How to Homeschool in Nebraska (2026): Filing as an Exempt School and What the Law Requires

Nebraska's Exempt School Law

Nebraska Revised Statute Section 79-1601, carried out through Department of Education Rule 13, lets families operate a home school as an exempt school. To do that, you file a Statement of Election and Assurances, known as Form A, with the Nebraska Department of Education. In that form you elect exempt status and affirm that your school will provide instruction in five subject areas. There is no testing, no parent credential, and no review of your curriculum.

Nebraska's compulsory school age runs from 6 through 18. A child in that range who is not enrolled in an approved or accredited school must be covered by an exempt school filing. Filing Form A is the step that places your home school within the law and formally establishes your family's educational program.

The exempt school framework is one of the lighter home school structures in the country. The state asks for the annual Form A election, the five-subject affirmation, and the qualified-instructor affirmation. Outside of those three pieces, the teaching is entirely yours to design and run without government review.

Filing Form A

The core task in Nebraska is Form A, the Statement of Election and Assurances. File it with the Nebraska Department of Education when you first begin your exempt school, and then by July 15 each year for as long as you home school. The July 15 deadline is the annual renewal point; a brand-new exempt school files when it starts rather than waiting for the next July cycle.

In the form you affirm that your school provides instruction in the required subject areas and that the people teaching are qualified, as you determine. Nebraska also asks for some basic program information as part of the exempt school filing. Keep a copy of each year's Form A and any confirmation from the Department of Education. Putting July 15 on your calendar as a recurring reminder is the single best habit for staying in good standing year after year.

Before you finalize your plan for the first school year, run a free reading and academic assessment so you know where your child stands. That baseline helps you choose materials at the right level and figure out which subject areas need the most attention from the start.

The Five Required Subjects

Nebraska asks you to affirm instruction in five subject areas on Form A: language arts, mathematics, science, social studies, and health. These five form the required academic core, and you are free to teach more on top of them, which most families do. History, the arts, physical education, foreign language, and elective topics are common additions that round out the program beyond what the law asks for.

Nebraska does not dictate which curriculum, textbooks, or publishers you use, and the state does not review or approve your course of study before you begin or during the year. You choose the materials and the instructional approach that fit your child. Most standard home school curriculum packages from established publishers cover all five required areas in a structured sequence. If you build your own program from individual resources, check it against the five-subject list so each area is represented through the year.

The full planning guide walks through how to map the five required subjects to a curriculum before you purchase anything, so you know what you are covering and where your child's time will go before you spend.

The Qualified-Instructor Standard

Nebraska does not require the teaching parent to hold a teaching certificate or any specific degree. Form A asks you to affirm that the people providing instruction in your exempt school are qualified to teach the required subjects, and you are the one who decides what qualified means for your school.

This keeps the door open to any parent while setting a basic expectation that the instruction is real and capable. Most parents meet the standard without a second thought, because they are capable adults who can teach elementary and middle school subjects well. At the high school level, using packaged curriculum, online courses, tutors, or a co-op for subjects outside your strength is a common and effective approach. None of those choices changes your standing as an exempt school; they are tools for meeting the affirmation you make on Form A.

The key is to take the affirmation seriously rather than treating it as a formality. Your child's education is in your hands, and the standard you set for yourself is the floor the state is pointing to, not the ceiling you should aim for.

What Nebraska Does Not Require

It helps to see everything Nebraska leaves out of the picture. There is no standardized testing. There is no annual academic report beyond the Form A election and affirmations. There is no portfolio review, no evaluation by a third party, and no parent education credential. There is no curriculum approval process and no home visit. After your Form A filing, the state steps back from the day-to-day work of your school entirely.

That light framework places the structure entirely in your hands. Keeping your own simple records beyond what the filing requires, such as a list of subjects and materials and a sampling of your child's completed work, is a sound practice even though Nebraska does not require it. Those records help you track progress over time, make building a transcript far easier when your student reaches high school, and give you something concrete to reflect on year to year.

Withdrawing from a Nebraska Public School

If your child is currently enrolled in a Nebraska public school, file Form A with the Department of Education to establish your exempt school and notify your child's school in writing that you are withdrawing. Keep copies of both. Filing the exempt school election and informing the school at the same time closes out the public enrollment cleanly and prevents absences from being recorded as truancy while records are updated on both ends.

If your child has an Individualized Education Program, the mandatory special education services provided through the public school end when you withdraw. Nebraska districts may make some services available to exempt school students on a limited basis, but the IEP entitlement that applies to enrolled public school students does not carry over to a home school setting. Contact your district's special education office before withdrawing if services are currently in place and you want to understand what options remain after your child leaves the public system.

High School, Transcripts, and Diplomas in Nebraska

Nebraska does not set graduation requirements or diploma standards for exempt school families, and there is no state approval process for a home school diploma. You establish the requirements, track credits through grades 9 to 12, and issue the diploma when your student meets them. A parent-issued Nebraska home school diploma and transcript are accepted by the University of Nebraska system, the state's community colleges, employers, and professional licensing boards.

The University of Nebraska campuses at Lincoln and Omaha, Nebraska State College campuses, and the state's community colleges all review home school applications. Most ask for ACT or SAT scores alongside the transcript, so plan for your student to sit for a college entrance test beginning in grade 10 or 11. A clear transcript that lists courses by name, credit hours, and grades by year is the standard document. Dual enrollment is available at many Nebraska institutions for high school students who want to earn college credit before graduation; contact the specific school for its home school applicant requirements. The full high school planning guide walks through building a four-year curriculum, structuring a transcript, and preparing a college application from a Nebraska exempt school.

A Note from Homeschool Teacher Guide: What This Really Means for You

Nebraska is lighter than the exempt school label makes it sound. The one thing we would never miss is the July 15 Form A filing, because that single form is what keeps your exempt school in good standing year to year. File it, save your confirmation, and you have handled the bulk of Nebraska's law for another year.

The five subjects are easy to meet with any standard curriculum, and the qualified-instructor standard is yours to define, so do not let the language on the form intimidate you. Because there is no testing and no curriculum review, the teaching is entirely your call. Build a full program around the five subjects, keep a simple file of what you teach, and put that July deadline on every year's calendar. Our planning guide can help you map the five subjects to a grade-level curriculum before you buy, so you start the year with a clear picture of what you are covering. That is Nebraska handled.