GuidesA closer look

How does home education work?

How to get an exemption to teach your child at home, what the Ministry of Education looks for, the supervision allowance, qualifications for home-educated students, and what happens when you stop.

Every statement on this page comes from an official source: Ministry of Education and New Zealand Legislation (Parliamentary Counsel Office).

What home education means

Home education, also called homeschooling, can be an alternative to attending school, but you must first apply to exempt your child from school.¹ When you homeschool, you are fully responsible for your child's learning and can set your own curriculum.²

Your child should be learning as well as, and as regularly as, they would at school.³ You do not have to follow the New Zealand Curriculum, though the Ministry recommends teaching the skills your child would normally learn at school.⁴

Home education is different from enrolling your child at Te Aho o Te Kura Pounamu, New Zealand's distance learning school, which provides teaching and resources.⁵

How to apply for an exemption

You fill in a home education application form and send it to your Ministry of Education regional office.⁶ If you have more than 1 child, you must apply for each child separately.⁷ Applying is free and normally takes 4 to 6 weeks.⁸

You must be the child's parent or legal guardian to apply, and all of the child's legal guardians need to agree to home education.⁹

Information you will need:

Your child's birth certificate, plus a marriage or name change certificate if a parent's name has changed from the one on the birth certificate.¹⁰
If the child was born outside New Zealand, a copy of their passport and visa with the expiry date, where applicable.¹¹
A copy of the Court Order, if a court has assigned your child's legal guardian.¹²

If you have trouble with the form, your regional office can help clarify information and answer questions, though they can't fill it in for you.¹³

When you can apply

You can apply to home educate your child at any age between 6 and 16.¹⁴ Children who are 5 do not legally need to be enrolled at school yet; if your child is 5 when you apply, the exemption comes into effect when they turn 6.¹⁵

If your child is older than 6, they must stay enrolled at a school while you apply.¹⁶

What the Ministry looks for

The Ministry assesses whether your proposed programme will teach your child at least as regularly, and at least as well, as they would be taught in a registered school.¹⁷ This follows section 38 of the Education and Training Act 2020: a designated Ministry officer may grant an exemption certificate on a parent’s application if satisfied the student is to be taught at least as regularly and well as in a registered school, or — if the student would otherwise be likely to need special education — as in a specialist school or a special service.¹⁸

If your child has been at school, the Ministry would contact the school for information about their education so far.¹⁹ Once you receive your Certificate of Exemption, you can start home educating from the date on the certificate; if it is issued before your child turns 6, the start date is their sixth birthday.²⁰

If your application is turned down, the Ministry sends a letter explaining why; you can appeal in writing to your regional office, and if the appeal fails you can make a new application.²¹ Under the Act, an appeal goes to the Secretary for Education, who must consider a report from the Chief Review Officer and then either confirm the refusal or grant a certificate. The Secretary’s decision is final.²²

Applying for a home education exemption

Send the application to your regional office
You fill in a home education application form and send it to your Ministry of Education regional office.⁶
The Ministry assesses your programme
The Ministry assesses whether your proposed programme will teach your child at least as regularly, and at least as well, as they would be taught in a registered school.¹⁷
If it is approved
Once you receive your Certificate of Exemption, you can start home educating from the date on the certificate; if it is issued before your child turns 6, the start date is their sixth birthday.²⁰
If it is turned down
If your application is turned down, the Ministry sends a letter explaining why; you can appeal in writing to your regional office, and if the appeal fails you can make a new application.²¹

How long the exemption lasts

The Certificate of Exemption is valid until your child turns 16 or enrols in a registered school, whichever comes first.²³ You can keep home educating after your child turns 16 without an exemption.²⁴

Reviews of your programme

Reviews of home education programmes do not happen routinely.²⁵ The Ministry may ask the Education Review Office (ERO) to review a programme if it is concerned the exemption's requirements are not being met, and will tell you why.²⁶

The Act lets the Secretary revoke an exemption certificate only if the Secretary has made reasonable efforts to get all the relevant information, has considered a report from the Chief Review Officer, and is not satisfied under subsection (1) — the test for granting an exemption, described above.²⁷

The supervision allowance

The Home Education Supervision Allowance is a contribution towards some of the cost of home educating your child.²⁸ It is paid after the period it covers, in 2 instalments a year: late June for January to June, and late November for July to December.²⁹

