Oklahoma Tax Commission to Accept Parental Choice Tax Credit Applications Beginning December 6th

Eligible Taxpayers can receive up to $7,500 in tax credit for qualified private school expenses

The Oklahoma Tax Commission (OTC) has announced alongside its operational partner Merit it will begin accepting applications for the Parental Choice Tax Credit on December 6th. Schools across the state have already been made aware of what information they will need to provide to Taxpayers in order to apply. This refundable income tax credit of up to $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. 

In order for Taxpayers to receive the credit, they must secure an Enrollment Verification Form from their school for each student and attach that to their application, which will be available at www.parentalchoice.ok.gov.  

Administrators of private schools can learn about eligibility requirements and complete the School Participation Form here.

The Parental Choice Tax Credit is available as part of a plan passed by the Oklahoma State Legislature and signed by Governor Kevin Stitt to give parents a greater voice in how their children are educated. The OTC can only authorize $150 million of tax credits in 2024.

The application process has been designed to simplify both the Taxpayer and school experience. There are no fees to apply or participate, multiple pre-K through grade 12 students per Household can apply, and there is an online directory of participating schools. Tax credits range from $5,000-$7,500 based on the federal Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) of the student’s Household. Please find instructions below: 

For Taxpayers: 

1.    Taxpayers will need to secure an Enrollment Verification Form for each student from the student’s school(s), which they will request and receive via email on behalf of their participating school. 

2.    Taxpayers must confirm their eligibility and apply for the program at www.parentalchoice.ok.gov by submitting an Enrollment Verification Form for each student. Non-guardian Applicants will also need to submit a completed Parental Consent Form, which is available on the program website.

3.    Program administrators will verify the Applicant’s information and issue a tax credit of $5,000-$7,500 based on the federal AGI of the student’s Household.

a.    Note that for the first 60 days, priority will be given to Applicants with a federal AGI of $150,000 or less.

4.    Payment of the credit will be by check and will be sent directly to the schools; however, the checks will be made payable to the Taxpayer. Depending on whether tuition and fees have already been paid, the Taxpayer will either receive the credit payment from the school, or sign it over to the school as payment. 

For Schools:

1.    School administrators are invited to register as a participating accredited school at www.parentalchoice.ok.gov. 

2.    School administrators have been given access to a secure, online Enrollment Verification Form generator which they will use to validate a student’s enrollment at their school.

3.    When a parent or guardian requests the Enrollment Verification Form, the school will use the online form generator to produce the document(s). This process can be done individually or in bulk with a .CSV upload. 

4.    The form generator will then email the authorized Enrollment Verification Form on behalf of the participating school directly to the parent or guardian, who will upload that file during the application process.  

Payment of the credit will be by check and will be sent directly to the schools; however, the checks will be made payable to the Taxpayer. Depending on whether tuition and fees have already been paid, the school will either give the credit payment to the Taxpayer, or the Taxpayer will sign it over to the school as payment. 

See the original announcement here.