Florida Step Up For Students
The country's largest scholarship program, all on Step Up's EMA platform — with paperwork rules that reward getting it right the first time.
- Step Up (EMA)
- Direct pay + reimbursement
- No platform fee observed
The program pays you directly — reserve first, invoice after.
The family pays you first — extra documentation rules ride this lane.
Step Up direct billing pays about a week after approvals land; reimbursements officially take up to 60 days — state audits have seen ~90.
Step Up Provider Handbook 2025-26 (FES-UA, FES-EO, FTC, PEP, NWSA)The invoice, annotated
What a Step Up (EMA) reviewer looks for, region by region. Every requirement comes from the program's own documents — sources under each note.
- 1
Top of the page
Number and date the document — reviewers reference both.
- Invoice has a unique invoice number provisional
- Invoice has an issue date provisional
- 2
Names and identity
The names have to line up: your business, your address, the account holder, the student.
- Student name is on the invoice provisional
- Vendor business name and contact info are on the invoice provisional
- Parent / account-holder name is on the invoice provisional
- Vendor business address is on the invoice provisional
- Student name matches the scholarship record exactly reimbursement lane
- Provider license / certification number appears on the invoice good practice reimbursement lane
- 3
The line items
Dated, described, priced — line by line.
- Every line item has a service date provisional
- Every line item has a description and an amount provisional
- Each line shows its math — minutes, or quantity × unit price good practice provisional
- Nothing on the invoice is handwritten or hand-corrected reimbursement lane
- Every line shows the rate and how much of it, not just the total reimbursement lane
- 4
The total
The math has to close.
- Invoice total matches the sum of the lines provisional
The full checklist
Every check esadesk runs for Florida Step Up, with its fix in plain words — 15 checks cited to 4 state and platform sources.
Has to be right 12
Invoice has a unique invoice number provisional
Add an invoice number — every claim needs one the reviewer can reference.
Step Up Provider Handbook 2025-26Invoice has an issue date provisional
Add the invoice date — AZ's handbook lists it explicitly, and every platform expects it.
Step Up Provider Handbook 2025-26Student name is on the invoice provisional
Add the student's name exactly as it appears in the program.
Step Up Provider Handbook 2025-26Vendor business name and contact info are on the invoice provisional
Add your business name and at least one contact — email or phone.
Step Up Provider Handbook 2025-26Every line item has a service date provisional
Add the date of service to every line — undated lines bounce.
Step Up Provider Handbook 2025-26Every line item has a description and an amount provisional
Give every line a description and a dollar amount.
Step Up Provider Handbook 2025-26Parent / account-holder name is on the invoice provisional
Add the parent's name — platforms match invoices to the account holder.
Step Up Provider Handbook 2025-26Vendor business address is on the invoice provisional
Add your business address — reviewers reject invoices without it.
Step Up Provider Handbook 2025-26Invoice total matches the sum of the lines provisional
The total doesn't add up to the line items — recalculate before sending.
Step Up Provider Handbook 2025-26Student name matches the scholarship record exactly reimbursement lane
Copy the student's name exactly as it appears on the scholarship — nicknames or middle-name variations put the reimbursement on hold, and 30 days unanswered becomes a denial.
Step Up Reimbursement Best Practices deck + PEP Family HandbookNothing on the invoice is handwritten or hand-corrected reimbursement lane
Step Up rejects handwritten corrections and handwritten notes on invoices — reissue the document cleanly instead of amending by hand.
Step Up Reimbursement Best Practices deck + PEP Family HandbookEvery line shows the rate and how much of it, not just the total reimbursement lane
Step Up wants the hourly rate and the hours on every line. Write it out — “Reading tutoring — 2 hours × $60.00 = $120.00” — or put the minutes on the line: “Reading tutoring — 120 min — $120.00”. A line with only a total is denied.
Step Up Reimbursement Best Practices deck + PEP Family Handbook
Worth knowing 3
Each line shows its math — minutes, or quantity × unit price good practice provisional
Not required here, but a line that shows its math gets fewer questions: add the minutes — “Math tutoring — 60 min — $80.00” — or a quantity and a unit price: “4 sessions × $80.00 = $320.00”.
Step Up Provider Handbook 2025-26Funds are reserved in EMA before the service; invoice after good practice direct-pay lane
Step Up service providers invoice AFTER the parent reserves funds in EMA — confirm the family reserved funds before you deliver the service.
Step Up provider FAQProvider license / certification number appears on the invoice good practice reimbursement lane
Step Up's invoice criteria include the provider's license number (tutors: DOE certification number or credentials) — add yours.
Step Up — Reimbursements Best Practices for Families (live PDF) + PEP Family Handbook
Check an invoice against these rules
The free checker runs this exact checklist — what passes, what a reviewer would bounce, and how to fix it.
Runs entirely in your browser — nothing you type leaves the page.
Check a Florida Step Up invoice