Congressional App Challenge Rules 2025 | Eligibility and Registration

Eligibility:

Students must be in middle school or high school at the time of app submission.
They must be U.S. residents.
Students can compete as individuals or in teams of up to four members.
At least half of the team members must live or attend school in the Congressional District where they are competing.
Students can only compete in one Congressional District, which can be either where they reside or where they attend school.
Only one app submission is allowed per student per year.

The app can be developed on any platform (web, mobile, desktop, etc.) using any programming language.
There are no restrictions on the topic or theme of the app.
Apps submitted must have been created after a specified recent date (for 2024 it was November 1, 2023; for 2025 the actual cutoff should be checked).
Submission deadlines must be adhered to, with the 2025 deadline being October 30, 2025.

Students need to register individually or as a team online.
Registration requires personal and school information including zip codes and Congressional Districts.
A parent or guardian’s contact information is required.
Coding teacher or mentor information is optional.

Apps are judged on quality and creativity of the idea, implementation including user experience and design, and coding excellence.
Members of Congress or judges may request access to the app and source code for verification.
Judging criteria and process may be modified at the discretion of Members of Congress.
Winners are announced after judging, and winning apps may be displayed in the U.S. Capitol and featured online.

The challenge encourages engagement in STEM and computer science careers.
The challenge is run in all participating Congressional Districts that sign up.
Past winners receive recognition and may attend events such as the House of Code reception in Washington, D.C.

This summary covers the main Congressional App Challenge rules relevant to participation and submission for the 2025 cycle.