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⚖️ Massachusetts Homeschool Laws & Requirements

What Massachusetts law asks of homeschool families — notice or registration, school days and subjects, testing, records and diplomas — summarized from our Massachusetts guide with links to the official sources.

Homeschooling in Massachusetts: the basics

The law: every child between the minimum and maximum ages set by the Board of Education must attend a public day school in their town or another day school approved by the school committee — but attendance isn't required of a child "who is being otherwise instructed in a manner approved in advance by the superintendent or the school committee" (M.G.L. c. 76 § 1). Home schooling is that "otherwise instructed" option.
Ages: DESE says home schooling requires advance approval for children of compulsory school age (6–16). The Board's regulation says each child must attend school beginning in September of the calendar year in which he or she turns six; a school committee may set a younger starting age but not an older one (603 CMR 8.02).
The standard: DESE says the district approves and oversees home schooling with a focus on whether "instruction in all the studies required by law equals in thoroughness and efficiency, and in the progress made therein, that in the public schools in the same town" — the same test c. 76 § 1 uses for approving private schools.
What home schooling is and isn't: DESE describes it as education provided by or at the direction of a child's parent instead of enrolling the child in a public or private school. It is not remote learning provided by a school district, and requirements that apply to public schools, such as educator licensing or structured learning time, do not apply to it.
Who decides: each school committee in Massachusetts has a policy on approving home schooling plans, and the plan is reviewed and approved by the school district where the child lives. DESE does not approve plans, oversee district policies, or review districts' decisions on home schooling proposals. For details, DESE says to contact your school district.
The court cases: the Trial Court Law Libraries describe Care and Protection of Charles, 399 Mass. 324 (1987), as clearly stating that parents may educate their own children with approval from the school, giving guidance on what schools may consider when deciding to grant approval, and applying the subjects in M.G.L. c. 71 §§ 1, 2 and 3 to home education plans. They describe Brunelle v. Lynn Public Schools, 428 Mass. 512 (1998), as holding that home visits are not presumptively essential to the approval of a home education plan and may not be required without parental consent.
Subjects: M.G.L. c. 71 § 1 lists orthography, reading, writing, the English language and grammar, geography, arithmetic, drawing, music, the history and constitution of the United States, the duties of citizenship, health education, physical education and good behavior. Section 2 requires United States history and social science, including civics, and Section 3 requires physical education, in the public schools.
Penalties: a person in control of a child who fails to cause the child to attend school as required for seven day sessions or fourteen half-day sessions within six months can be fined up to twenty dollars on complaint by a supervisor of attendance (M.G.L. c. 76 § 2).

Read the full section in our Massachusetts guide

Getting your home education plan approved

Records of approval: Northampton Public Schools notes that proof of an approved plan for each year is generally required when a student transfers into a public, charter or private school later, so keep your plans and the district's approval letters.

Read the full section in our Massachusetts guide

Assessment, testing and records

Assessment is set locally: no statewide test is required of home-schooled students. Districts and families agree on how progress will be shown. Northampton Public Schools, for example, says parents must comply with an evaluation program mutually agreed on by the school and parents, and it requests a mid-year progress report and an end-of-year summary. Foxborough lists periodic standardized testing among the factors it may consider.

MCAS: Foxborough Public Schools says home-educated students do not participate in state testing programs such as MCAS.

Records: Northampton says there is no legal requirement for caregivers to keep specific records, but records help track progress and may be needed if the child later enrolls in a public or private school. Its suggestions include a daily schedule or school calendar, curriculum, annual learning goals, evaluations and tests, reading lists, samples of schoolwork, project records and, for high schoolers, transcripts you create.

Private virtual schools: Foxborough says that if a family enrolls in a private virtual school based outside Massachusetts, state law treats the child as home-schooled, so the plan must be reviewed and approved by the district where the family lives. A private virtual school based in Massachusetts must be approved by the school committee of its town.

Read the full section in our Massachusetts guide

Diplomas, transcripts, the HiSET and GED, and college

Diplomas: we found no state homeschool diploma in the statutes or DESE guidance we read, and some districts' policies say home-schooled students can't receive a district diploma — Monomoy Regional's, for example. Families keep their own transcripts and course records for colleges and employers.

Community college admission without a diploma: North Shore Community College (2026–2027 catalog) and Mount Wachusett Community College say home-schooled students without a high school diploma or equivalency credential may apply to a degree or certificate program if they have completed an approved home school program, shown by evidence that the superintendent or school committee approved it. A student under 16 also needs a letter from the district saying the student is not considered truant. Home-schooled students who haven't finished high school can take North Shore classes as non-matriculated students if they meet the prerequisites. Check each college's own policy.

Free testing: DESE says the Commonwealth pays for a Massachusetts resident's first HiSET test in each subject plus two retakes per subject per lifetime (effective February 6, 2023), and the same for the GED. Credentials and transcripts are issued through DiplomaSender, DESE's vendor.

Read the full section in our Massachusetts guide

Official sources

Summarized from our Massachusetts guide (as of November 2026) and articles. Rules change — confirm on the official pages before you act.

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