Alden House. Parent Center

Homeschooling in New Jersey

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

no notice required 9 sources Verified 12 October 2026

What New Jersey requires

Notify
No general notice required. The NJ Department of Education encourages (but does not require) informing the local board of education.
Testing or evaluation
Not required.
Subjects set by the state
No subject list.
Teaching time
None specified for homeschools.
Compulsory school age
6 to 16
Records
None required by law.

Taking your child out of school in New Jersey

For a high school student, complete the district's transfer form indicating intent to homeschool. For younger children no filing is legally required, but sending the district a short written notice that the child is withdrawn for home instruction under N.J.S.A.

18A:38-25 is recommended so the absence is not treated as truancy. Withdrawal alone is not evidence of a violation; a board may ask for documentation (such as a letter of intent) only if it has credible evidence the child is not being educated.

The legal routes

One route exists in New Jersey. They carry different duties, and families often do not know the alternatives to the obvious one.

Equivalent instruction elsewhere than at school
N.J.S.A. 18A:38-25 lets a child of compulsory age receive 'equivalent instruction elsewhere than at school'; homeschooling falls under this. Courts (State v. Massa, 1967) require only academic equivalence to public school, not equivalent socialization.

The notice, and who receives it

No general notice required. The NJ Department of Education encourages (but does not require) informing the local board of education. Nothing has to be filed with any authority to begin.

Teaching time

New Jersey sets no required number of teaching hours or days, so what counts as a full year is yours to define. The courses here are planned as a 36-week year of about 180 sessions, which is the ordinary shape of one.

Who may teach

None. Parents do not need a teaching certificate.

Testing and evaluation

None. School boards may not test or monitor homeschooled children, and homeschoolers are not required to take state or district tests.

Records to keep

None required by law. Keeping a record of curriculum and work samples is prudent because, if the district raises a credible concern, the parent may need to show the instruction is academically equivalent.

High school, diplomas and transcripts

Parents decide graduation and may issue their own diploma; school boards do not issue diplomas to homeschoolers. Alternatives: a NJ State-issued high school diploma by passing the state high school equivalency test (GED or other approved test) or via the 30-college-credit route, or re-enrolling in public school and meeting district graduation requirements.

Public school classes, sports and activities

No statewide right. Participation in district sports, extracurriculars, textbook loans or classes is at the local board's sole discretion.

Homeschoolers may apply each year to county shared-time vocational schools if space is available. Districts must locate and evaluate homeschooled children with suspected disabilities on written request (IDEA child find); services beyond that are discretionary unless the child enrolls.

Funding: education savings accounts, vouchers and tax credits

New Jersey has no ESA, voucher or tax-credit program for homeschool families.

What changed recently

No change to NJ homeschool law has been enacted as of 2026-10-12. PENDING bills only (none has passed either house): S3910 (introduced Mar 12, 2026) would require annual written notice to the district superintendent by Aug 1; A1886 (introduced Jan 13, 2026, in Assembly Education) would require a yearly letter of intent by Aug 15; A3394 (introduced Jan 13, 2026, in Assembly Education) would require district registration, curriculum information, portfolios and annual evaluations; S741/A1341 (introduced Jan 13, 2026, held in committee) would require annual meetings with school officials including a health and wellness check; S280 (introduced Jan 13, 2026, in Senate Education) would lower the compulsory age from 6 to 5.

Similar 2024-2025 bills (A5825, A5796/S4589) died or were withdrawn. Check status before relying on 'no notice'.

What we could not confirm

Could not open the official statute text directly (current wording of 18A:38-25 confirmed via a 2026 bill that quotes it). Status of pending 2026 bills (S3910, S741/A1341, S280) checked only via bill trackers and HSLDA, not the NJ Legislature site; none found enacted.

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

  • N.J.S.A. 18A:38-25
  • N.J.S.A. 18A:38-31
  • N.J.A.C. 6A:22-4.2(d)
  • State v. Massa, 95 N.J. Super. 382 (1967)
  • State v. Vaughn, 44 N.J. 142 (1965)

Statute text

State agency

Secondary sources