________________
To: ________________
I am withdrawing ________________ from your school. My child will be educated at home under the law of North Carolina.
Please send me a copy of my child's school records.
Thank you.
SignatureDate
Withdrawing from school to homeschool in North Carolina
How to take your child out of school to homeschool in North Carolina, step by step: what to file first, what to tell the school, and a letter to print.
- North Carolina law
- This year's checklist
- Withdrawing from school
- ESA money
This is general information, not legal advice; check your state's own page. Laws change, and North Carolina's own statute and education department are the final word. The links below go straight to them.
Deadlines, forms and amounts checked on against the sources linked on this page.
Step by step
- Before your child's last day, do what North Carolina asks of a new homeschool. At least five business days before you begin: File a Notice of Intent with the Division of Non-Public Education through its online portal (one per home school). The state's form: Notice of Intent (online portal, Division of Non-Public Education).Source: DNPE: How to start a home school
- Tell the school. Before your child leaves school: Do not withdraw your child or start the home school until DNPE has acknowledged your completed Notice of Intent.Source: DNPE: How to start a home school
- Ask for your child's records (report cards, test results, any evaluations or plans) so you know where your child stands. Good practice, not a legal step.
- If your child has an IEP or a 504 plan, ask the district before you leave what, if anything, it offers homeschooled students, and get a copy of the plan. Good practice, not a legal step.
- Keep copies of everything you send and anything you get back, with the dates. Good practice, not a legal step.
- Start your records on day one. Keep annual attendance records and immunization records for each student, and keep the test results for at least one year. DNPE may ask to see them. DNPE recommends, but does not require, keeping a daily log and keeping records until the student graduates.Source: DNPE: How to start a home school; DNPE: Standardized testing required for home schools
What North Carolina's law or education agency says about leaving school
DNPE says not to withdraw your child from their current school or start the home school until DNPE has acknowledged your completed Notice of Intent.Source: DNPE: How to start a home school
A letter to the school
Fill this in and print it. It tells the school your child is leaving to be taught at home and asks for the records. It is not the state's notice.
Your letter
Keep a copy with the date you handed it in or mailed it.
Where this comes from
- NC General Statutes Chapter 115C, Article 39 (private and home schools) (the law)
- NC General Statutes Chapter 115C, Article 41 (Personal Education Student Accounts) (the law)
- G.S. 115C-378 (children required to attend) (the law)
- DNPE: How to start a home school (state agency)
- DNPE: Standardized testing required for home schools (state agency)
- DNPE: Home school miscellaneous FAQs (state agency)
- DNPE: Home schools (state agency)
- NC State Education Assistance Authority: ESA+ new student application guide, January 2026 (PDF) (state agency)
- NC State Education Assistance Authority: ESA+ for home schools, January 2025 (PDF) (state agency)
Checked on October 29, 2026. This is general information, not legal advice. Laws and forms change; confirm a date with your school district or the state agency before you rely on it. For legal advice, ask a lawyer licensed in North Carolina; homeschool legal-help organizations and your state's homeschool groups can also point you to help. Something out of date? Tell us and we will fix it.