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Louisiana homeschool law

Notice, days or hours, subjects, testing and records, in plain words, with the source for each.

This is general information, not legal advice; check your state's own page. Laws change, and Louisiana's own statute and education department are the final word. The links below go straight to them.

Checked on against the sources linked on this page.

What to file in Louisiana

File
An application for approval of a home study program, with a certified birth certificate the first time; renewed yearly. §
To
BESE, through the Louisiana Department of Education. §
By
Within 15 days after starting; renew by October 1 or within 12 months of approval, whichever is later. §
Keep
No register named. At renewal, a packet: a subject outline, a book list, work samples and any tests. 180 days. §
Test
At each renewal, one of three: the packet, standardized test scores, or a certified teacher's statement. §

The law's number: 180 days. In its words: “for at least 180 days in the school year”. Your Record Book offers it as a target; it is never filled in for you.

Starting this year
  • Within 15 days after starting: Apply to the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE), through the Louisiana Department of Education, for approval of a home study program.
Already homeschooling
  • By October 1 (or within 12 months of approval, whichever is later): Send the renewal application with one of the kinds of evidence the law lists.
Leaving a school mid-year
  • Any time: A school cannot refuse to let you withdraw your child. The Department suggests applying first and giving the school a copy of the approval letter.

The Department says a school cannot refuse to let a parent withdraw a child, and a child may be withdrawn before the home study approval arrives. It suggests applying before withdrawing and giving the prior school a copy of the approval letter.

Open your attendance recordStart the Tap Clock, if you want to

What Louisiana's law asks you to keep, as tools: Attendance · Evaluation packet. The same rows for every state: what to file, by state.

Checked . § = source: La. R.S. 17:236.1, approval of home study programs (Louisiana Legislature); Department of Education: BESE-Approved Home Study Program Guidelines (3/27/2026). Information, not legal advice.

Quick answers

Notice
Notice every yearApply to the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) for approval of a home study program, through the Louisiana Department of Education. The first application is due within 15 days after the program starts and needs a certified copy of the child's birth certificate. Renew each year by October 1 of the school year, or within 12 months of approval, whichever is later. Checked October 27, 2026. Source: La. R.S. 17:236.1, approval of home study programs (Louisiana Legislature)
Days or hours
DaysThe Department of Education's guidelines say a child between 5 and 18 who is not in a public or nonpublic school or a BESE-approved home study program for at least 180 days in the school year could put the parents in violation of the compulsory attendance law. Checked October 27, 2026. Source: Department of Education: BESE-Approved Home Study Program Guidelines (3/27/2026)
Subjects
The law does not name required subjects. It asks that the home study program offer a sustained curriculum of a quality at least equal to that offered by public schools at the same grade level. Parents choose the curriculum, and the Department keeps no list of approved ones. Checked October 27, 2026. Source: La. R.S. 17:236, definition of a school (Louisiana Legislature)
Testing or evaluation
A test or an evaluationState tests are not required for home study students; a parent may ask the local school board to give them. At each yearly renewal the parent sends one of three things: a packet of materials about the year's curriculum, standardized test scores, or a statement from a certified teacher who examined the program. Checked October 27, 2026. Source: Department of Education: BESE-Approved Home Study Program Guidelines (3/27/2026), La. R.S. 17:236.1, approval of home study programs (Louisiana Legislature)
Records
The law names no register to keep. At renewal the packet option lists a subject outline for the year, a list of books and materials, copies of the student's work and any standardized tests. The Department's guidelines add a statement from a third party who saw the child's progress. Checked October 27, 2026. Source: La. R.S. 17:236.1, approval of home study programs (Louisiana Legislature)
Who must attend school
A child who lives in Louisiana and is age five by September 30 through age eighteen must attend a public or nonpublic school, unless the child graduates from high school first or the parent deferred kindergarten (R.S. 17:221). A child in a BESE-approved home study program counts as in attendance at a day school. Source: La. R.S. 17:221, school attendance (Louisiana Legislature)
Education savings accounts and vouchers
A program exists, but homeschool students are not eligibleLouisiana's LA GATOR Scholarship Program gives eligible families education savings accounts. The Department of Education's home study guidelines say a student in a BESE-approved home study program cannot take part in it, and that no state funding is available for home study families. Check the department's school-choice pages for changes. LA GATOR Scholarship Program. Source: Department of Education: BESE-Approved Home Study Program Guidelines (3/27/2026), Department of Education: LA GATOR Scholarship Program

What to do first

  1. Read Louisiana's own pages, linked under each row below, so you know what applies to your situation.
  2. Notice: Within 15 days after starting; renew by October 1 or within 12 months of approval, whichever is later To: Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, through the Louisiana Department of Education.
  3. If your child is in school now: The Department says a school cannot refuse to let a parent withdraw a child, and a child may be withdrawn before the home study approval arrives. It suggests applying before withdrawing and giving the prior school a copy of the approval letter.
  4. Plan the year around the days or hours and the subjects below.
  5. Start your records on day one: a simple attendance log, a list of books read and a work sample or two for each subject.
  6. Put the testing or evaluation date on your calendar.

The state's own form or page: ldoe.edlink.la.gov/#/HSPHome

Other legal routes in Louisiana

  • Nonpublic school not seeking state approval. The Department says families may instead run a nonpublic school not seeking state approval, which submits attendance information each year. It says this does not confirm that students are meeting compulsory attendance laws, and these students are not in a home study program and are not eligible for TOPS scholarships.
  • BESE-approved nonpublic school. Louisiana law also counts attendance at a public or nonpublic school as meeting compulsory attendance; the Department lists BESE-approved nonpublic schools as a separate school choice.

Records to keep

The law names no register to keep. At renewal the packet option lists a subject outline for the year, a list of books and materials, copies of the student's work and any standardized tests. The Department's guidelines add a statement from a third party who saw the child's progress. Whatever the law asks, many families also keep a simple attendance log, a list of books read and a few work samples for each subject; they cost nothing and help if you move or return to school.

Good to know

  • Who may teach: the Department's guidelines say a parent or tutor may provide the instruction and there are no teaching certification requirements.
  • Public school sports and activities: under Act 715, a public school may not disqualify a student solely for being in an approved home study program, if the student lives in that school's attendance zone. The student tries out the same way as other students and must meet the same requirements.
  • A high school diploma from a BESE-approved home study program is, by law, treated by public colleges and state agencies as equal to one from a state-approved nonpublic school. The parent issues it, not BESE or the Department.
  • Students in home study do not qualify for services under the federal IDEA or for 504 accommodations, according to the Department's guidelines. For TOPS, the guidelines say a student must be in an approved home study program for both 11th and 12th grade.
  • The application asks 11-year-olds to state their meningococcal immunization status: immunized, not immunized for religious or other personal reasons, or a physician's statement. No proof is sent to the Department.

Where this comes from

Checked on October 27, 2026. This is general information, not legal advice; check your state's own page, and confirm with your school district or the department before you rely on a date. Something out of date? Tell us and we will fix it.