Minnesota Funding Guide: ESA, Medicaid Waivers, and Homeschool Funding
Facts checked September 21, 2026 · 6-minute read · by the Brainrich Kids team
Minnesota has no education savings account, but it has two tax benefits homeschoolers can use, the K-12 Education Credit and Subtraction, and the Department of Revenue's own list excludes gym and sports equipment from both. The Medicaid waivers have no waitlists, and three of them cap specialized equipment at $10,000 a year.
The quick answer for Minnesota: Minnesota has no ESA. Homeschoolers can claim the K-12 Education Credit (75% of qualifying expenses up to $1,500 per child, full credit at $75,820 AGI or less for tax year 2025) and the K-12 Education Subtraction ($1,625 for K to 6, $2,500 for 7 to 12), but the Department of Revenue lists "gym equipment" and "sports... equipment" as non-qualifying. The CADI, CAC, and BI Waivers cover "Specialized equipment and supplies" up to $10,000 per waiver year with no exceptions, the DD Waiver lists "Assistive Technology / Equipment" with no published cap, and none of the four has a waitlist. TEFRA exists. A play gym is case by case through a waiver, excluded from the tax credit.
Please read this first: program rules, amounts, and waitlists change every year, sometimes mid-year, and no vendor can promise that a program will approve a purchase. Every row below was checked against the linked source on September 21, 2026. Before you spend a dollar, confirm the current rules with the program itself.
Jump to: Minnesota facts table · Can this fund a Brainrich gym? · Next steps · FAQ · The full guides · Sources
Minnesota funding facts at a glance
Three kinds of public money can reach a family in Minnesota: an education account or scholarship, a Medicaid waiver for a child with a developmental disability, and any homeschool-specific tax benefit. Here is what each official source says.
| Question | What the official source says (Minnesota) | Source |
|---|---|---|
| ESA or scholarship program | No ESA. Minnesota has the K-12 Education Credit and K-12 Education Subtraction instead, both open to qualified home schools. The governor has said the state will not opt into the 2027 federal scholarship tax credit (news only). | Minnesota Dept. of Revenue |
| Who runs it | Minnesota Department of Revenue (tax benefits); Department of Human Services (waivers). | Minnesota Dept. of Revenue |
| Amount per student | Tax year 2025: credit of 75% of qualifying expenses up to $1,500 per child, full credit at AGI of $75,820 or less, ending at $81,820 for one or two children (plus $3,000 per additional child). Subtraction: up to $1,625 per child in K to 6 and $2,500 in 7 to 12, no income limit. | Schedule M1ED 2025 |
| Who qualifies | Any Minnesota parent of a K to 12 child at a public, private, or qualified home school; the credit is income-limited, the subtraction is not. | Minnesota Dept. of Revenue |
| Can homeschoolers use it? | Yes. The qualifying child must be attending K to 12 at "a public, private, or qualified home school." The family stays a statutory homeschooler. | Minnesota Dept. of Revenue |
| Curriculum | Allowed: textbooks, academic books, and required instructional materials used during the school day. Religious materials excluded. | Qualifying home school expenses |
| Therapies and therapy equipment | Not addressed. Only instruction by a qualified instructor (tutoring, enrichment classes) qualifies; therapies and therapy equipment are not listed. | Qualifying home school expenses |
| PE and play equipment | Excluded. The non-qualifying list names "equipment normally provided by the school (such as gym equipment...)" and "fees for nonacademic programs including sports camps, lessons, or equipment." Allowed equipment is educational items such as musical instruments and calculators. | Qualifying home school expenses |
| How purchases work | None. Claimed on the Minnesota return (Schedule M1ED for the credit, Schedule M1M for the subtraction) with receipts. | Minnesota Dept. of Revenue |
| Medicaid waiver for children | CADI Waiver (ages 0 to 64, nursing facility level of care), CAC Waiver (hospital level of care), DD Waiver (all ages), and BI Waiver, all with Consumer Directed Community Supports budgets. | Minnesota DHS |
| Equipment category to ask for | CADI, CAC, BI: "Specialized equipment and supplies," up to $10,000 per waiver year, "no exceptions to this limitation." DD Waiver: "Assistive Technology / Equipment," maximum rate not published. | Minnesota DHS CBSM |
| Waiver waitlist | None. DHS states the CAC, CADI, and BI waivers no longer have a waitlist, and DD Waiver waitlists were eliminated in 2016. | Minnesota DHS |
| Katie Beckett or TEFRA option | Yes: Medical Assistance under the TEFRA option for children under 19 living with a parent who need institutional-level care, counting only the child's income. | Minnesota DHS eligibility manual |
| Other homeschool funding | The K-12 Education Credit and Subtraction are the homeschool benefits (see above). | Minnesota Dept. of Revenue |
A row that reads "Confirm with the program" means we could not verify that fact on an official source, so we left it open instead of guessing.
Can this fund a Brainrich gym in Minnesota?
