My Learning Source Illinois › Homeschooling in Illinois › Laws & requirements

⚖️ Illinois Homeschool Laws & Requirements

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

Homeschooling in Illinois: the basics

The law: whoever has custody or control of a child between age 6 (on or before September 1) and 17, unless the child has graduated from high school, must have the child attend public school — except that a child attending a private or parochial school where children are taught the branches of education taught to children of corresponding age and grade in the public schools, in the English language, is not required to attend public school (105 ILCS 5/26-1).
Home schools are private schools: ISBE says that in People v. Levisen (1950) the Illinois Supreme Court held that home schooling could be considered private schooling if the teacher were competent, the required subjects were taught, and the student received an education at least equivalent to public schooling. As a result, ISBE says, home schooling is considered a form of private education in Illinois.
Required subjects: ISBE says that under 105 ILCS 5/26-1 and 27-1 you must provide instruction, in English, in language arts, mathematics, biological and physical science, social science (social studies), fine arts, and physical development and health. These are the areas Section 27-1 lists as the primary purpose of schooling. ISBE also says you must offer education at least equivalent to that offered in public schools.
What is not required: ISBE says the only specific requirement to homeschool in Illinois is to offer those subject areas. Graduation requirements, homework, testing, grade advancement, textbook and curriculum choice and recordkeeping are decisions the parent or guardian makes. There are no specific required classes, and no requirements for the number of school days or the length of a school day.
Who can teach: neither Section 26-1 nor ISBE's homeschool page sets a teacher qualification; ISBE describes Levisen as requiring that the teacher be competent. ISBE says parents who meet the standard are free to decide the manner, time and materials that best suit their children.
The parent carries the burden: ISBE notes a 1974 federal district court decision stating that under Illinois law the burden of proof rests with parents to show their plan of home instruction meets state requirements.
Character education: some older guides cite 105 ILCS 5/27-12 for teaching "honesty, justice, kindness and moral courage." The General Assembly's statute file now shows Section 27-12 as "(Repealed)" by Public Act 104-391, effective August 15, 2025, and ISBE's homeschool page lists only the six subject areas.
Registration and recognition: ISBE says a public school cannot require a home school program to be "registered" or "recognized" through the State Board of Education, because the School Code excludes home schools from that voluntary process.
No free state online school: ISBE says that at this time Illinois has no free online public school option like some other states, and it is the parent's or guardian's responsibility to provide a full educational program that includes the required subjects. Private online schools are one option ISBE mentions; they charge for their services.
How many: ISBE says it has no information specific to Illinois on homeschool students, because Illinois doesn't require any formal registration process.

Read the full section in our Illinois guide

Withdrawing from school, notice, testing and records

Starting: ISBE says you may begin homeschooling after you have organized your homeschool program (or enrolled your child in an online school) and have withdrawn your child from their current school. There are no other forms, licenses or approvals required.

Withdrawing: there is no formal procedure in state law, but ISBE says parents should notify the public school of their intent to homeschool, preferably in writing. Failing to do so may lead the school to mark the student absent and eventually refer the student to a truancy officer. ISBE highly recommends giving the school a dated letter, keeping copies, stating that you are withdrawing your student and intend to homeschool. The school may have its own withdrawal form for you to sign.

Voluntary forms: ISBE's 2023 Illinois Homeschooling document says ISBE no longer collects homeschool forms, and that your Regional Office of Education may have a voluntary form to notify its office that you intend to homeschool. (ISBE's web page still links an "ISBE Home Schooling Registration Form," but that file returned "not found" when we checked in November 2026.) In Chicago, CPS asks families who homeschool to complete a CPS Statement of Assurance, which it requests annually for each child.

Truancy: ISBE says truancy investigations happen if someone reports you to your Regional Office of Education or Intermediate Service Center, and a truancy officer may contact you for more information. Regional superintendents may expect home-educating parents to establish, when necessary, that their instruction is at least commensurate with public school standards. Under 105 ILCS 5/26-10, a person who has been notified of a child's truancy and knowingly and wilfully lets it persist within that school year is guilty of a Class C misdemeanor.

Testing: no standardized tests are required. ISBE says you are not required to administer or submit tests, homework, projects, grades or any other materials to a school, district or ISBE, and any assessment you choose to give isn't reviewed. Home-schooled students may not take the state accountability tests used in public schools. They can take the PSAT/NMSQT, fall SAT School Day or PSAT tests at a school willing to host them, or a national Saturday SAT.

Records: there are no specific recordkeeping requirements, but ISBE strongly encourages good records. If you're asked for proof of your child's education — for example when re-enrolling in public school — ISBE says it is your responsibility to provide documentation such as report cards, syllabi, attendance logs and standardized test results.

Going back to public school: the public school decides grade placement and may test the student or ask for proof of the material covered. ISBE says a district may not make an unreasonable or arbitrary placement decision. For high school credit, ISBE says a high school may not grant credit for classes that did not come from an accredited program, and some districts strictly limit transferred credits; ISBE does not accredit programs.

Read the full section in our Illinois guide

Diplomas, transcripts, the GED and HiSET, and college

Public school diplomas: a home-schooled student has no legal right to take part in a public school graduation ceremony or receive a public school diploma. ISBE says a student must be enrolled full time and meet all graduation requirements, and a student who enrolls in 12th grade must meet all state graduation requirements.

Read the full section in our Illinois guide

Official sources

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

More for Illinois homeschool families

Loading the full Illinois site… If it does not appear, everything on this page is readable above.