Louisiana gives families two legal routes. A BESE-approved home study program means a yearly application with evidence of a quality curriculum. A nonpublic school not seeking state approval means a short yearly attendance report and no review at all.
Verified against primary sources November 2026. Laws change; sources are linked at the bottom of this page.
Choose one of two routes. For a BESE-approved home study program, apply to the Louisiana Department of Education within 15 days after your program begins, with a certified copy of your child's birth certificate, and renew every year by October 1 or within 12 months of approval, whichever is later, with one kind of evidence: a packet showing the year's curriculum and work, a standardized test result, or a statement from a certified teacher. For a nonpublic school not seeking state approval, report your school's enrollment to the department within 30 days of the start of your school term. The state does not approve or review that school. Either way, Louisiana sets no required curriculum list and no teaching certificate for the parent.
The state board approves your program each year, through the Department of Education. Your child counts as attending school, a home study diploma carries the rights of a state-approved nonpublic school diploma, and students in home study for grades 11 and 12 can qualify for TOPS.
Louisiana law lets a child enroll in a nonpublic school that does not seek state approval, and the department says families use this route to educate their children independently. The school reports its enrollment once a year. The department does not approve, oversee, or keep records for it.
A parent or legal guardian applies to the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) for approval of a home study program. The first application is due within 15 days after the program begins. In practice you apply to the Department of Education, which reviews it for BESE, online or, if you cannot use the online system, on paper. The department says review can take up to 14 business days.
Send a certified copy of your child's birth certificate; a short-form birth certification card is accepted. The first application is approved if you certify that the program will offer a sustained curriculum of quality at least equal to that offered by public schools at the same grade level. The department's form also asks for your child's name, grade, and date of birth, your contact details, the school your child last attended, and, for an 11-year-old, a meningococcal immunization statement.
Renew by October 1 of the school year or within 12 months of approval of the first application, whichever is later. With the renewal, send either a packet (such as an outline of each subject taught last year, a list of books and materials, copies of your child's work, copies of standardized tests, statements from people who observed your child's progress, or other evidence of quality), or one of three alternatives: a passing score on the state's competency-based exam, a standardized test showing your child at or above grade level or progressing one grade level for each year in home study, or a statement from a teacher certified at your child's grade level who has examined the program. If a packet falls short, the department tells you what is missing and asks for more.
The state board's rule says the law allows no exceptions to the approval deadline and no retroactive approval for a past school year, so keeping a record of each year's home study approval is the parent's job.
A parent whose child is enrolled in an approved home study program is considered in compliance with the compulsory attendance law. The department notifies your local school system within 30 days when it approves or denies an application, or when an expected renewal does not arrive.
Nothing in the attendance law stops a child from enrolling in a nonpublic school not seeking state approval. The parent reports the child's attendance to the Department of Education within 30 days of the start of the school term. A school that takes no public funds reports its total attendance as of the thirtieth day of its term. The department collects this through an online attendance submission form, and the confirmation letter is valid for one year.
Every nonapproved private school sends a written notice of enrollment to the public school a student last attended, within 10 days of enrollment, for a student who came straight from a public school. The notice gives at least the student's legal name, date of birth, gender, and race, and may be a request for the transcript. Any school must also tell the local public school system, when asked, whether a student is enrolled and meeting the attendance law.
For a nonpublic school that receives no local, state, or federal funds, the instructional staff need to meet only the requirements the school or church sets. For home study, the department says there are no teaching certification requirements.
| Before you withdraw (suggested) | The department suggests applying for home study before you withdraw your child from school. A public school cannot refuse to let you withdraw. |
| Within 15 days after home study begins | Submit the initial home study application with a certified copy of the birth certificate. |
| Within 30 days of the school term starting | Private school route: report your school's enrollment to the Department of Education. |
| Within 10 days of enrolling a child who left public school | Private school route: send a written notice of enrollment to the public school your child last attended. |
| By October 1, or within 12 months of approval if later | Home study: submit the renewal application with a packet, a test result, or a certified teacher's statement. Repeat every year. |
| Early January (optional) | If you want state testing for your child, the department's guidelines say to arrange it with the local school board's testing office during the first part of January. |
Home study is approved by the state board (BESE) each year, based on evidence you submit, and a home study diploma carries the rights of a diploma from a state-approved nonpublic school. A nonpublic school not seeking state approval only reports its enrollment to the department each year. Nobody reviews its curriculum, but the department says its students are not eligible for TOPS scholarships and its diploma does not carry the same weight as a state-issued diploma.
The first application is due within 15 days after your home study program begins. The department suggests applying before you withdraw your child from school. A renewal is due by October 1 of the school year or within 12 months of your first approval, whichever is later, and every year after that.
One of these: a packet showing the program offered a sustained curriculum of quality at least equal to public schools at the same grade level (an outline of subjects taught, a list of books and materials, samples of your child's work, test copies, or statements from people who observed your child's progress); a standardized test showing your child scored at or above grade level or progressed one grade level for each year in home study; or a statement from a teacher certified at your child's grade level who has examined the program.
No. The department says home study students are not required to take state assessments. You may ask the local school board to test your child, and the statute lets the board charge up to $35.
Yes. The department's guidelines say a public school may not turn a student away from extracurricular activities or interscholastic athletics only because the student is in an approved home study program, as long as the student lives in that school's attendance zone. The student tries out and keeps up the same requirements as other students.
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Make a free parent accountReference information reviewed August 2026 against primary sources (statutes, NCAA and Common App published requirements). This is general information, not legal advice; requirements change, so verify anything load-bearing for your family against your state's current law.