My Learning Source Minnesota › Homeschooling in Minnesota › Minnesota Homeschool Options — Homeschool Law, the K–12 Education Credit and Subtraction, Where Minnesota Stands on School Choice, PSEO and Driver's Ed
Minnesota Homeschool Options — Homeschool Law, the K–12 Education Credit and Subtraction, Where Minnesota Stands on School Choice, PSEO and Driver's Ed
Minnesota requires every child from 7 to 17 to receive instruction, and a home school is one of the legal ways to provide it (Minn. Stat. 120A.22). You report to the superintendent of the school district where you live: an initial report by October 1 of the first school year after your child turns 7 (or within 15 days of withdrawing from public school), then a letter of intent to continue by October 1 each year. You teach the required subjects, meet one of five instructor options, and give an annual nationally norm-referenced achievement test. Minnesota has no education savings account or voucher. What it does have for homeschool families is two state income tax benefits run by the Department of Revenue: the refundable K–12 Education Credit — 75% of qualifying expenses, up to
| Overseen by / administered by | Homeschooling: the superintendent of your resident school district receives your reports under Minn. Stat. 120A.24. The K–12 Education Credit (Minn. Stat. 290.0674) and K–12 Education Subtraction (Minn. Stat. 290.0132, subd. 4) are run by the Minnesota Department of Revenue and claimed on your Minnesota income tax return (Form M1). |
|---|---|
| K–12 Education Credit, tax years 2025 and 2026 | Refundable credit of 75% of qualifying expenses, up to ,500 per qualifying child in grades K–12. Tax year 2025: the full ,500-per-child maximum applies with adjusted gross income of $75,820 or less, phases down above that, and ends at $81,820 (one or two children), $84,820 (three) or $87,820 plus $3,000 for each child over three. Tax year 2026: phase-out starts at $77,550; limits $83,550, $86,550 and $89,550 plus $3,000 per additional child. Not available if married filing separately. |
| K–12 Education Subtraction | No income limit and any filing status. Subtract qualifying expenses from taxable income, up to ,625 per child in grades K–6 and ,500 per child in grades 7–12 (grade at the end of the tax year). Expenses used for the credit can't also be used for the subtraction. |
| Homeschool status | Home-schooled children qualify. The Department of Revenue says it doesn't matter whether a child attends a public, private, parochial or home school, and that a home school must report annually to the local public school district and meet the reporting requirements of Minnesota's compulsory attendance laws. Home school supplies and materials qualify if they're for subjects taught during the normal public school day and aren't primarily religious. |
| How to claim | No application. Keep itemized receipts and invoices. Claim the credit on Schedule M1ED (carried to Schedule M1REF) and the subtraction on Schedule M1M with your Minnesota return for the year you paid the expenses. You don't send receipts with the return, but Revenue may ask for them. |
| Homeschool law | Ages 7 to 17 (Minn. Stat. 120A.22, subd. 5). Initial report to the resident district superintendent by October 1 (or within 15 days of withdrawing from public school or moving out of a district), then a letter of intent to continue by October 1 each year; required subjects; one of five instructor options; an annual nationally norm-referenced standardized achievement test agreed on with the superintendent (120A.22, subds. 9–11; 120A.24). |
| School choice status | As of November 2026, Minnesota has no education savings account, voucher or tax-credit scholarship program. It has the K–12 Education Credit and Subtraction, open enrollment, public charter schools and PSEO. ESA bills introduced in 2025 (HF 19, SF 244, SF 1007) were referred to committee with no further action. Minnesota is not on the IRS list of states taking part in the federal scholarship tax credit for 2027 (as of October 22, 2026). |
How the K–12 Education Credit and Subtraction work for homeschool families
Minnesota has two state income tax benefits for families with children in kindergarten through 12th grade: the K–12 Education Credit and the K–12 Education Subtraction. Home-schooled children count. The Department of Revenue says it doesn't matter whether your child attends a public, private, parochial or home school, as long as your home school reports annually to your local public school district and meets the reporting requirements of Minnesota's compulsory attendance laws.