If you have home educated for the full half-calendar year (1 January to 30 June, or 1 July to 31 December), the payments are: $398 for the first child, $338.50 for the second, $278.50 for the third and $199 for each subsequent child.³⁰

You must complete and return a statutory declaration form for every period before payment can be made.³¹ The allowance is available until the end of the year your child turns 19, as long as you are still home educating and return the declaration each period.³²

If the exemption was granted partway through a period, the allowance is paid only from the date the exemption became active.³³ You must also tell the Ministry if your personal details change or you leave the country, because being out of New Zealand could change the allowance: 28 days or less makes no change; 29 days or more means you receive the allowance only for the time you were in New Zealand.³⁴

Qualifications and extra support

Your child may be able to sit NCEA assessments at a secondary school that agrees to be a 'link school', but no school is obliged to.³⁵
If your child is aged 16 to 19, they can enrol with Te Kura for free to sit NCEA.³⁶
Under Te Kura’s enrolment policy, home-educated students who have a home education exemption can apply for open tuition through a fee-paying gateway, with the student charged.³⁷
Home-educated students in the Ongoing Resourcing Scheme do not get school resources such as a specialist teacher and teacher aide, but can get specialist support from their regional Ministry office.³⁸

If you stop home educating

If you want to stop home educating, you can enrol your child at school at any time, and doing so cancels the certificate of exemption because you cannot do both at once.³⁹ If your child wants to move to school, contact your regional office, which will help with the process.⁴⁰

The home education oversight proposal

An amendment paper released on 19 May proposed requiring home-educating families to meet specific requirements set in regulations to keep their exemption.⁴¹ On 27 May the Government released a further amendment paper that removes this proposal from the Bill, and it has decided to pause work on the proposed home education regulations in response to feedback from stakeholders.⁴²

Sources

Every statement on this page comes from an official page, quoted in full here.

Each numbered statement above is followed here by the words of the official page it comes from. Every quote was checked against its page on 5 October 2026.

