What is required to homeschool in Alabama?

Alabama has no homeschool statute. A child is taught in a church school (the enrollment form goes to your local superintendent), in a private school a family may run at home (an enrollment report to the superintendent each year), or by a certified private tutor. No test, no curriculum approval and no teacher qualification on the first two routes.

How do I start homeschooling in Alabama?

Pick a church school or register as a private school, file the church school enrollment form or the private school enrollment report with your local superintendent, withdraw your child from the public school, and begin on your school's calendar.

Do I need to withdraw my child from public school first?

Enroll or register first, then withdraw: the church school enrollment form or the private school report is what the public school needs before it drops your child from its rolls.

Are standardized tests required for Alabama homeschoolers?

No. Neither the church school route nor the private school route requires a state test, a portfolio or an evaluation; a church school may set its own rules.

Can I homeschool kindergarten in Alabama?

Yes. Compulsory attendance runs from 6 to 17, and a parent may hold a six-year-old out until seven by notifying the local board in writing, so a kindergarten year at home needs no filing beyond your school's own.

2026–2027 Homeschool Laws and Requirements

How to Homeschool in Alabama

Yes, you can homeschool your child in Alabama. You do not need a teaching license, and the state neither approves your curriculum nor tests your child. Alabama has no homeschool statute of its own: families teach at home under one of three legal routes, and the usual two, a church school or a home-based private school, ask only for an enrollment report to your local superintendent.

Updated 9 October 2026 · Sources read 8 October to 9 October 2026

Free printable guide

The Alabama homeschool quick reference, 2026–2027

One page to keep: what Alabama requires, the dates, and the official links, checked for the 2026–2027 school year. Open it here first, then download it.

Download the PDF (314 KB)

What Alabama homeschool law requires

The whole list for the 2026–2027 school year, from the Code of Alabama as the State Department of Education's attendance manual states it:

Alabama: homeschool requirements at a glance
Requirement	What Alabama asks	Where it says so
The routes	A child of school age may be taught in a church school, in a private school (which a family may run at home), or by a private tutor. Alabama has no homeschool statute of its own; most families enroll with a church school or register as a private school.	Ala. Code § 16-28-3; ALSDE's homeschool page
Church school	Enroll your child, then file the church school enrollment form with your local public school superintendent, signed by you and countersigned by the church school's administrator. The school's own rules govern subjects and days.	Ala. Code §§ 16-28-1, 16-28-7; ALSDE Attendance Manual
Private school	Report your enrolled children to your local superintendent at the start of the school year, and unexcused absences thereafter, on the state's forms. The state may not license or regulate any private, nonpublic or church school.	Ala. Code §§ 16-28-7, 16-1-11.1
Private tutor	Only a person holding a state teaching certificate, teaching the public school branches of study in English for at least three hours a day on 140 days a year, who files a statement with the superintendent before beginning and keeps a register.	Ala. Code § 16-28-5
Tests, teacher, ages	No state test, portfolio, curriculum approval or teacher qualification on the church school and private school routes. Compulsory attendance from 6 to 17; a parent may hold a six-year-old out until seven by notifying the local board in writing.	Ala. Code § 16-28-3; ALSDE Attendance Manual

ALSDE's homeschool page

How to start homeschooling in Alabama

Choose your route. Most Alabama families enroll with a church school that admits home-taught students, or run a private school at home; a certified private tutor is the third route, with its own hours.
Church school: enroll your child, then file the church school enrollment form with your local public school superintendent, signed by you and countersigned by the school's administrator. Private school: report your enrolled children to the superintendent at the start of the school year on the state's forms.
Once the form is filed, withdraw your child from the public school; the enrollment form is what the school needs to see.
Plan the year on your school's own calendar. Alabama names no subjects, days or hours on these routes, so Faith Schooling's reading, language arts and mathematics programs give the year its shape and you add the rest.
Keep whatever attendance and work records your church school or private school sets. The state asks for no test and no portfolio.

How Faith Schooling covers Alabama's requirements

Alabama sets no days or hours. On the church school and private school routes the school's own calendar governs; only a certified private tutor is held to three hours a day on 140 days.