The credit (Minn. Stat. 290.0674) equals 75% of the qualifying expenses you paid for a qualifying child in grades K–12, up to
Credit income limits, tax year 2025 (from the 2025 Schedule M1ED): with AGI of $75,820 or less, your maximum is
Credit income limits, tax year 2026 (expenses you pay in 2026, claimed in 2027): Revenue's inflation-adjusted phase-out threshold is $77,550, and AGI must be less than $83,550 (one or two children), $86,550 (three) or $89,550 plus $3,000 for each additional child. The
The subtraction (Minn. Stat. 290.0132, subd. 4) has no income limit and works with any filing status. You subtract qualifying expenses from your taxable income, up to
Using both: you can't use the same expenses for both. Revenue says to figure the credit first; if the credit's limits leave expenses over, use those for the subtraction. The 25% of expenses the credit doesn't cover can't be moved to the subtraction. Example: one child, AGI under the threshold,
How to claim: complete Schedule M1ED for the credit and enter it on Schedule M1REF; enter the subtraction on Schedule M1M (line 13 on the 2025 form). Claim expenses in the year you paid them, not the year you used the material. You don't send receipts with your return, but you must keep itemized receipts and invoices and show them if Revenue asks; it may also ask for the name of the instructor or organization you paid. Revenue notes that people who aren't required to file a return must file one to get the refundable credit.
Who claims: the child must meet the federal definition of a qualifying child for the Earned Income Credit, and only one person may claim a child's expenses — the one who actually paid them. Revenue assesses a 50% penalty on credits fraudulently claimed.
How many families use them: Revenue reported in August 2026 that, last year, more than 46,000 families received the K–12 Education Credit (average $389) and more than 123,000 received the subtraction (average
Assigning the credit: the old law that let qualifying families with a K–12 student assign their income tax refund to a bank, credit union or other financial institution, or to a nonprofit (Minn. Stat. 290.0679) was repealed for assignments after December 31, 2025.
What counts for homeschool families — and what doesn't
Revenue's Income Tax Fact Sheet 8a covers home school expenses. Home school supplies and materials qualify if they're for subjects taught during the normal public school day and aren't primarily religious. Instruction counts only when the instructor is a qualified instructor who is not the child's parent, grandparent or sibling: a Minnesota licensed teacher, someone directly supervised by one, a teacher in an accredited private school, a person with a bachelor's degree (in any subject), or a member of the Minnesota Music Teachers Association.
- Qualify for the credit or subtraction: textbooks, academic and reading books and teacher's editions (not religious); paper, pens, rulers, art and shop supplies; purchase or rental of equipment such as musical instruments and calculators used during the school day; testing fees for grade advancement; entrance fees and transportation paid to others for class trips during the school day.
- Also qualify for both: instructor fees for after-school or out-of-school-year enrichment, academic tutoring, music, dance and voice lessons, and academic summer camps taught by a qualified instructor — the instructional part of the fee only, so ask for a bill that lists instruction separately from food, lodging and materials.
- Computers: personal computer hardware and educational software for home use count up to
Where Minnesota stands on school choice (November 2026)
What exists: the K–12 Education Credit and Subtraction (the credit dates to a 1997 special session law); the enrollment options program, which lets a student attend school in a district where the student doesn't live, subject to limits (Minn. Stat. 124D.03); public charter schools, which the law calls public schools and part of the state's system of public education (Minn. Stat. 124E.03); and PSEO, which lets 11th and 12th graders — including home-schooled students — take college courses (Minn. Stat. 124D.09). Charter and online public schools are public schools, not homeschooling.
What doesn't exist: we found no Minnesota law creating an education savings account, voucher or tax-credit scholarship program as of November 2026.
ESA bills in the 2025–2026 Legislature: HF 19 ("Education savings accounts established"; chief author Rep. Kresha, 35 authors) was introduced February 6, 2025 and referred to the House Education Policy Committee; SF 244 (Sen. Rarick) on January 16, 2025 and SF 1007, the "Education Savings Accounts for Minnesota Students Act" (Sen. Lucero), on February 6, 2025 were referred to the Senate Education Policy Committee; HF 2895, an "education empowerment account program" (Rep. Dippel), was referred to House Education Finance on March 27, 2025. The bill status pages show no action after referral.
