The Short Answer
To register, complete the Annual Home Schooling Application Form and submit it to your local school district by September 15. New Brunswick has four anglophone and three francophone districts, and you apply to the one where you live. The district forwards your application to the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development, and the Minister grants the exemption from compulsory attendance. You can begin homeschooling as soon as the district receives your form, and a formal approval or denial letter follows. You reapply every school year.
Verified June 2026 against the New Brunswick Education Act (sections 15 and 16) and the Anglophone School District home schooling registration process.
New Brunswick Homeschool Application at a Glance
| The form | Annual Home Schooling Application Form (all pages) |
|---|---|
| Where it goes | Your local school district (4 anglophone, 3 francophone) |
| Deadline | By September 15 each year |
| Who approves | The Minister, via the Department of Education (EECD) |
| How to submit | Email or mail to your district |
| When you can start | As soon as the district receives your form |
| What you get back | A formal letter of approval or denial |
| How often | Every school year |
| Cost | None |
What the Application Does
The Annual Home Schooling Application Form is how you ask the province for an exemption from compulsory school attendance under the Education Act. New Brunswick requires children aged 5 to 18 to attend school unless the Minister exempts a child who is under effective instruction at home. Your application is that request. The Minister must grant it when satisfied your child is under effective instruction, which means the bar is reasonable rather than arbitrary.
Once the application is submitted and the exemption granted, your child is officially homeschooled for that year. You have taken on the planning, teaching, and assessment the school used to handle. The province does not inspect your home, set a curriculum you must follow, or require tests during the year. The exemption is the permission, and then the year is yours. For the full picture of your responsibilities as the instructing parent, see our guide on how to homeschool in New Brunswick.
Which District to Apply To
You apply to the school district where you live. New Brunswick divides into four anglophone districts and three francophone districts, and you use the one that covers your address and matches your language of instruction. If you are unsure which district covers your area, the Government of New Brunswick website lists the districts and their boundaries.
Each district has its own contact for home schooling registration. The Anglophone West district, which covers Fredericton and surrounding areas, accepts the form by email or by mail to its administrative office. Other anglophone districts, Anglophone East, Anglophone North, and Anglophone South, have their own contacts listed on their websites. Francophone families apply to the appropriate francophone district. Before you send anything, check your district's homeschool registration page for the current email address and mailing address, because contact details can change year to year.
Before you write your plan for the application, our free reading assessment gives you a concrete starting point on where your child currently stands. That baseline makes the language arts section of the form much more grounded than guessing at grade level.
The Step-by-Step Process
The application moves through four stages. You complete the Annual Home Schooling Application Form, including every page, and submit it to your district. The district forwards your registration to the Policy and Planning Branch at the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (EECD). The EECD reviews the application and the Minister issues a formal letter of approval or denial. You can begin homeschooling the moment your district has your completed form, without waiting for the letter.
For most families, this process runs without complications. The approval letter arrives within a reasonable window, and in the meantime teaching is already underway. If there is a question about your application, the department contacts you. Keeping a copy of what you submitted and noting the date you sent it means you have a record if any questions come up. You submit a new application every school year you continue, so this becomes a yearly fall routine rather than a one-time event.
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When to Submit
The form is due to your district by September 15. Build that date into your late-summer planning each year, since you reapply annually. Filing in July or August gives the district and the department time to process the approval letter and address any questions well before autumn is underway. Families who file at the last moment may find the letter arrives after the year has started, which is fine legally since you can begin as soon as the district receives the form, but it removes any buffer if there is a problem.
If you are withdrawing a child from school during the year rather than at the start, file the application as soon as you decide. The same logic applies: you can begin once the district receives your form. There is no separate mid-year version; the same Annual Home Schooling Application Form is used whenever you register. Mark the September 15 deadline somewhere you will see it in late August so it does not slip past a busy back-to-school period.
What to Put on the Form
The form asks for your child's identifying information and a description of your plan for the year. The description is where you show the Minister that your child will be under effective instruction. You do not need a school-style scope and sequence document. A clear account of what you intend to teach and the resources you will use is enough to satisfy the threshold.
Planning around the core areas a school covers makes the form straightforward to complete and your child easier to transition back to school later if you choose. Language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies are the expected areas. You can add physical education, arts, a second language, or anything else your family values. For each area you mention, naming the main resource, whether that is a workbook series, an online program, library books, or a mix, gives the description enough substance to be credible.
Keep the description general enough that adjusting your resources during the year does not put your plan out of alignment with what you wrote. Naming a program type or a curriculum approach rather than a specific edition or title leaves room to adapt. If you want a structure for turning those subject areas into a weekly plan before you write the form, our getting-started guide walks through that step by step.
After You Apply
Once your exemption is approved, New Brunswick asks very little of you during the year. The province is light on mandated reporting and does not require standardized testing for homeschooled children. You track your own child's progress and keep your own records. That low-oversight environment is one of the reasons families choose New Brunswick, but it means the accountability sits with you rather than being prompted by external deadlines.
Keep your own records through the year. A folder of dated work samples per subject, a few per term, does not take much time to build and pays off in several ways. It supports next year's application by giving you concrete evidence of what the year looked like. It helps your child if they return to school, since the school can see where they left off. And it matters for high school planning, given that students taught entirely at home are not eligible for the New Brunswick High School Diploma. If the diploma is relevant to your family's plans, start sorting that out with your district early. For a full breakdown of the rule and the routes around it, see New Brunswick Homeschool High School Diploma (2026).
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Val's Note: What This Really Means for You
The first time I filled out a form like this, I overthought the plan section and wrote pages. You do not need that. A short, honest description of what you will teach and what you will use is enough to show effective instruction. Paragraph-long descriptions per subject area are fine. The person reviewing your form is checking that you have a plan, not grading the plan itself.
What I would not skip is sending it to the right district and getting it in by the deadline. A late or misdirected form is the only thing that really slows families down here, because the application period is firm. Keep a copy of what you submit, note the date you sent it, and confirm your district received it if you do not hear anything within a few weeks. Keep that same discipline with your records through the year, even though no one is checking them regularly. The year's worth of folders you build is what makes the following September's application and any future transition feel manageable rather than like starting from scratch.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Form Do I Need to Homeschool in New Brunswick?
The Annual Home Schooling Application Form, with all pages completed and submitted to your local school district.
Which District Do I Send It To?
The school district where you live. New Brunswick has four anglophone districts (Anglophone West, East, North, and South) and three francophone districts. Check your district's website for the current contact and address.
When Is It Due?
By September 15 each year. You reapply every school year, even as a returning family.
How Do I Submit It?
By email or mail to your district. Each district has its own contact for homeschool registration. Check the district's website before submitting, as contact details can change from year to year.
Can I Start Before I Get the Approval Letter?
Yes. You can begin homeschooling as soon as your district receives your completed form. The formal letter of approval or denial follows after the district forwards your application to the department.
What Happens After the District Receives It?
The district sends your application to the Policy and Planning Branch at the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development. The Minister then grants the exemption from compulsory attendance when satisfied your child is under effective instruction.
Sources
This guide was verified in June 2026 against the following primary sources. Confirm current application deadlines and district contacts with your school district before each school year, as submission procedures can change.