How HeyPeppy Helps Florida Families Track Step Up Reimbursements

TLDR

• Reimbursement paperwork is one of the most common pain points for Florida scholarship families who pay providers out of pocket.
• HeyPeppy is an AI-powered tool for PEP and FES-UA families that helps you categorize purchases, build submissions, audit them before you submit, and track them through approval.
• The core tools are free forever, and every family gets a 10 day free trial of all features with no credit card required.
• FEV families can use code FEV20 for 20% off the first 6 months on a monthly plan, or 10% off the first year on an annual plan.

Why reimbursement gets messy

When a provider is paid through reimbursement, you pay first and then submit your documentation to Step Up for approval. That means receipts, invoices, provider details, and a clear explanation of how each purchase fits an allowable category. Keep those in a folder, an email inbox, and a photo roll, and it is easy to lose track of what has been submitted, what is pending, and what still needs documentation. One wrong category or a weak justification can mean a denial and weeks of delay.

What HeyPeppy does

HeyPeppy is an independent tool built by a Florida homeschool family. It is a preparation tool you use before you enter anything into the official portal. It never connects to Step Up's systems and does not manage your EMA account.

Free forever: a searchable category database for PEP and UA, an AI chat assistant that answers questions in plain English with citations to the official documents, manual submission tracking with AI help on each line item, and family management with spouse sync.

Pro: a submission audit that flags missing receipts, weak justifications and category mismatches before you submit, an AI receipt scanner, email forwarding that creates draft submissions from purchase confirmations, and advanced analytics.

Ultra: multi-child budgets with spending projections, an audit-ready justification packet as a single PDF, a recurring task manager for predictable expenses like curriculum or weekly tutoring, and a secure document vault.

At the time of writing, Pro is listed at $8 per month and Ultra at $12 per month, with annual pricing available. Check HeyPeppy's site for current plans.

How to use it with the FEV directory

1. Find your provider. Search the Florida Education Vendors directory by county or category, and filter by Direct Pay or Reimbursement so you know how each provider is paid.
2. Check the category. Before you book, use HeyPeppy's free category database or AI chat to confirm how the purchase fits your scholarship's guidelines and what documentation you will need.
3. Keep your paperwork together. After you pay, add the receipt to HeyPeppy so your documents and justification are ready to submit, and you can see where each request stands.

The FEV family discount

Florida Education Vendors families can use code FEV20. On a monthly plan you get 20% off your first 6 months. On an annual plan you get 10% off your first year. You can also start with the 10 day free trial, which includes every feature and does not require a credit card.

Which scholarships it supports

HeyPeppy supports the Florida PEP and UA programs. It is not built for other states' ESA programs or for traditional school settings. Always confirm the current rules for your specific scholarship in your Step Up account and provider handbook, since requirements can differ by program and service category. No tool can guarantee approval, because final decisions are made by state scholarship reviewers.

Disclosure: HeyPeppy is a partner of Florida Education Vendors. HeyPeppy is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or officially connected to Step Up For Students, the Florida Department of Education, or any government entity. Florida Education Vendors is also an independent resource and is not affiliated with Step Up For Students.