Changes to the credit: in 2023 the Legislature rewrote the credit's income test (Laws 2023, ch. 64, art. 1, sec. 37); since tax year 2023 it uses adjusted gross income, adjusted each year for inflation. Later bills the Department of Revenue analyzed — SF 4552 (2024), which would have added career and technical education expenses, and HF 779 (2025), which would have allowed an advance payment of the credit — did not change it; the credit statute has not been amended since 2023.
A 2025 homeschool proposal that didn't become law: the Senate's 2025 education policy bill, SF 1740, passed the Senate 39–26 on April 24, 2025 with a new section defining a home school (students related by parent or guardian, at a Minnesota residence) and barring anyone convicted of certain crimes from directing one. The bill went to conference committee. The education law enacted that year (Laws 2025, First Special Session, chapter 10, signed June 14, 2025) did not include that section, and the 2026 Minnesota Statutes have no such provision.
The federal scholarship tax credit: from January 1, 2027, a donor may claim a federal credit of up to
PSEO and religious colleges: a 2023 amendment barring eligible colleges from requiring a faith statement from PSEO students was found unconstitutional in Loe v. Jett (D. Minn. 2025), according to the Revisor of Statutes' note on Minn. Stat. 124D.09.
What it means for homeschool families: Minnesota doesn't pay homeschool costs up front. The K–12 Education Credit and Subtraction give some of the money back at tax time — the refundable credit for families under the income limit, the subtraction for everyone — and PSEO lets 11th and 12th graders take college courses, with the state paying the college for courses taken for high school credit. We make no prediction about 2027 legislation.
Homeschooling in Minnesota: the basics
- Who must be taught: every child between 7 and 17 must receive instruction unless the child has graduated (Minn. Stat. 120A.22, subd. 5). A child under 7 who is enrolled in kindergarten or a higher grade in a public school becomes subject to compulsory attendance unless the district exempts children under 7, and a parent may then withdraw the child for good cause, which includes enrolling the child in another school (subd. 6).
- What counts as a home school: for compulsory attendance, a "school" includes a home school in which a child is provided instruction in compliance with 120A.22 and 120A.24 (120A.22, subd. 4).
- The initial report: send the superintendent of the district where your child lives the child's name, birth date and address; the annual tests you intend to use (if required); the name of each instructor; and evidence that each instructor meets one of the requirements in 120A.22, subd. 10. It's due by October 1 of the first school year your child receives instruction after reaching 7; within 15 days of withdrawing a child 7 or older from public school to homeschool; within 15 days of moving out of a district; and by October 1 after you establish a new resident district (120A.24, subd. 1).
- The annual letter of intent: by October 1 of each school year, send a letter of intent to continue to provide instruction, with any changes to the information in your initial report. This covers children 7 through 16, and 16- and 17-year-olds whose initial report was filed after they turned 16. A superintendent may collect the information online but must not require electronic submission (120A.24, subd. 1).
- Immunization records: parents of home-schooled children submit the immunization statements required by Minn. Stat. 121A.15 — or an exemption statement — to the superintendent by October 1 of the first year of homeschooling in Minnesota and of the grade 7 year (121A.15, subd. 8). Exemptions include a physician's statement for medical reasons and a notarized statement of the parent's conscientiously held beliefs (subd. 3).
- Instructor options (120A.22, subd. 10): the person teaching must (1) hold a valid Minnesota teaching license in the field and grade level taught; (2) be directly supervised by a licensed Minnesota teacher; (3) teach in a school accredited by a recognized accrediting agency; (4) hold a bachelor's degree; or (5) be the parent of a child who is assessed under the testing rules in subd. 11.
- Required subjects (120A.22, subd. 9): reading, writing, literature and fine arts; mathematics and science; social studies, including history, geography, economics, government and citizenship; and health and physical education. Instruction, textbooks and materials must be in English, except as allowed under the state's language-instruction laws.
