How to Homeschool in Minnesota (2026 Guide)

The short version

Minnesota treats your home school as a nonpublic school, which means you have real legal standing to operate one — but the state does impose several requirements that go beyond the lightest-touch states. Every year you send a written notice (called a Letter of Intent) to your local school district by October 1. Your program must cover ten specific subjects. The person providing instruction must meet one of four qualification standards. And every student ages 7 through 17 must take a nationally normed achievement test each year, agreed upon with your district superintendent, unless your program is accredited by the state-recognized Home-Based Educators Accrediting Association (HBEAA).

None of that requires state approval of your curriculum, approval of your teaching methods, or any inspector visiting your home. You keep your own records. Minnesota does not certify or validate any homeschool diploma or transcript.

On the financial side, Minnesota’s K-12 Education Credit and the K-12 Education Subtraction let homeschool families offset some qualifying expenses at tax time — not a scholarship, but a meaningful benefit that no ESA or voucher program currently replicates in this state.

Legal basis

Minnesota’s homeschool law is rooted in Minn. Stat. § 120A.22, which governs compulsory instruction for all children between age 7 and age 17. The statute explicitly includes “home school” within its definition of a “school” for compulsory attendance purposes (§ 120A.22, Subd. 4), meaning a home school satisfies the attendance obligation the same way a public or private school does.

Related statutes fill in the procedural requirements:

§ 120A.24 — the annual notice requirement (Letter of Intent)
§ 120A.26 — the annual assessment requirement
§§ 123B.40–123B.48 — Nonpublic Pupil Aids (textbooks, instructional materials, health services, and guidance and counseling services available to homeschool students through their resident district)

The governing compulsory window is age 7 through 17. A parent may voluntarily withdraw a child under age 7 from any program at any time (§ 120A.22, Subd. 5). Once a child turns 7, the compulsory requirements apply in full.

The Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) does not certify, register, or validate individual homeschools. The MDE’s role under these statutes is primarily to set requirements, publish guidance, and collect aggregate data. Day-to-day administration — receiving Letters of Intent, agreeing on test selection, and processing Nonpublic Pupil Aid requests — falls to the local public school district.

Minnesota Department of Education homeschool page: education.mn.gov/MDE/fam/nphs/home/index.htm

Annual notice

Every year, the parent or guardian providing home instruction must submit a Letter of Intent to the superintendent of the resident public school district (Minn. Stat. § 120A.24). The deadline is October 1 for continuing programs. Families beginning instruction mid-year should send notice before starting.

The Letter of Intent for a continuing program (continuing the same students already known to the district) typically states:

That the family is providing home instruction under § 120A.22
The name(s) and grade level(s) of the student(s)
A statement that the required subjects listed in § 120A.22, Subd. 9 will be covered
The qualification of the instructor (see the Instructor qualifications section below)
The method of annual assessment that has been agreed upon with the superintendent (see the Testing section below)

The MDE provides a sample Letter of Intent form on its homeschool page. Using the MDE sample form is not required — a letter covering the same substantive information is sufficient. The letter must be submitted to the superintendent of your resident district, not to the school principal or any state agency.

A separate letter is required for each school year. There is no permanent registration.

Required subjects

Minn. Stat. § 120A.22, Subd. 9 requires that instruction for homeschool students ages 7 through 17 cover the following ten areas:

Reading
Writing
Literature
Fine arts
Mathematics
Science
Social studies (including history and geography)
Health
Physical education
Government (including the government of the United States and the state of Minnesota)

The statute requires coverage of each subject — it does not prescribe curriculum, textbooks, minimum hours, or instructional methods within any subject. There is no state-approved curriculum list and no mandated publishers or programs. How you teach each subject, in what sequence, and with what materials is your decision.

You affirm coverage of the ten subjects in your Letter of Intent. You are not required to submit lesson plans, syllabi, or course descriptions to the district.

