A Scholarship Granting Organization (SGO) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization that is certified by the State of Ohio to receive contributions from donors and grant educational scholarships to eligible students in Ohio. Individuals and entities that contribute to an SGO can receive a nonrefundable tax credit from the State of Ohio. The SGO program was enacted in 2021 as part of Ohio House Bill 110.

The Ohio General Assembly passed a law that allows a nonrefundable credit against a taxpayer’s Ohio income tax liability (see Ohio Revised Code Section 5747.02) when that taxpayer donates to a certified Scholarship Granting Organization (SGO). The law allows a credit against income taxes up to $750 annually for individuals and $1,500 for couples filing jointly.

Any Ohio resident who has an Ohio income tax liability can donate and receive the credit. Your tax liability should be greater than or equal to your donation amount. Please review the other FAQs and our Donation Estimator for specifics.

You can use the estimator found on this page or you can manually estimate it using the tax table on the Ohio Department of Taxation’s website. It is important to note that other tax credits, if applicable, may be applied before the SGO credit. Therefore, your tax liability may need to be larger than the maximum allowable donation (i.e., $750 for individuals and $1,500 for couples filing jointly) in order for you to receive your full donation back.

Please click the "Donate Online" or “Donate by Check” button on our main page and provide the required donor information. Then select a school from the "Select School" dropdown menu in order to designate the specific school that will receive your donation. You will then be taken to our secure donation page to make your donation. You will immediately receive an IRS-compliant Gift Acknowledgement Letter via email. Your Gift Acknowledgement Letter needs to be submitted with your Ohio Income Tax Return to verify your donation and receive your tax credit.

Donations can be designated to a specific school, but cannot be directed to a specific student, per the rules developed by the Ohio Attorney General.

After you make a donation to our SGO, you will immediately receive an IRS Compliant Gift Acknowledgement Letter for your donation. You or your tax-preparer should include your Gift Acknowledgement Letter with your Ohio IT 1040 Form. When filing your Ohio Income Tax 1040 Form, please consider the below: 1. Use the Ohio Schedule of Credits (part of the Ohio IT 1040 Form): 2. Your SGO donation/credit goes on Line 15 of the Schedule of Credits. 3. Note that credits are applied to your tax liability in the order they appear on the Ohio Schedule of Credits. 4. Note that Line 15 states "include copies of all required documentation." 5. You must submit your tax acknowledgment letter with your Ohio Tax Return in order to receive your tax credit. 6. If you file electronically, you can create an account with the Ohio Department of Taxation and upload your Gift Acknowledgement Letter. 7. If you do not provide a Gift Acknowledgment Letter with your tax return, the State will mail you a letter requesting it. At that time, you can mail your Gift Acknowledgement Letter or you can create an online account with the Ohio Department of Taxation and upload it.

After your online donation is processed, you will immediately receive an IRS-Compliant Gift Acknowledgement Letter via email. If you mail a check, your letter will be emailed to you after we receive your check. Your Gift Acknowledgement Letter needs to be submitted with your Ohio Income Tax Return to verify your donation and receive your tax credit.

Donations must be made by April 15th. If you plan on filing an extension request, make sure you donate by April 15th.

A tax credit reduces the tax you owe dollar for dollar. 

Example: you owe the State of Ohio $2,000 in taxes and you are given a $1,500 tax credit. Your new tax liability is only $500 ($2,000 - $1,500 = $500). You donated $1,500 and you received back $1,500 (dollar for dollar). A tax deduction simply reduces the amount of your taxable income. 

Example: your taxable income is $75,000 and you make a $1500 donation. Instead of being taxed on $75,000 resulting in a tax liability of $11,250 (75,000 x .15 = $11,250), you are taxed on $73,500 ($75,000 - $1,500) resulting in a tax liability of $11,025 ($73,500 x .15 = $11,025). In effect, the credit saved you $1,500 and the deduction saved you only $225 ($11,250 - $11,025). In this example, the credit saves you an additional $1,275 ($1,500 - $225) over the deduction (in favor of the credit) for the same $1,500 donation.