- Recent changes: Laws 2023, chapter 55 (H.F. 2497) removed the option of qualifying as an instructor by passing a teacher competency exam, leaving the five options above. Laws 2024, chapter 85, section 17 (H.F. 4483, a technical corrections law) updated the testing subdivision to match. Laws 2024, chapter 109 (S.F. 3567) added telehealth appointments and instruction by a Tribal spiritual or cultural advisor to the list of excused absences, effective for the 2024–2025 school year; that subdivision governs excused absences from school attendance.
- Enforcement: if a superintendent believes a child is receiving instruction in violation of 120A.22 and 120A.24, the superintendent must notify the parent in writing with a list of the specific alleged violations. If they aren't corrected within 15 days, the superintendent requests fact-finding and mediation from the commissioner of education, and only then may notify the county attorney (120A.26).
Testing, records and going back to public school
Annual test: each year, children 7 through 16 (and 16- and 17-year-olds whose initial report was filed after they turned 16) who aren't enrolled in public school must be assessed with a nationally norm-referenced standardized achievement examination. The superintendent of your district and the person in charge of instruction must agree on the specific test and how and where it's given (120A.22, subd. 11). A child taught by an accredited nonpublic school, person or institution is exempt.
Subjects the test doesn't cover: a parent who teaches and isn't a licensed teacher or directly supervised by one must assess the child's performance in those subjects.
Low scores: if the results show performance on the total battery at or below the 30th percentile, or one grade level below children of the same age, the parent must obtain an additional evaluation of the child's abilities and performance to determine whether the child has learning problems.
Records to keep (120A.24, subd. 2): documentation that the required subjects are being taught and proof the tests were given — class schedules, copies of instructional materials, and descriptions of how you assess achievement. You keep these yourself, and must make them available to the county attorney if a case is started under the compulsory attendance or juvenile court laws. Accredited programs are exempt.
Returning to public school full time: the parent must give the enrolling school or district the child's scores on the annual tests and the other education documents the school requires to decide placement and which course requirements apply. This doesn't apply to a shared-time student who doesn't seek a public school diploma.
Diplomas and transcripts: your home school issues its own diploma and transcript — Minnesota law itself refers to a student "working toward a home school diploma" (Minn. Stat. 171.05). Colleges set their own rules — the University of Minnesota Twin Cities, for example, requires confirmed students to graduate from high school or complete a GED before enrolling and lists expected high school courses (4 years of English and math, 3 of science and social studies, 2 of a single second language, 1 of arts).
PSEO and college for homeschool students
Postsecondary Enrollment Options (PSEO, Minn. Stat. 124D.09) lets home-schooled students take college courses. Home-schooled 11th and 12th graders are "alternative pupils" who may apply to an eligible college: a Minnesota public college or university, a private nonprofit two-year trade or technical school granting associate degrees, or a private residential liberal arts college in Minnesota. Courses must be nonsectarian and college level.
10th graders: a home-schooled 10th grader may enroll in one career or technical education course during the first term, if the student passed the 8th grade Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment in reading or another reading assessment the college accepts. With a C or better, the college must allow additional courses.
How a home-school student enrolls: the student and parent fill in the state's PSEO Notice of Student Registration form (2026–27 version ED-001763-27) for each term and college; the home school completes the school section; the college completes its section and submits the form to the Minnesota Department of Education. The form says a home school student must keep submitting the annual letter of intent to continue to the resident superintendent in order to take part in PSEO, even past age 17. The October 30 / May 30 notice deadline in the statute applies to public school students notifying their district.
College admission and deadlines: each college sets its own PSEO admission rules and dates. For example, Minnesota State University, Mankato requires home-school seniors to have an ACT composite of 21 or above and juniors 24 or above, with priority application deadlines of April 1 for fall and October 1 for spring.
Cost: for courses taken for high school credit, the Department of Education pays the college, and a college reimbursed this way may not charge the student for fees, textbooks or materials (except equipment the student keeps). Textbooks and equipment paid for by the department must be returned after the course. For courses taken for college credit only, the state pays nothing and the college may charge. For courses taken for high school credit, families at or below the federal poverty level can apply to the college for mileage reimbursement (the lesser of actual cost or 15 cents a mile, up to 250 miles a week).
