Vermont asks for one enrollment form a year, sent to the state at least 10 business days before you start. You assess your child every year, but since July 2023 the assessment stays in your own files.
Verified against primary sources November 2026. Laws change; sources are linked at the bottom of this page.
Send the Secretary of Education a notice of intent on the Agency of Education's form at least 10 business days before home study begins. In it you attest that you will give the equivalent of 175 days of instruction in the minimum course of study, assess your child's progress at the end of each year, and keep that record. A first-time student who never attended a Vermont public school or home study program also needs independent professional evidence about whether the child has a documented disability. Your child is enrolled once the Agency sends written acknowledgment. Each following year, file an annual notice at least 10 business days before you start. Nothing else is filed with the state.
Vermont's homeschool route. The parent enrolls the child with the Agency of Education, chooses the curriculum, and keeps the records. A home study program may teach the children living in that home, plus two or fewer other children, or the children of one other family.
Attending an approved or recognized independent school also satisfies the attendance law. A home study program is, by definition, not a recognized independent school, so this is a separate route with its own rules, not covered on this page.
Send the Secretary of Education a notice of intent to enroll your child in a home study program at least 10 business days before home study begins. The notice must be on the form the Agency of Education developed. The Agency offers it online or on paper, and the paper form can be emailed, faxed, or mailed. Send one form for each child.
Your child's name, age, and full date of birth; the names, mailing addresses, email addresses, town of legal residence, and telephone numbers of every parent or guardian with legal custody who may make educational decisions for your child; and the signatures of all of them, or an attestation that the parent filing has sole primary educational decision-making authority. The notice also carries three attestations: that progress will be assessed at the end of each school year and the record kept, that your child will get the equivalent of at least 175 days of instruction in the minimum course of study, and that a child with a documented disability will get adaptations. The Agency's form also asks for the public school your child would otherwise attend. A student 18 or older signs too.
For a child never enrolled in a Vermont public school or Vermont home study program, include independent professional evidence on whether the child has a documented disability and how it may affect the child's progress in home study. The Agency accepts its Independent Professional Evidence form, completed by a licensed professional who is not related to the student, or alternatives such as a Vermont public school report card, an IEP or 504 plan, or other documentation of a disability.
Learning experiences adapted to your child's age and ability in: basic communication skills, including reading, writing, and the use of numbers; citizenship, history, and government in Vermont and the United States; physical education and comprehensive health education; English, American, and other literature; the natural sciences; and the fine arts. For a child 13 or older, only reading, writing and numbers, citizenship and history, literature, and natural science are required. You do not send a curriculum to the Agency, though it suggests writing one each year and keeping a copy.
Choose one: a standardized assessment, given by the local school district, a testing service, or in a way the testing company approves; a review of your child's progress by someone with a current Vermont teacher's certificate; a parent report and portfolio with a summary of what your child learned that year and at least four samples of student work; grades from an online academy or school; or evidence of passing the GED. The parent keeps the record. The Agency says not to send it unless you want it reviewed, and suggests keeping assessments until your child turns 18.
Within 10 business days of a complete notice, the Secretary or a designee sends written acknowledgment of receipt, and that acknowledgment is your child's enrollment verification under the attendance law. The Agency says sending the notice does not by itself enroll your child, and that a child not yet enrolled should keep attending school until enrollment is complete.
After your first complete enrollment, notify the Secretary on or before the start of each following year that you intend to continue, on the Agency's form, at least 10 business days before your intended start date. The Agency's Annual Notice form has you attest that last year's 175 days and assessment were done and that next year's will be.
Notify the Secretary in writing within 10 business days after the date your child is withdrawn from home study. The Agency accepts an email to the Home Study Office naming the student, the withdrawal date, and the school your child is entering.
| March 1 | The Agency of Education starts accepting enrollments for the next school year (its published 2026-27 timeline gives March 1, 2027 for the 2027-28 year). This is Agency practice, not a statutory date. |
| At least 10 business days before you start | Send the enrollment notice (first year) or the annual notice (every year after). The Agency recommends filing by early August if you start with the school year. |
| Within 10 business days of a complete notice | The Agency sends written acknowledgment. That acknowledgment is your child's enrollment. |
| End of the school year | Assess your child's progress using one of the five options and keep the record. Nothing is filed. |
| April 1 | Under the Agency's timeline, it stops accepting enrollments for the current school year. Partial-year enrollments stay open through March 31. Agency practice, not a statutory date. |
| Within 10 business days after your child leaves home study | Notify the Secretary in writing. |
At least 10 business days before you start home study, on the Agency of Education's form. The Agency then has 10 business days from a complete notice to send you a written acknowledgment, which counts as your child's enrollment. The Agency advises keeping your child in school until that confirmation arrives.
No, not since July 1, 2023. You still assess your child at the end of every school year and keep the record. The Agency says you may send it in only if you want it reviewed, for example to get a Verification letter.
For a child younger than 13: reading, writing and math; citizenship, history and government in Vermont and the United States; physical education and comprehensive health education; English, American and other literature; the natural sciences; and the fine arts. For a child 13 or older, the same list without physical education, health and fine arts. You attest to these on the form but do not send a curriculum.
One of five: a standardized test, a review of your child's progress by a person with a current Vermont teacher's certificate, a parent report and portfolio with a summary of what your child learned and at least four work samples, grades from an online academy or school, or passing the GED.
No. Vermont's attendance law covers ages 6 to 16, and a child who has completed 10th grade is also excused. The Agency notes that some families keep enrolling past 16 so they can get a Verification letter for college, work, or the military.
A free parent account comes with a Home class. Add your children as students and see every project they make and every lesson they finish. See what they can make, by age.
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.