Indiana Code §20-33-2-17 exempts children from compulsory public school attendance if they are receiving "instruction equivalent to that given in public schools." Indiana treats home schools as non-accredited private schools. No registration with the state or any school district is required. No testing, no portfolio, no evaluator. No parent credential required. Compulsory school age runs from 7 through 18. No state funding for home school families operating as non-accredited private schools.
Verified June 2026 · Indiana Code §20-33-2-17 · Indiana Department of Education. Confirm there have been no legislative changes at iga.in.gov before relying on this for legal decisions.
| Requirement | What Indiana Requires |
|---|---|
| Registration or notice | Not required; no filing with any government body |
| Parent credential | Not required |
| Required subjects | Equivalent instruction to public schools; no mandatory subject list for non-accredited private schools |
| Daily or yearly hours | Not specified |
| Testing | Not required |
| Portfolio | Not required |
| Evaluator | Not required |
| Compulsory age | 7 through 18 |
| High school diploma | Parent-issued |
| State funding | No ESA or voucher available to non-accredited home school families |
How Indiana Treats Home Schools
Indiana's compulsory education law (IC §20-33-2-17) requires children between the ages of 7 and 18 to attend school. The law exempts children who are receiving instruction "equivalent to that given in public schools," which Indiana courts and the Department of Education have interpreted to include home education. Indiana does not have a separate home school statute. Home schools operate under the same framework as other non-accredited private schools: they are legal, they are independent, and they are not subject to state oversight.
The practical result of this framework is that Indiana home schoolers have no government body to report to, no annual filing to complete, and no required testing or evaluation. The family decides what to teach, how to teach it, and for how long each day. No state or local official verifies any of these decisions. The compulsory attendance obligation is satisfied by the fact that you are providing home-based instruction.
Indiana's approach puts it in the same category as Michigan and Texas: states where the law creates an exemption, sets a general standard, and leaves the rest to the family. The difference from Michigan is that Indiana's standard is somewhat more open-ended. Michigan lists nine specific subjects; Indiana uses the broader "equivalent instruction" standard with no enumerated subject list for non-accredited programs.
No Registration, No Notice, No Approval
Indiana home school families file nothing with anyone. There is no Notice of Intent to the school district, no annual affidavit to the superintendent, no registration with the Indiana Department of Education, and no private school filing of any kind for non-accredited programs. You begin educating your child at home and you keep going. No government body approves or acknowledges the program.
If you are withdrawing your child from a public school, write a brief letter to the school notifying them that you are removing your child to provide home instruction. The school updates its enrollment records. That letter is not a legal filing under home school law. It is an internal school document. After you send it, no further contact with the school district is required.
Families who move within Indiana face no re-registration requirement. There is no Indiana home school registry to update. You continue teaching at your new address. The exemption travels with the child and the parent's instruction, not with a record on file at any government office.
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Equivalent Instruction: What Indiana Expects
Indiana's standard is "instruction equivalent to that given in public schools." Indiana does not define this in terms of specific subjects, daily hours, grade-level benchmarks, or tested content. No list of required subjects appears in Indiana's home school framework for non-accredited private schools. No minimum hours per day or days per year are specified.
When examined as a legal matter, the equivalence standard means that if the question of educational adequacy were raised in a formal context, a family's ability to demonstrate that real instruction occurred, covering core subjects across the school year, would matter. For the vast majority of Indiana home school families, this never becomes an issue. Courts and the Department of Education do not inspect home schools or audit their programs. The equivalence standard is a legal floor, not a daily compliance checklist.
Most Indiana families cover language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies as the core of their program, with electives, enrichment subjects, and extracurricular activities filling in around that core. This approach addresses the spirit of the equivalence standard and reflects what Indiana public schools teach at each grade level. A reading assessment early in the year gives you a clear baseline before you build the curriculum plan and helps you know whether your child needs more time on foundational skills or is ready to advance.
No Parent Credential Required
Indiana law does not require the teaching parent to hold a high school diploma, GED, teaching certificate, or any other credential. Any parent or guardian may provide home instruction under Indiana's non-accredited private school framework. This is one of the broadest parent qualification frameworks in the country, placing no conditions on the family beyond the provision of equivalent instruction.
A parent who wants structure for their own teaching, regardless of credential requirements, can find it through curriculum packages that include teacher's guides, scope and sequence charts, and lesson plans built for home educators. The law does not require it; many families find it useful anyway.
No Testing Requirement
Indiana does not require home-educated students to take any standardized test. There is no annual assessment requirement, no portfolio review, and no minimum score standard. The decision to test, which test to use, and how to use the results is entirely the family's.
Many Indiana home school families administer standardized tests voluntarily to track their child's progress and to build a record for college admissions, but this is a family choice, not a legal obligation. Tests like the Iowa Assessments, Stanford Achievement Test Series, and ACT can all be administered independently and provide useful data for planning purposes regardless of what Indiana law requires.
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Record Keeping in Indiana
Indiana law does not require home schools to maintain or submit any particular records. No attendance log, no portfolio, and no testing records are required by law.