Limits: a student who first enrolls in grade 11 can use PSEO for up to the equivalent of two academic years, and in grade 12 for one; a student who has graduated from high school can't participate.
State aid for college: the Minnesota State Grant is open to residents who are graduates of a secondary school "or its equivalent," or are 17 or older and have met all admission requirements, and who meet the financial need criteria (Minn. Stat. 136A.121). The North Star Promise scholarship (Minn. Stat. 136A.1465) covers up to 100% of tuition and fees after other gift aid at Minnesota public colleges and Tribal colleges for residents with family adjusted gross income below $80,000 who complete the FAFSA or state aid application, with the same graduate-or-17 rule.
Sports, activities, shared time and special education
Extracurricular activities: Minnesota law (Minn. Stat. 123B.49, subd. 4) says a school board shall allow all resident pupils receiving instruction in a home school — as defined in Minn. Stat. 123B.36, a home school with five or fewer students — to be eligible to fully participate in extracurricular activities on the same basis as public school students. The MSHSL's 2026–2027 handbook (Bylaw 104.3) says Minnesota law allows home school students to be eligible to participate in MSHSL programs for the public school in their resident school district attendance area. Districts may charge extracurricular fees that are the same for all students, whether enrolled in a public or a home school (123B.36). HF 784 (2025), which would have covered all resident home school students regardless of size, was referred to committee with no further action.
Part-time (shared time) classes: Minnesota law defines shared-time pupils as students who attend public school programs for part of the day and otherwise meet the compulsory instruction law through a nonpublic school, and pays districts shared-time aid for them (Minn. Stat. 126C.01, 126C.19). Core curriculum classes for shared-time pupils are given only in a public school building. Ask your district what it offers.
Materials from your district: Minnesota's nonpublic pupil aid law defines a nonpublic school to include a home school where a Minnesota resident may legally fulfill the compulsory instruction law (Minn. Stat. 123B.41, subd. 9), and requires districts, on formal request, to loan textbooks, individualized instructional materials, software and standardized tests to nonpublic school pupils (123B.42). A district that provides curriculum with physical and electronic parts must give a home-schooled resident student access to the electronic part on request, if it costs the district no more than an incidental amount (123B.42, subd. 1a).
Special education: under Minn. Stat. 125A.18, a resident who is eligible for special instruction and services may not be denied them on a shared-time basis because the student attends a nonpublic school. The district decides where services are provided, student by student, consistent with federal law (126C.19, subd. 4), and must provide transportation within the district for a student with a disability whose nonpublic school is in the district. The statute gives parties serving students on a shared-time basis access to the federal due process hearing and complaint systems. Contact your district's special education office to request an evaluation or services.
Driver's ed for home-schooled teens
Classroom portion at home: Minnesota law lets a home-school parent teach the classroom portion of driver's education when the student receives full-time instruction in a home school under 120A.22 and 120A.24, is working toward a home-school diploma, and uses classroom materials approved by Driver and Vehicle Services (Minn. Stat. 171.05, subd. 2). DVS says students in online school, e-learning or a charter school, and homebound students, don't meet that definition. Email driver.education@state.mn.us for approved curriculum sources.
Requirements: your child must be at least 14; the course is at least 30 hours of classroom instruction, no more than three hours a day, with the instructor physically present. When it's done, send DVS the Home School Driver's Education Affidavit. DVS mails a letter of completion — not more than 30 days before the 15th birthday — which you take to a behind-the-wheel provider (driving school) to get a Certificate of Enrollment (blue card).
Instruction permit: at 15, with the blue card and identification, your teen takes the knowledge test and applies for the permit. DPS may ask your superintendent to verify home school status.
Road test and provisional license: at least 16, with the permit held at least six months without moving or alcohol violations, the driver's ed completion card, and a supervised driving log showing at least 50 hours (15 at night) with a licensed driver 21 or older — or 40 hours (15 at night) if a parent completes the parent class and brings the certificate. A parent or guardian must approve the application.