Instructor qualifications

Minn. Stat. § 120A.22, Subd. 10 sets out four ways a person providing home instruction can qualify. The instructor must be:

A licensed Minnesota teacher — holding a valid Minnesota teaching license, or
Directly supervised by a licensed teacher — the parent provides instruction under the direct supervision of a person who holds a valid Minnesota teaching license, or
A holder of a baccalaureate degree — the instructor holds a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution (in any field), or
A parent assessed under Subd. 11 — the parent, guardian, or legal custodian is providing instruction and the student is assessed annually under the procedures in Subd. 11

Most homeschooling parents use option 4 — agreeing with the superintendent on an annual nationally normed assessment and reporting the results. This path is available regardless of the parent’s educational background; no degree or license is required.

A fifth option that previously existed — a teacher competency examination — is no longer available as of a 2023 statutory amendment.

Testing

Minn. Stat. § 120A.22, Subd. 11 requires that a homeschool student receive a nationally normed achievement test each year. The parent and the local school district superintendent must agree on:

The specific test to be administered
The method of administration
The location where the test will be given

This agreement is reached before or at the time the Letter of Intent is submitted. In practice, most districts and families agree on a standardized test the family administers at home or at a private testing center. Common choices include the Iowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS), the Stanford Achievement Test (SAT-10), and the Woodcock-Johnson. The district does not provide or pay for the test under the Subd. 11 process, though districts may offer testing as part of their Nonpublic Pupil Aids allotment (see the Support section below).

Test results are kept by the family. They are not submitted to the school district or to the state. The purpose of the test is to demonstrate that instruction is occurring and is producing academic progress — but there is no minimum score requirement and no consequence for low scores under the statute.

Accreditation waiver

A homeschool accredited by the Home-Based Educators Accrediting Association (HBEAA) — the only homeschool accrediting agency currently recognized by Minnesota — is exempt from the annual testing requirement under § 120A.22, Subd. 11. HBEAA accreditation involves a multi-year process and is not required. Families who find the annual testing requirement manageable generally skip accreditation; those who want the exemption or the credential for other purposes may pursue it.

Record keeping

Minnesota law does not specify a minimum set of records that homeschool parents must create or retain beyond the Letter of Intent itself. The statute does not require a portfolio, attendance log, or grade records to be submitted to any agency.

As a practical matter, keeping basic records serves your family well:

Annual test results — While not submitted to the district, test results are your documentation that the annual assessment requirement was met. Retain them.
Transcripts and course descriptions — Colleges, community colleges, and employers may request transcripts. The MDE notes that it does not certify or validate homeschool diplomas or transcripts; you create and maintain these documents yourself.
Letters of Intent and proof of submission — Keep copies of each year’s letter and any confirmation from the district superintendent.
Nonpublic Pupil Aid requests — If you participate in the aid program, retain copies of request forms and any correspondence (see Support section).

If your child has or had an IEP or special education evaluation from a public school, retain those records. They are useful if your child later seeks re-evaluation or re-enrollment.

Financial support

K-12 Education Credit

Minnesota’s K-12 Education Credit (Minn. Stat. § 290.0674; Schedule M1ED) allows a refundable credit equal to 75 percent of qualifying education expenses for each child in grades K–12, including students in a “qualified home school.”

Detail	Amount
Credit rate	75% of qualifying expenses
Maximum credit	$1,500 per qualifying child (for families with AGI at or below the income threshold)
Income limit	Credit phases out above approximately $75,820 AGI (inflation-adjusted annually) for one child; steeper phase-out for two or more children
Refundable	Yes — if the credit exceeds your tax liability, the excess is refunded
Form	Schedule M1ED, K-12 Education Credit

Qualifying expenses include purchases of required materials and miscellaneous fees for use during the normal school day, instructor fees and tuition for enrichment classes or instruction taken outside the normal school day or year (provided the instructor is not the child’s sibling, parent, or grandparent), and computer hardware and educational software (up to $200 per family). The same expenses cannot be claimed for both the credit and the subtraction (see below).

