Homeschooling in Louisiana

Q: Do I have to notify anyone to homeschool in Louisiana?

Yes. Notice goes to Home study: BESE, via the Louisiana Department of Education (LDOE) online application, which notifies the local superintendent. Nonpublic option: LDOE (annual enrollment report).. Deadline: Home study: initial application within 15 days after the program starts; renewal by Oct 1 of the school year or within 12 months of initial approval, whichever is later (and on grade advancement). Nonpublic option: annual online enrollment/attendance submission to LDOE reporting attendance as of the 30th day of the term (R.S. 17:232(C)), plus notice to the last public school within 10 days of enrollment. It renews annual.

What the law requires, what you file and when, and what to keep — with the statute behind each rule.

notice and review 13 sources Verified 12 October 2026

What Louisiana requires

Notify: Home study: BESE, via the Louisiana Department of Education (LDOE) online application, which notifies the local superintendent. Nonpublic option: LDOE (annual enrollment report). — Home study: initial application within 15 days after the program starts; renewal by Oct 1 of the school year or within 12 months of initial approval, whichever is later (and on grade advancement). Nonpublic option: annual online enrollment/attendance submission to LDOE reporting attendance as of the 30th day of the term (R.S. 17:232(C)), plus notice to the last public school within 10 days of enrollment. (annual)
Testing or evaluation: Required. Home study only, at each renewal: submit ONE of (1) a packet with subject outlines, book/materials list, work samples, test copies, third-party observation statements; (2) standardized test (e.g., CAT or other BESE-approved test) at or above grade level, or showing one grade level of progress per year; (3) a statement from a teacher certified at the child's grade level; or (4) a passing score on the state test (local school board may charge up to $35).
Subjects set by the state: No subject list.
Teaching time: 180 days — in detail
Compulsory school age: 5 through 18 — in detail
Records: No statutory record-keeping list; home study families should keep outlines, materials lists and work samples to support renewal.

Taking your child out of school in Louisiana

A public school cannot refuse a withdrawal. Home study: submit the application within 15 days of starting (LDOE suggests applying before withdrawing) and give the approval letter to the prior school.

Nonpublic option: the home-based school must send written notice of enrollment to the last public school within 10 days (child's legal name, date of birth, gender, race) and file the LDOE enrollment report.

The legal routes

3 routes exist in Louisiana. They carry different duties, and families often do not know the alternatives to the obvious one.

BESE-approved home study program: Apply to the state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (through LDOE) within 15 days of starting, then renew every year with evidence of adequate progress. Diplomas carry the same rights as a state-approved private school diploma and students can qualify for TOPS.
Registered nonpublic school not seeking state approval: The family operates as a private school that takes no public money, runs at least 180 days, and files an annual enrollment/attendance report with LDOE. No testing or evaluation, but students are not TOPS-eligible and the diploma does not carry state-approved weight.
LA GATOR home-based education: Families in the LA GATOR education savings account program may educate at home through approved LA GATOR providers. A student cannot be in LA GATOR and in either homeschool option above at the same time.

The notice, and who receives it

Goes to: Home study: BESE, via the Louisiana Department of Education (LDOE) online application, which notifies the local superintendent. Nonpublic option: LDOE (annual enrollment report).
Deadline: Home study: initial application within 15 days after the program starts; renewal by Oct 1 of the school year or within 12 months of initial approval, whichever is later (and on grade advancement). Nonpublic option: annual online enrollment/attendance submission to LDOE reporting attendance as of the 30th day of the term (R.S. 17:232(C)), plus notice to the last public school within 10 days of enrollment.
Renews: annual
Form: BESE-Approved Home Study Program online application (initial and renewal); paper form in LDOE guidelines for hardship cases — official form

Compulsory school age

5 (by Sept 30) through 18, unless graduated; parents may defer kindergarten for one year under R.S. 17:151.3(D)

Teaching time

180 days per school year (LDOE guidance; R.S. 17:236 minimum session for nonpublic schools)

Who may teach

None for home study (parent or tutor may teach). Nonpublic option: whatever the school itself requires.

Testing and evaluation

Home study only, at each renewal: submit ONE of (1) a packet with subject outlines, book/materials list, work samples, test copies, third-party observation statements; (2) standardized test (e.g., CAT or other BESE-approved test) at or above grade level, or showing one grade level of progress per year; (3) a statement from a teacher certified at the child's grade level; or (4) a passing score on the state test (local school board may charge up to $35). Nonpublic option: no testing required.

Deadline: With the home study renewal: by Oct 1 of the school year or within 12 months of initial approval, whichever is later (also when advancing a grade level)

Records to keep

No statutory record-keeping list; home study families should keep outlines, materials lists and work samples to support renewal. Nonpublic option: none required, but the state keeps no records, so families must document education themselves.

High school, diplomas and transcripts

Parent issues the diploma (LDOE provides a template; do not use state seals). An approved home study diploma has the same rights as a state-approved nonpublic school diploma (R.S.

17:236.1(G)). TOPS scholarship requires approved home study in both 11th and 12th grade plus ACT requirements. Nonpublic-option diplomas do not carry state-approved weight and those students are not TOPS-eligible.

Public school classes, sports and activities

Approved home study students may try out for extracurriculars and interscholastic sports at the public school in their attendance zone on the same terms as enrolled students (Act 715 of 2024, R.S. 17:176.2).

Not extended to the nonpublic option. Home study students may take the state test through the local school board for a fee.

Funding: education savings accounts, vouchers and tax credits

LA GATOR Scholarship (ESA, Act 1 of 2024): 2025-26 awards of $5,243 (general), $7,626 (income at or below 250% of poverty), up to $15,253 (disability); home-based education allowed only through approved LA GATOR providers and not while enrolled in BESE home study or the nonpublic option; annual ELA and math test required.

What changed recently

2024: LA GATOR ESA created (Act 1); home study students gained access to public school extracurriculars and sports (Act 715, R.S. 17:176.2); a bill to replace annual BESE approval with a one-time notice (HB 550) failed.

2025: Act 358 (HB 371, effective June 20, 2025), a religious-freedom law, added R.S. 13:5233.1 barring government from restricting a code-compliant place of worship's use for meetings of two or more home study or nonpublic school families for academics, socialization or athletics. 2026: LDOE updated both homeschool guideline documents (home study 3/27/2026; nonpublic 7/13/2026).

What we could not confirm

regulation_level judged on the BESE home study route (annual renewal with evidence of progress); the nonpublic-not-seeking-approval route is notice/report only, and no LDOE enrollment counts were found to confirm which route more families use. Statute lists no specific subjects for home study beyond a curriculum 'at least equal' to public schools (LDOE renewal packet names math, English, social studies, science).

LDOE asks for a meningococcal immunization statement at age 11 (HSLDA says ages 11 and 16). The R.S. 17:236 source URL could not be confirmed (legis.la.gov returned a different section to the fetcher). 2026-27 LA GATOR award amounts not published on the LDOE page.

R.S. 17:236 URL (d=80345) not confirmed

Listed because a legal summary that hides its gaps is harder to trust than one that names them. How these pages are checked.

Statutes and sources

Statute and regulation

La. R.S. 17:221
La. R.S. 17:232(C)
La. R.S. 17:236
La. R.S. 17:236.1
La. R.S. 17:176.2
La. R.S. 17:4037.1 et seq. (LA GATOR)
La. R.S. 13:5233.1 (Acts 2025, No. 358)