Keeping basic records anyway is worth doing for practical reasons. College applications ask for transcripts and educational credentials. Military enlistment requires documentation of education. Employers and licensing boards sometimes ask for educational records. A student who has year-by-year records of courses, materials, grades, and completed work can produce a credible transcript for any of these purposes. A student without records faces a harder task when those documents are needed.
A minimal record system for each school year, listing subjects covered, materials used, a few samples of completed work, and a brief note on progress, is all that most families need. It takes a few minutes a week to maintain and removes most of the documentation burden at graduation. Build that habit in year one and it becomes automatic.
Compulsory Age and When the Law Applies
Indiana's compulsory school age begins at 7, one year later than most states. Children younger than 7 are not subject to Indiana's attendance law, which means families with early learners can begin home instruction as informally or formally as they choose without any legal obligations attached. The compulsory attendance window ends at 18 or high school graduation, whichever comes first.
Most families continue home education through high school graduation regardless of the compulsory age threshold, and Indiana law creates no barrier to doing so. The window matters most for families new to the state or those wondering whether anything changes when a child reaches a certain age.
Pulling Your Child Out of an Indiana Public School
Send a written withdrawal notice to the school. The school updates its enrollment records. No further action is required. You begin home instruction immediately. There is no waiting period, no approval process, and no notice to anyone other than the school itself.
If your child has an Individualized Education Program, mandatory special education services through the public school end at withdrawal. Indiana allows school districts to make certain services available to private school students with disabilities on a voluntary basis, but the entitlement under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act ends when the child leaves public school. Contact your district's special education office before withdrawing if your child currently receives services under an IEP.
High School, Transcripts, and Diplomas in Indiana
Indiana does not set graduation requirements or diploma standards for non-accredited private schools, which means you set your own. You establish the graduation criteria, track credits through grades 9 to 12, and issue the diploma when your student meets the requirements. A parent-issued Indiana home school diploma and accompanying transcript are accepted by most Indiana colleges, employers, and licensing bodies.
Indiana's public universities, including Indiana University, Purdue University, and Ball State University, are experienced reviewing home school applications. Most ask for ACT or SAT scores from home-educated applicants alongside the parent-issued transcript. A transcript listing course names, credit hours, and grades by year is the standard document. Selective programs may ask for course descriptions. Prepare those in advance if your student is applying to competitive schools.
Indiana community colleges are accessible to home school graduates, and dual enrollment for high school students is available at many campuses. Check with the specific institution for their home school applicant requirements.
Indiana participates in the federal Pell Grant system, and home school graduates are eligible to apply through the standard FAFSA process. On the FAFSA, identify your child's education as home school instruction. Federal financial aid rules apply different eligibility criteria to home school students than to private school students, so do not describe the program as private school attendance even though Indiana law uses that framework for attendance purposes. The Homeschool Teacher Guide covers how to build a full high school plan and transcript that holds up to college review.
No State Funding for Non-Accredited Indiana Home School Families
Indiana's Choice Scholarship Program provides state funds for students to attend accredited private schools. It is not available to families operating as non-accredited private schools under IC §20-33-2-17. All curriculum and material costs for home school families are the family's responsibility.
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A Note from Homeschool Teacher Guide: What This Really Means for You
Indiana is one of the most straightforward states to home school in. No paperwork, no credential requirement, no test, no evaluator. You withdraw your child from public school with a letter and you start teaching. The equivalence standard exists in the law, but no one is checking your curriculum against it.
What Indiana families need to provide is not compliance documentation. It is structure. Without an annual test or evaluator pushing you to document the year's work, the discipline of record-keeping has to come from inside the household. Keep a simple log from the first day of your school year. Not because anyone will ask for it, but because your child will eventually need it. Indiana's freedom is real. Use it well, and keep just enough documentation that your child can prove what they learned when the moment comes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do we Need to Notify Anyone to Start Home Schooling in Indiana?
No. Indiana does not require home school families to register with the state, notify their local school district, or file with any government body. If you are withdrawing your child from a public school, send a letter to the school to update its enrollment records. That is an internal school document, not a legal filing under home school law.
Does Indiana Require Standardized Testing for Home School Students?
No. Indiana has no testing requirement for home-educated students. There is also no portfolio requirement and no annual evaluation by a third party. Any testing you do is voluntary.
What Subjects Does Indiana Require Home Schools to Teach?
Indiana's legal standard is instruction equivalent to that given in public schools. Indiana does not list required subjects for non-accredited private schools. Most families cover language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies as their core, which reflects the spirit of the equivalence standard and what Indiana public schools teach at each grade level.
Does Indiana Require the Teaching Parent to Have a Diploma or Credential?
No. Indiana's home school framework does not require the parent to hold a high school diploma, GED, teaching certificate, or any other credential. Any parent or guardian may provide home instruction.
Is a Parent-Issued Indiana Home School Diploma Accepted by Indiana Colleges?
Yes, in most cases. Indiana's public universities and most private colleges accept parent-issued home school diplomas and transcripts, most often when accompanied by ACT or SAT scores. Check with each institution's admissions office for their specific requirements, as they vary.
Sources
Indiana Code §20-33-2-17, Compulsory School Attendance Exceptions (Indiana General Assembly)
Indiana Department of Education: Home School Information
HSLDA: How to Comply with Indiana's Homeschool Law