Note that instructor fees paid to a parent do not qualify, since the statute requires the instructor to be someone other than the child’s parent or lineal ancestor.

Minnesota Department of Revenue guidance: revenue.state.mn.us/home-school-expenses

K-12 Education Subtraction

The K-12 Education Subtraction (Minn. Stat. § 290.0672; Schedule M1M, Line 13) reduces your taxable income by the amount of qualifying education expenses, with per-child caps:

Child’s grade	Maximum subtraction per child
Kindergarten through grade 6	$1,625
Grades 7 through 12	$2,500

The subtraction covers a broader range of expenses than the credit: it includes tuition for classes taken during the regular school day (which the credit does not), plus required materials, computer hardware/software (up to $200 per family), and qualifying enrichment fees. The child must attend a home school located in Minnesota, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota, or Wisconsin.

You may not use the same expenses for both the credit and the subtraction. In general, the credit provides more value for lower-income families because it is refundable and calculated at 75%; the subtraction benefits higher-income families who cannot fully use the credit.

Governing statute: revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/290.0674 (credit); revenue.state.mn.us/k-12-education-subtraction-and-credit

Nonpublic Pupil Aids

Minnesota law (Minn. Stat. §§ 123B.40–123B.48) requires public school districts to provide homeschool students with access to certain state-funded benefits upon request by September 15 each year. For 2026–27, the per-pupil entitlement rates are:

Aid category	Per-pupil rate (2026-27)
Textbooks, standardized tests, and individualized instructional materials	$138.43
Pupil health services	$89.75
Secondary pupil guidance and counseling services	$376.69

To access these benefits, submit a request to your resident school district’s nonpublic pupil aids coordinator no later than September 15 of the school year. Requests submitted after that date are not eligible for reimbursement. The materials and services available are secular and nonideological, as required by the statute.

Withdrawing from public school

Minnesota does not require state permission to begin homeschooling. If your child is currently enrolled in public school, the process is straightforward:

Notify the school in writing that you are withdrawing your child to begin home instruction under Minn. Stat. § 120A.22. There is no state-prescribed withdrawal form; a brief written notice to the principal or superintendent is sufficient. The district will remove your child from its enrollment rolls.
Send your first Letter of Intent to the district superintendent before or at the time instruction begins if it is after the start of the school year, or by October 1 if you are starting at the beginning of the year.
Agree with the superintendent on the annual assessment — either at the time of the Letter of Intent or before the assessment is due.

The district cannot condition your child’s withdrawal on your providing lesson plans, curriculum, or a teaching plan. The right to home educate is established by statute, not granted by the district.

Returning to public school: A student returning from home instruction may enroll in the resident district. Grade placement is determined by the district’s own policies. Keeping organized records of coursework and annual test results makes the transition smoother, particularly at the high school level.

Support and community

Minnesota’s homeschool community is active at both the statewide and regional level.

Minnesota Homeschool Alliance (MHEA) — mhea.net — a statewide advocacy organization that monitors legislation, provides resources on complying with Minnesota’s homeschool statutes, and maintains information on testing options and local co-ops.
Minnesota Association of Christian Home Educators (MACHE) — mache.org — a statewide organization that also operates an annual convention and provides compliance guidance independent of any particular educational philosophy.
Home-Based Educators Accrediting Association (HBEAA) — the only homeschool accrediting agency currently recognized by Minnesota; accreditation through HBEAA waives the annual normed-testing requirement. Information is available through MHEA.
Your resident school district — the district superintendent’s office is the point of contact for Letters of Intent, annual assessment agreements, and Nonpublic Pupil Aid requests. Districts vary in how responsive and accommodating they are; the statewide organizations above can advise on district-specific experiences.
Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) — education.mn.gov/MDE/fam/nphs/home/index.htm — the MDE publishes a Homeschool Questions and Answers document, the Letter of Intent to Continue to Provide Instruction form, and other guidance on its homeschool page. The MDE does not investigate educational neglect; that authority rests with county social services.