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Homeschooling in Virginia

Homeschool rules in Virginia, in plain English

Virginia is not a permission state. To homeschool under the home instruction law, a parent must send the division superintendent (the head of the local school division) a notice of intent every year by August 15. The notice must include a list of subjects for the coming year and proof that the parent meets one of four qualifications. Each year by August 1, the parent must also send evidence that the child is progressing, such as a test score or an evaluation letter.

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This explains each state's homeschool rules in plain English, from the state's own published sources. It isn't legal advice, and we aren't lawyers. Laws change and every family is different, so check with your state, your school district or a lawyer before you rely on it.

How much it asks
Detailed: notices plus tests or reviews
School age
5 through 17 (school is required from the fifth birthday, on or before September 30, until the 18th birthday)
Time
No set number

Option 1

Home instruction under the home education law

Parents who want to teach their children at home and who meet one of the four qualifications: a high school diploma, a Virginia teaching qualification, a program of study or curriculum, or evidence they can provide an adequate education.

  1. Before you startGood to know

    Choose your qualification

    Pick one of four options: (1) you hold a high school diploma or higher credential; (2) you meet the teacher qualifications set by the Board of Education; (3) you provide a program of study or curriculum, such as a correspondence or distance learning program; or (4) you can show you can provide an adequate education.

  2. By August 15 each yearPaperwork

    Send your Notice of Intent

    Notify your division superintendent in writing that you will provide home instruction. The state sample Notice of Intent is optional. A letter that contains the required information also works.

  3. With your Notice of IntentPaperwork

    Attach proof of your qualification

    Send proof for the option you chose, such as a copy of your diploma, a teaching license, enrollment papers for a program, or a written statement of your ability to teach.

  4. With your Notice of IntentWhat to teach

    List the subjects

    Give a list of the subjects you plan to teach during the coming school year. The law does not require any particular subjects, and it does not require a lesson plan.

  5. Within 30 days of startingPaperwork

    Starting mid-year or after moving

    Notify the superintendent as soon as you can. Then complete the full notice and proof within 30 days of that notice.

  6. OngoingRecords

    Keep records of your child's work

    Save samples of work and any test or evaluation results. The law does not list the records you must keep, but you will need results to show progress.

  7. By August 1 after each school yearTesting

    Send evidence of progress

    Send the superintendent one of these for each child: a composite score at or above the fourth stanine on a nationally normed achievement test; an equivalent ACT, SAT or PSAT score; an evaluation letter from a person licensed to teach in any state or with a master's degree or higher in an academic field; or a report card or transcript from a college, college distance learning program, or home education correspondence school.

  8. After the August 1 deadlineTesting

    If progress evidence is missing

    Your home instruction may be placed on probation for one year. You must file evidence of your ability to teach and a remediation plan for that year. If the plan is not accepted, or evidence is still missing by the next August 1, home instruction must end and you must arrange schooling that meets the compulsory attendance law.

Option 2

Religious exemption from school attendance

Families whose parents and child have a bona fide religious training or belief that makes them conscientiously opposed to school attendance. Philosophical, political or personal views do not qualify.

  1. Before you startGood to know

    Confirm the religious basis

    The exemption applies only when the religious training or belief is bona fide and the family is conscientiously opposed to school attendance. Political, sociological, philosophical views or a personal moral code do not qualify.

  2. Before you startPaperwork

    Ask your local school board for an excuse

    Under the compulsory attendance law, the school board must excuse a pupil whose parents, for religious reasons, are conscientiously opposed to attendance at school. Ask your division for its request process.

  3. OngoingGood to know

    Meet immunization rules

    Children who are home instructed, exempted or excused must follow Virginia's immunization requirements the same way enrolled students do.

Subjects to teach

  • No subjects are required by state law. Families list the subjects they plan to teach each year.

Tests and reviews

Each year, by August 1 after the school year, send the superintendent evidence of progress for each child. Accepted evidence includes a composite score at or above the fourth stanine on a nationally normed achievement test, an equivalent ACT, SAT or PSAT score, an evaluation letter from a licensed teacher or a person with a master's degree or higher, or a report card or transcript from a college, college distance program or home education correspondence school. Missing evidence can lead to a one-year probation with a remediation plan.

Records to keep

  • Child's work samples
  • Test or evaluation results, including any score reports or evaluation letters sent to the division
  • Proof of delivery for your Notice of Intent, such as a receipt or dated email
  • Proof of your qualification option

About time

Virginia's home instruction law does not set a number of instruction days or hours. Your notice must list subjects for the coming year, but it does not require a schedule or attendance log.

Also good to know

  • The state sample Notice of Intent is optional. You may use another form or letter that contains the required information.
  • Divisions may not share your home instruction information with the state or others outside the local school division without your written consent.
  • Home-instructed students may take Advanced Placement, PSAT/NMSQT and PreACT exams through their local school board, which must make these available. The board sets the registration deadline and will tell you about financial help.
  • Immunization rules apply to home-instructed children, as they do to enrolled students.

What we couldn’t confirm

  • Certified teacher tutor route under the compulsory attendance law. I did not confirm its details in an official source.
  • Whether a GED counts as a high school diploma for the qualification option. Some secondary sources say no; I did not confirm this on an official page.
  • Details of the religious exemption process, including forms and whether the family must reapply each year.
  • Whether the compulsory attendance law's same-days-and-hours language applies to home instruction.
  • How long families must keep records, and whether any records must be kept.
  • Specific immunization forms and exemption procedures under the health law.
  • Whether school boards may allow part-time enrollment for home-instructed students. Some older guidance says they may, but I did not confirm this on a current official source.
  • Returning to public school, special education services and driver education for home-instructed students are not covered in the sources I read.

From Virginia’s own sources

Last checked against these sources on November 7, 2026. We check every state each week.

How Study Naturally helps in Virginia

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Homeschooling in Virginia

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