“Home education, also called homeschooling, can be an alternative to attending school. You must apply to exempt your child from school first.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“When you homeschool, you are fully responsible for your child's learning and can set your own curriculum.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“Your tamariki | child should be learning as well as, and as regularly as, they would be at school.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“We recommend teaching your child the skills that they would normally learn at school. If they were to go to school at any stage, this would make the transition easier. You do not have to follow the New Zealand Curriculum.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“Home education is different from enrolling your child at Te Aho o Te Kura Pounamu. Te Kura is New Zealand's distance learning school that provides teaching and resources for your child.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“You have to complete a home education application form and submit it to your regional office.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“If you have more than 1 child, you must apply for each child individually.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“Applying is free and normally takes 4 to 6 weeks.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“To apply, you must be the child's parent or legal guardian. All of your child's legal guardians need to be in agreement about home education.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“Your child's birth certificate If a parent has changed their name from the one listed on the child birth's certificate, provide a copy of the marriage certificate or name change certificate.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“If the child was born outside of New Zealand, a copy of their passport and visa with date of expiry, where applicable.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“If your child's legal guardian has been assigned by a court, provide us with a copy of the Court Order.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“If you have trouble filling in the form, you can ask your regional office for help. While they can't fill out the application for you, they can help clarify information and answer questions about the application process.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“You can apply to home educate your child at any age between 6 and 16.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“Children who are 5 years old do not legally need to be enrolled at a school yet. If your child is 5 when you apply for an exemption, it will come into effect when they turn 6.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“If you are applying to homeschool a child who is older than 6, they must be enrolled at a school while you do this.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“We will assess whether the programme you have proposed will: teach your child at least as regularly as they would be in a registered school teach your child at least as well as they would be taught in a registered school.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“38 Long-term exemptions from enrolment (1) An employee of the Ministry designated by the Secretary for the purpose (a designated officer ) may, on application by a parent of the student, grant the parent a certificate that exempts the student from the requirements of section 35 if the designated officer is satisfied that the student— (a) is to be taught at least as regularly and well as in a registered school; or (b) is to be taught at least as regularly and well as in a specialist school or a special service (if the student would otherwise be likely to need special education).”
New Zealand Legislation (Parliamentary Counsel Office) · legislation.govt.nz/act/public/2020/38/en/latest ↑
“If your child went to school, we would contact them for information about your child's education so far.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“When you receive your Certificate of Exemption, you can start home educating your child from the date on your certificate. If the exemption is issued before your child turns 6 years, your starting date will be their sixth birthday.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“If your application is turned down, we will send you a letter explaining our reasons. You can appeal the decision in writing to your regional office. If your appeal is unsuccessful, you can submit a new application to your regional office.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“If a designated officer refuses to grant a certificate under subsection (1), the applicant may appeal to the Secretary, who, after considering a report on the matter from the Chief Review Officer, must confirm the refusal or grant a certificate. (3) The Secretary’s decision is final.”
New Zealand Legislation (Parliamentary Counsel Office) · legislation.govt.nz/act/public/2020/38/en/latest ↑
“Your Certificate of Exemption is valid until your child turns 16 or enrols in a registered school (whichever occurs first).”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“You can continue to home educate your child after they turn 16. An exemption is not required to do this.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“Occasionally, we may contact you about your home education exemption. Reviews of home education programmes do not happen routinely.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“We may ask the Education Review Office (ERO) to review a programme if we have concerns about whether the requirements of the home education exemption are being met. If this happens, we will let you know why.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“The Secretary may revoke an exemption certificate, but only if the Secretary— (a) has made reasonable efforts to get all of the relevant information; and (b) has considered a report on the matter from the Chief Review Officer; and (c) is not satisfied under subsection (1).”
New Zealand Legislation (Parliamentary Counsel Office) · legislation.govt.nz/act/public/2020/38/en/latest ↑
“The allowance is intended to be a contribution towards some of the cost to home educate your child.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“The allowance payment is made retrospectively. It is paid in 2 instalments a year: The first instalment is made in late June for the period from 1 January to 30 June. The second payment is made in late November for the period from 1 July to 31 December.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“If you have home educated your child or children for the full half-calendar year (1 January to 30 June, or 1 July to 31 December), you are eligible for the following payments: First child – $398. Second child – $338.50. Third child – $278.50. Subsequent children – $199.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“If your family would like to receive the Home Education Supervision Allowance, you must complete and return a statutory declaration form for every relevant period before payment can be made.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“The allowance is available for your child until the end of the year in which they turn 19 providing you: are still home educating complete and return a statutory declaration form for each period.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“If the Home Education Certificate of Exemption for your child or children was granted partway through a period, the allowance will only be paid from the date the child’s exemption became active.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“You must also tell us if: any of your personal details change, including your address leave the country either on a holiday or a more permanent move. This is because being out of New Zealand could change what allowance you are eligible to receive: 28 days or less – no change to your allowance. 29 days or more – you will only receive the allowance for the time you were in New Zealand.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“Your child may also be able to sit NCEA assessments at a secondary school. You will need to contact the school directly and ask if they will be a 'link school'. There is no obligation for a school to be a link school.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“If your child is aged 16 to 19, they can also enrol with Te Aho o Te Kura Pounamu for free to sit NCEA.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“Open tuition Home-educated students This gateway is for students who have been granted a long-term exemption from enrolment under section 38 of the Education and Training Act 2020 (a home education exemption). Tuition applications require confirmation of the long-term exemption from enrolment. None Fee-paying; student charged”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/our-work/legislation/secondary-legislation/te… ↑
“Support for home educated students does not include school resources like a specialist teacher and teacher aide. Students are able to receive specialist support from their regional Ministry office.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/education-professionals/schools-year-0-13/lea… ↑
“If you want to stop home educating your child, you can enrol them at school at any time. You cannot do both at the same time, so this will cancel the certificate of exemption.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“If your child wants to transition to school, you should contact your regional office. They will assist you with the process.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/parents-and-caregivers/schools-year-0-13/home… ↑
“Strengthening the oversight of home education Amendment Paper 583, released on 19 May, included a proposal to strengthen the oversight of home education by requiring home educating families to meet specific requirements prescribed in regulations to maintain an exemption from enrolment in a registered school.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/our-work/information-releases/issue-specific-… ↑
“On 27 May, the Government released Amendment Paper 633 which removes this proposal from the Bill. The Government has decided to pause the work on the proposed home education regulations in response to feedback from stakeholders.”
Ministry of Education · education.govt.nz/our-work/information-releases/issue-specific-… ↑