CalKIDS aims to make the dream of getting a college education a reality for every child in the State of California, especially those from traditionally underserved communities. To achieve this, CalKIDS will be helping families prepare financially and jumpstart their college savings by automatically establishing savings accounts for every baby born in the state and eligible low-income public school students enrolled in first through 12th grade.
Every eligible child will have a seed amount deposited in their CalKIDS account.
- For newborn participants, the seed deposit amount will be $25. Newborn participants will also be offered additional financial incentives to be deposited in their CalKIDS account, including $25 for registering on the CalKIDS Parent Portal to see their child’s account balance and $50 for linking an existing or new ScholarShare 529 college savings account to their CalKIDS account.
- For eligible public school students in first through 12th grade, as defined for purposes of the Local Control Funding Formula, the seed deposit amount will be $500. An additional $500 will be deposited in their CalKIDS account if they are also identified as foster youth and/or homeless students, for a maximum amount of $1,500.
Please note, program seed deposits and financial incentives are subject to change.
When the student is ready to utilize their savings to pay for any qualified higher education expense, they can simply redeem their funds, including any earnings, tax-free from their CalKIDS account and/or their own ScholarShare 529 account.
Stay tuned for complete terms and conditions, program launch date, and information about eligibility and the withdrawal of funds.