# ESA vendor basics for families

Learn how education savings account funds reach a vendor, what each part of a vendor listing on this site means, and why a vendor's own claim is a lead, not proof.

- Level: Foundations
- Length: 40 minutes
- Exam questions: 9, pass mark 80%, up to 3 attempts
- Certificate: valid for 12 months

## What you will learn

- Describe the two ways program funds reach a vendor: direct pay in a marketplace and reimbursement by receipt.
- Read each approval field on a listing and say what it shows and what it does not show.
- Tell an ownership badge or a paid label from an approval by an official program.
- Explain why you check a vendor on the program's own list before you spend.

## Lessons

1. [How program funds reach a vendor](https://esavendors.fyi/academy/esa-vendor-basics-for-families/how-funds-reach-a-vendor.md) (12 minutes)
2. [Read a vendor listing](https://esavendors.fyi/academy/esa-vendor-basics-for-families/read-a-vendor-listing.md) (14 minutes)
3. [A vendor claim is a lead, not proof](https://esavendors.fyi/academy/esa-vendor-basics-for-families/a-vendor-claim-is-a-lead.md) (14 minutes)

## Questions

### Does this course tell me whether my child qualifies for a program?

No. Each program sets its own rules for eligible children and approved expenses. Read your program's own published rules, or ask the program.

### Does the certificate make me an approved vendor or a program adviser?

No. It is a certificate of completion from this site. It records that you passed this exam. It is not a professional qualification, a licence or a program approval.

### Is ESA Vendors part of a state program?

No. ESA Vendors is an independent directory. It is not a school, a scholarship organization or a government agency. A listing is a record, not a recommendation.

Also on the [web page](https://esavendors.fyi/academy/esa-vendor-basics-for-families).