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⚖️ Minnesota Homeschool Laws & Requirements

What Minnesota law asks of homeschool families — notice or registration, school days and subjects, testing, records and diplomas — summarized from our Minnesota guide with links to the official sources.

Homeschooling in Minnesota: the basics

Who must be taught: every child between 7 and 17 must receive instruction unless the child has graduated (Minn. Stat. 120A.22, subd. 5). A child under 7 who is enrolled in kindergarten or a higher grade in a public school becomes subject to compulsory attendance unless the district exempts children under 7, and a parent may then withdraw the child for good cause, which includes enrolling the child in another school (subd. 6).
What counts as a home school: for compulsory attendance, a "school" includes a home school in which a child is provided instruction in compliance with 120A.22 and 120A.24 (120A.22, subd. 4).
The initial report: send the superintendent of the district where your child lives the child's name, birth date and address; the annual tests you intend to use (if required); the name of each instructor; and evidence that each instructor meets one of the requirements in 120A.22, subd. 10. It's due by October 1 of the first school year your child receives instruction after reaching 7; within 15 days of withdrawing a child 7 or older from public school to homeschool; within 15 days of moving out of a district; and by October 1 after you establish a new resident district (120A.24, subd. 1).
The annual letter of intent: by October 1 of each school year, send a letter of intent to continue to provide instruction, with any changes to the information in your initial report. This covers children 7 through 16, and 16- and 17-year-olds whose initial report was filed after they turned 16. A superintendent may collect the information online but must not require electronic submission (120A.24, subd. 1).
Immunization records: parents of home-schooled children submit the immunization statements required by Minn. Stat. 121A.15 — or an exemption statement — to the superintendent by October 1 of the first year of homeschooling in Minnesota and of the grade 7 year (121A.15, subd. 8). Exemptions include a physician's statement for medical reasons and a notarized statement of the parent's conscientiously held beliefs (subd. 3).
Instructor options (120A.22, subd. 10): the person teaching must (1) hold a valid Minnesota teaching license in the field and grade level taught; (2) be directly supervised by a licensed Minnesota teacher; (3) teach in a school accredited by a recognized accrediting agency; (4) hold a bachelor's degree; or (5) be the parent of a child who is assessed under the testing rules in subd. 11.
Required subjects (120A.22, subd. 9): reading, writing, literature and fine arts; mathematics and science; social studies, including history, geography, economics, government and citizenship; and health and physical education. Instruction, textbooks and materials must be in English, except as allowed under the state's language-instruction laws.
Recent changes: Laws 2023, chapter 55 (H.F. 2497) removed the option of qualifying as an instructor by passing a teacher competency exam, leaving the five options above. Laws 2024, chapter 85, section 17 (H.F. 4483, a technical corrections law) updated the testing subdivision to match. Laws 2024, chapter 109 (S.F. 3567) added telehealth appointments and instruction by a Tribal spiritual or cultural advisor to the list of excused absences, effective for the 2024–2025 school year; that subdivision governs excused absences from school attendance.
Enforcement: if a superintendent believes a child is receiving instruction in violation of 120A.22 and 120A.24, the superintendent must notify the parent in writing with a list of the specific alleged violations. If they aren't corrected within 15 days, the superintendent requests fact-finding and mediation from the commissioner of education, and only then may notify the county attorney (120A.26).

Read the full section in our Minnesota guide

Testing, records and going back to public school

Annual test: each year, children 7 through 16 (and 16- and 17-year-olds whose initial report was filed after they turned 16) who aren't enrolled in public school must be assessed with a nationally norm-referenced standardized achievement examination. The superintendent of your district and the person in charge of instruction must agree on the specific test and how and where it's given (120A.22, subd. 11). A child taught by an accredited nonpublic school, person or institution is exempt.

Subjects the test doesn't cover: a parent who teaches and isn't a licensed teacher or directly supervised by one must assess the child's performance in those subjects.

Low scores: if the results show performance on the total battery at or below the 30th percentile, or one grade level below children of the same age, the parent must obtain an additional evaluation of the child's abilities and performance to determine whether the child has learning problems.

Records to keep (120A.24, subd. 2): documentation that the required subjects are being taught and proof the tests were given — class schedules, copies of instructional materials, and descriptions of how you assess achievement. You keep these yourself, and must make them available to the county attorney if a case is started under the compulsory attendance or juvenile court laws. Accredited programs are exempt.

Returning to public school full time: the parent must give the enrolling school or district the child's scores on the annual tests and the other education documents the school requires to decide placement and which course requirements apply. This doesn't apply to a shared-time student who doesn't seek a public school diploma.

Diplomas and transcripts: your home school issues its own diploma and transcript — Minnesota law itself refers to a student "working toward a home school diploma" (Minn. Stat. 171.05). Colleges set their own rules — the University of Minnesota Twin Cities, for example, requires confirmed students to graduate from high school or complete a GED before enrolling and lists expected high school courses (4 years of English and math, 3 of science and social studies, 2 of a single second language, 1 of arts).

Read the full section in our Minnesota guide

Official sources

Summarized from our Minnesota guide (as of November 2026) and articles. Rules change — confirm on the official pages before you act.

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