 7 to 10 business days. Once you receive the “Letter ID,” you will be able to create an account. Taxpayers who will be participating for the first time in 2021 should request the “Letter ID” now, before the 2021 program opens on January 1, 2021, to avoid processing delays. The credits are awarded on a first-come, first-served basis and donors must have a MyTax Illinois account in order to reserve credits. For more information on how to create a MyTax Illinois account, click here.