Alabama leaves subjects and days to the church school or private school you enroll with, and most of those schools ask a family to keep attendance and a record of work. Faith Schooling's programs are a sequenced reading, language arts and mathematics year with teaching guides, and their dated, finished pages are the work record a school asks to see.

Alabama asks for whatever attendance and work records your church school or private school sets. The dated, finished pages of each program are that record, and a HARVEST report is a placement note for the file.

Reading: Phonics, Decoding, and Early Fluency K–5 reading textbooks in four quarterly volumes a year, with complete teaching guides
Language arts and writing: Grammar Garden K–5 language and writing coursebooks, four a year, with Preceptor Guides
Mathematics: Building Number Sense K–5 mathematics textbooks; Kindergarten to Grade 2 add practice workbooks and teaching guides
Everything else: Your choice Alabama names no subjects; science, social studies, health and the arts are yours to choose
Bible: The Apostolic Academy not something Alabama requires; free: Scripture memory, Bible study and printables for the family

The curriculum map Phonics, Decoding, and Early Fluency Grammar Garden Building Number Sense HARVEST placement Homeschool Rhythm Builder

Financial assistance for Alabama homeschoolers

Alabama's CHOOSE Act education savings accounts, run by the Department of Revenue, include students in a home education program. The account for a participating home-educated student is $2,000 a year, capped at $4,000 a family.

For 2026–2027 the accounts went to families whose adjusted gross income did not exceed 300 percent of the federal poverty level for the preceding tax year, and the application portals closed on March 31, 2026. The Department publishes the timeline for each year's window.

$2,000 per participating student who is participating in a home education program (an individual or group program, homeschool, co-op), capped at $4,000 per family. Source: Alabama Department of Revenue, The CHOOSE Act, read 9 October 2026.
Eligibility for 2026–2027 rests on an adjusted gross income not exceeding 300 percent of the federal poverty level for the preceding tax year. Source: Alabama Department of Revenue, The CHOOSE Act, read 9 October 2026.
The application portals for the 2026–2027 academic year closed at midnight on March 31, 2026. Source: Alabama Department of Revenue, The CHOOSE Act, read 9 October 2026.

The CHOOSE Act (Alabama Department of Revenue)

What Alabama does not require, and you should still do

Place your child before you choose books. No Alabama route tests a homeschooled child; HARVEST, the free placement check, names the grade and quarter to start in reading and math.
Plan the year. The Homeschool Rhythm Builder turns your week into a printable plan and an attendance record that satisfies most church schools' own rules.
Keep the enrollment form. Your copy of the church school enrollment form, or the private school report, is your proof of compliance; keep it with the year's dated pages.

HARVEST free placement Homeschool Rhythm Builder The Apostolic Academy

Common questions

What is required to homeschool in Alabama?: Alabama has no homeschool statute. A child is taught in a church school (the enrollment form goes to your local superintendent), in a private school a family may run at home (an enrollment report to the superintendent each year), or by a certified private tutor. No test, no curriculum approval and no teacher qualification on the first two routes.
How do I start homeschooling in Alabama?: Pick a church school or register as a private school, file the church school enrollment form or the private school enrollment report with your local superintendent, withdraw your child from the public school, and begin on your school's calendar.
Do I need to withdraw my child from public school first?: Enroll or register first, then withdraw: the church school enrollment form or the private school report is what the public school needs before it drops your child from its rolls.
Are standardized tests required for Alabama homeschoolers?: No. Neither the church school route nor the private school route requires a state test, a portfolio or an evaluation; a church school may set its own rules.
Can I homeschool kindergarten in Alabama?: Yes. Compulsory attendance runs from 6 to 17, and a parent may hold a six-year-old out until seven by notifying the local board in writing, so a kindergarten year at home needs no filing beyond your school's own.
How many instructional hours does Alabama require?: None on the church school and private school routes; the school's own calendar governs. Only a certified private tutor is held to three hours a day on 140 days a year.

Official Alabama homeschool resources

Read from the State Department of Education's own pages for the 2026–2027 school year on the date shown. The Code of Alabama and your local superintendent's office are the final word; this page is a plain-language guide, not legal advice.

Homeschool laws in nearby states

Compare all fifty states and Washington, D.C.