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Are assembly or installation fees ESA eligible in Arizona?
No. Assembly or installation fees are on the unallowable purchases list in the SY2025-26 ESA Parent Handbook. Buying them with ESA funds risks the expense being disallowed and repayment being required.
Why ADE says no to assembly and installation fees
ESA funds buy educational goods and services — not the convenience of having someone put them together. An assembly or installation line item benefits the household's time, not the student's education, and the handbook lists it flatly.
The mistake families make
The bundled invoice. You buy an allowable Tier 2 item — say, a playground set with its curriculum doc ready — and the vendor's receipt shows one combined line: "playset + delivery + assembly." Now an unallowable service is fused to an allowable purchase on a single line, and the whole entry invites questions.
The allowable path nearby
Buy the item; assemble it yourself or pay for assembly out of pocket. Before checkout, ask the vendor to itemize the receipt so the product and any service fees sit on separate lines — then put only the product on the ESA. Itemization is a receipt requirement anyway, so a vendor who can't split lines is a vendor to be careful with.
People also check
- Playground — Tier 2 with curriculum doc; the classic assembly-fee trap
- Home improvement materials — prohibited; permanent installation is a related red flag
- Smart Board — Tier 2; mind any installation line on the invoice
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Homeschool like the state isn't watching. Because we are.
Educational information based on the official ADE Parent Handbook SY2025-26 — not legal advice. Final allowability is determined by ADE. Verify against the official database at azed.gov/esa/esa-allowable-items.