A Brainrich gym is a steel indoor climbing frame: ladders, monkey bars, rings, a rope, and a swing point, for ages 3 and up with a parent in the same room. Programs do not approve brands. They approve categories, one purchase at a time. Here is how each lane looks today.
Gym equipment excluded
K-12 Education Credit and Subtraction
Both benefits are real and open to homeschoolers, and the Department of Revenue's list puts gym and sports equipment on the non-qualifying side. Claim them for books, instruments, and instruction; do not claim a play gym.
Case by case
CADI, CAC, BI, and DD Waivers
Three waivers cap specialized equipment at $10,000 per waiver year with no exceptions, which covers any Brainrich frame; the DD Waiver uses an Assistive Technology category with no published cap. All four are waitlist-free, and Consumer Directed Community Supports budgets add flexibility. Approval is decided case by case in your child's individual service plan, usually with an OT or PT recommendation attached, and most waivers pay only after regular Medicaid or private insurance has said no. No state approves play equipment automatically.
Needs a Letter of Medical Necessity
HSA and FSA dollars (the same in every state)
HSA and FSA rules are federal, so Minnesota families follow the same path as everyone else: with a qualifying diagnosis and a Letter of Medical Necessity, a play gym may be eligible. Your plan administrator makes the final call. Start with is a play gym HSA/FSA eligible? and the Letter of Medical Necessity template.
What Brainrich does, and does not do. We never promise that a program will approve a purchase. That decision belongs to the program. Applications, service plans, and therapist letters are the family's and their professional's work.
The one document we provide is an itemized invoice or quote. Email info@brainrichkids.com with (1) your full name, (2) your address, and (3) the model and color. We send back the invoice with shipping, applicable taxes, and the full total, ready for a case worker or a program portal.
🧩 A budget does not have to cover the whole build
Every Brainrich gym is modular. A Model T3 that fits this year's budget becomes a Spider V3 the day you add the Monkey Bars, and each add-on is its own purchase with its own invoice. Families fund the frame from one budget cycle and the expansion from a later one, out of pocket, or as a gift. That means matching real purchases to real budget cycles. It never means splitting a single purchase to slip under a review threshold, which programs treat as a red flag.
Next steps for Minnesota families
1. If your child has a disability, ask your county for an assessment. Minnesota's four waivers have no waitlists, and TEFRA covers children under 19 on the child's income.
2. Claim the K-12 credit and subtraction for books, instruments, and instruction each year, and keep gym equipment off the form.
3. When a case worker, support broker, or program portal asks for pricing, request an itemized invoice from us: email info@brainrichkids.com with your full name, your address, and the model and color. We reply with shipping, applicable taxes, and the full total.
Frequently asked questions: Minnesota
Does Minnesota have an ESA (education savings account)? No. Minnesota has the K-12 Education Credit (up to $1,500 per child, income-limited) and the K-12 Education Subtraction ($1,625 for K to 6, $2,500 for 7 to 12), both open to qualified home schools.
Can Minnesota homeschoolers claim the K-12 credit and subtraction? Yes. The Department of Revenue says the qualifying child must attend a public, private, or qualified home school. For tax year 2025 the full credit applies at AGI of $75,820 or less.
Can the Minnesota K-12 credit pay for a play gym or PE equipment? No. The Department of Revenue's non-qualifying list names gym equipment and sports equipment. Allowed equipment is limited to educational items such as musical instruments and calculators.
Which Minnesota Medicaid waiver can fund sensory or adaptive equipment? The CADI, CAC, and BI Waivers cover Specialized equipment and supplies up to $10,000 per waiver year, and the DD Waiver lists Assistive Technology / Equipment. None of the four has a waitlist, and Minnesota has a TEFRA option for children under 19.
Does Brainrich work with Minnesota funding programs? We provide the itemized invoice or quote that Minnesota programs and case workers ask for: email info@brainrichkids.com with your full name, your address, and the model and color, and we send it back with shipping, applicable taxes, and the full total. We do not prepare applications or service plans, and we never promise that a program will approve a purchase. That decision belongs to the program.
📚 The full funding guides
Can You Buy PE and Play Equipment With ESA Funds? · State Disability Waiver Programs: All 50 States · Homeschool Grants and Funding, State by State · Is a Play Gym HSA/FSA Eligible? · Letter of Medical Necessity Template · Financial Assistance: every door in one place · Funding guides for other states
Sources
All sources checked September 21, 2026. Minnesota Department of Revenue. K-12 Education Subtraction and Credit. · Minnesota Department of Revenue. Schedule M1ED 2025. · Minnesota Department of Revenue. Qualifying home school expenses. · Minnesota DHS. CBSM, Specialized equipment and supplies. · Minnesota DHS. DHS-3945 rate limits, effective April 1, 2026. · Minnesota DHS. Waiver program waitlist. · Minnesota DHS. Health Care Programs eligibility manual, TEFRA option.