Texas Education Freedom Accounts: What Lake Travis Families Should Know About Christian School Funding
A Texas Education Freedom Account (TEFA) is a state-created education savings account that eligible Texas families can use at approved private schools. Before you count on it, confirm your school’s approval status and the next application dates.
If you are researching Christian school tuition in Austin or anywhere within the Lake Travis area, you may have heard about these state funds for private school. The details determine whether they apply to your child and your school. This guide explains who qualifies, what a school must meet, how the lottery and timeline work, and where to confirm a school’s status. It is general information, not financial advice.
What is a Texas Education Freedom Account, and who qualifies?
The program is overseen by the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Under the program’s eligibility rules, children are eligible if they are U.S. citizens or lawfully present in the United States and are eligible to attend a Texas school district, an open-enrollment charter school, or a pre-K program.
For a student attending an approved private school, the Texas Education Agency determined the 2026-27 amount at $10,474 per child. State law bases the standard amount on 85 percent of the estimated statewide average amount of state and local funding per student in average daily attendance. Separate rules apply to students with disabilities and to homeschoolers, which this article does not cover.
What does a private school have to meet to participate?
The state sets four baseline requirements. According to the TEFA private school requirements, a school must be accredited by an organization recognized by the Texas Private School Accreditation Commission (TEPSAC) or by the Texas Education Agency, be a proven operator that has run a campus for at least two years, administer a nationally norm-referenced assessment, and be located in Texas (or, for a virtual school, have an office in Texas). Schools apply to participate, and applications are accepted on a rolling basis.
| Requirement | What to ask a school | Where to check |
| Accreditation | Which recognized accrediting organization accredits the school? | TEA’s list of recognized private accrediting entities |
| Two years of operation | Has the campus operated continuously for at least two school years before applying? | TEFA private school requirements |
| Norm-referenced testing | Which nationally norm-referenced assessment does the school administer to students in grades 3-12? | TEFA private school requirements |
| Texas location | Is the campus, or for a virtual school the office, located in Texas? | The school’s published address |
Meeting these requirements is a starting point, not a decision, because a school must also apply and be approved. The Texas Education Agency states that it does not have oversight of private schools in Texas, so a TEA page about accreditation is not the place to confirm whether a school is participating in TEFA.
What are the timeline and the lottery?
The first application cycle covered the 2026-27 school year. The Comptroller extended the deadline through March 31, 2026 under a federal court order, and the agency later reported that more than 274,000 students applied during the program’s first year.
How the lottery works
Applying and qualifying do not assure an award. The program’s families page explains that a lottery decides placement if applications exceed available funding, and that not every eligible child will receive funding. State law sets the order of priority, which considers factors such as siblings of participating children, disability, and household income relative to federal poverty guidelines.
In April 2026, the Comptroller said available funding was expected to be exhausted within the second priority tier, with a lottery used to allocate remaining funds in that tier and to set the waitlist order.
The same release said families would receive award notifications later in April 2026, with funds reaching student accounts in July, and that the waitlist will be reported to the Texas Legislature, as required by statute, to inform future funding decisions. For a family near Lake Travis, the practical takeaway is that decisions about a school year can depend on steps that happen months before classes begin.
Awards expanded later in the year as funding became available. By August 13, 2026, the Comptroller reported that funding had been delivered to more than 100,000 students, while more than 100,000 remained on the waitlist for 2026-27. Those are year-one figures, not a forecast for 2027-28.
Key dates at a glance
| Milestone | Date | Source |
| 2026-27 family application deadline (extended by court order) | March 31, 2026 | Comptroller news release, March 17, 2026 |
| Year-one application overview published | April 2, 2026 | Comptroller news release, April 2, 2026 |
| School confirms enrollment for first installment | By June 15, 2026 (funds July 1, 25 percent) | TEFA funding timelines notice |
| Year-one funding update: more than 100,000 students funded, more than 100,000 on the waitlist | August 13, 2026 | Comptroller news release, August 13, 2026 |
| Second installment (25 percent) | October 1, 2026 | Same funding notice |
| Final installment (50 percent) | February 1, 2027 | Same funding notice |
| 2027-28 application dates | Not announced as of October 2026 | See below |
What is still unknown for 2027-28
At the time of writing, the program’s website offers a 2027-28 interest list for families who want updates about future opportunities to apply. We could not find published 2027-28 application dates or an award amount. Treat the 2026-27 figure of $10,474 as specific to that year, and treat any number or date you see elsewhere for next year as unconfirmed until the Comptroller publishes it. That is why this guide states dates and amounts where an official page provides them, and why it describes what is not yet known instead of guessing.
How can you confirm a specific school’s status?
Participation is decided school by school, so this guide does not say whether any particular school, including Lake Travis Christian Academy, accepts TEFA funds. The Comptroller’s families page links to a school finder tool that is designed to help families locate participating schools in their area. A practical way to confirm a school is to work through these steps:
- Search the state’s finder tool for the school by name and location. If the school is not listed, ask the school directly rather than assuming either way.
- Ask which recognized organization accredits the school, then cross-check it against TEA’s recognized private accrediting entities.
- Ask whether the school has applied for TEFA approval and whether the state has approved it.
- Ask how the school confirms enrollment, because in the first cycle, students whose schools confirmed their enrollment by June 15 were scheduled to receive funding on July 1.
- Ask for the school’s tuition and financial aid policies in writing before you make decisions that depend on the funds.
What other tuition help exists?
TEFA is one possible source of help, and a school’s own aid is a separate conversation. Under the Comptroller’s tuition and fee guidelines, a student should not be charged a different amount of tuition and fees simply because they receive a TEFA award, and schools have discretion to tailor financial aid and may factor a student’s TEFA award into an analysis of a family’s ability to pay.
If you are searching for Christian school scholarships in Texas, it helps to separate the different types of help:
- School-based aid. Individual schools can offer their own tuition help. Lake Travis Christian Academy states that it offers tuition reduction for qualifying families, worked out with each family once the application and interview are complete.
- The federal scholarship tax credit. Beginning January 1, 2027, individual taxpayers may be able to claim a credit for cash contributions of up to $1,700 to scholarship granting organizations, and each state must choose to participate and provide the IRS with a list of those organizations before taxpayers can donate and claim the credit. Texas has announced its intent to opt in, and students from families at or below 300 percent of local median income would apply to qualifying scholarship granting organizations. The credit is tied to donors’ contributions, while students would apply to the organizations themselves.
Because details of the federal credit are still developing, check current guidance and speak with a tax professional before relying on it. As you research Christian school tuition in Austin, ask each school directly about financial aid, since schools may weigh a TEFA award within their own aid decisions under the state’s tuition guidance.
If you would like to understand how a school-based option could work for your family, ask Lake Travis Christian Academy about tuition reduction, which the school says it works out with each family once the application and interview are complete.
Frequently asked questions
Does TEFA cover tuition at a private school?
TEFA funds can be used toward tuition and fees at a private school, provided the school has been approved to participate. The state’s school finder tool is designed to help families check, and it is also worth asking the school directly, since a school’s listing may not reflect its latest status.
When does TEFA money arrive?
For 2026-27, private school funding is paid in three installments: 25 percent on July 1, 25 percent on October 1, and 50 percent on February 1. The first payment was tied to the school confirming the student’s enrollment by June 15, and no 2027-28 schedule has been published that we could find.
Can a school charge TEFA families a different tuition?
According to the Comptroller’s guidance, a student should not be charged a different amount of tuition and fees simply because they receive a TEFA award. Schools do keep discretion over their own financial aid and may consider a family’s