For vendors: serving Minnesota homeschool families
There's no state program that pays homeschool costs up front, no approved-vendor list and no state marketplace. Families pay you directly and may claim qualifying purchases for the K–12 Education Credit or Subtraction on their Minnesota return. The Department of Revenue decides what qualifies, so don't promise that a purchase does.
Give itemized, paid receipts: your business name, what was bought, the amount and the date paid. Schedule M1ED asks for the organization and type of class for classes, and the name of the instructor or organization for individual instruction. For camps and programs, list the instruction fee separately from food, lodging, materials and transportation — only the instructional part can count.
Instructors: tutoring, lessons and classes count only when taught by a qualified instructor — for example, someone with a bachelor's degree, a Minnesota teaching license, or membership in the Minnesota Music Teachers Association — who isn't the child's parent, grandparent or sibling. Revenue treats instruction during the normal school day as subtraction-only, and after-school or summer enrichment as eligible for either benefit.
Watch the exclusions: correspondence school fees, memberships, PSAT/SAT/ACT fees, internet service, home school setup items such as desks and whiteboards, and religious instruction don't qualify. Testing fees for grade advancement do.
What else Minnesota families need: the annual nationally norm-referenced achievement test (chosen with the superintendent) that non-accredited home schools must give; evaluations when a child scores at or below the 30th percentile; DVS-approved home-classroom driver's ed materials and behind-the-wheel instruction; and PSEO-ready coursework for juniors and seniors.
Listing on My Learning Source is separate from the K–12 Education Credit and Subtraction — the state doesn't approve vendors, and families find you here either way.
Official sources
- K-12 Education Subtraction and Credit (Minnesota Department of Revenue)
- Income Tax Fact Sheet 8: K–12 Education Subtraction and Credit (Revenue)
- Income Tax Fact Sheet 8a: Qualifying Home School Expenses (Revenue)
- Qualifying Expenses for the K-12 Education Credit and Subtraction (Revenue)
- 2025 Schedule M1ED, K–12 Education Credit, with instructions (Revenue)
- Tax Year 2026 Inflation-Adjusted Amounts (Revenue)
- Tax year 2026 K-12 income limits: press release, Aug 20, 2026 (Revenue)
- Minn. Stat. 290.0674: Minnesota Education Credit
- Minn. Stat. 290.0132: Subtractions, incl. subd. 4 Education expenses
- Minn. Stat. 120A.22: Compulsory instruction
- Minn. Stat. 120A.24: Reporting
- Minn. Stat. 120A.26: Enforcement and prosecution
- Minn. Stat. 121A.15: Immunization requirements (subd. 8, home schools)
- Minn. Stat. 124D.09: Postsecondary Enrollment Options
- PSEO Notice of Student Registration Form 2026-27 (MDE form, posted by Minnesota State Mankato)
- Minn. Stat. 123B.49: Extracurricular activities (subd. 4)
- MSHSL Official Handbook 2026-2027, Bylaws 100 series
- Minn. Stat. 125A.18: Special instruction; nonpublic schools
- Minn. Stat. 123B.42: Textbooks and tests for nonpublic pupils
- Minn. Stat. 171.05: Instruction permit (home-classroom driver training)
- Driver education home school materials (DPS Driver and Vehicle Services)
- Minn. Stat. 136A.1465: North Star Promise
- Minn. Stat. 136A.121: Minnesota State Grant
- HF 3490 (2026): scholarship-granting organizations — bill status
- Federal Scholarship Tax Credit participating states (IRS)
My Learning Source is an independent marketplace. We are not affiliated with the Minnesota Department of Revenue, the Minnesota Department of Education, any Minnesota school district, the Minnesota Legislature, the Office of the Governor, the Minnesota Department of Public Safety, the Minnesota State High School League, the Minnesota Office of Higher Education, Minnesota State, the University of Minnesota or any college. The state does not approve vendors for homeschool families, and a listing here does not mean a purchase qualifies for the K–12 Education Credit or Subtraction. This guide is general information, not legal or tax advice.
As of November 2026.
Loading the full Minnesota site… If it does not appear, everything on this page is readable above.