Homeschool funding & ESAs in Minnesota

Can I get paid to homeschool in Minnesota?

No. Minnesota has no ESA or voucher that independent homeschooling families can use. What Minnesota does offer is the K-12 Education Credit (a state tax credit) and the K-12 Education Subtraction (a state tax deduction) — eligibility and how to claim them are below. Nationwide grants are listed below, each with its own eligibility rules. Romeschool tracks and organizes what you spend, so a receipt is ready the moment a program asks for one — it never files or submits anything on your behalf. It runs the other way too: Minnesota's homeschool rules require a test or an evaluation each year. The accepted options, and who administers each, are in the testing line below. If the option you choose charges a fee, plan for it.

Minnesota scholarships, grants & tax credits

What does Minnesota require of homeschoolers — and what should I plan for?

Minnesota requires a test or an evaluation each year. That is the part of the year a family arranges ahead of time. Which options Minnesota accepts — and who administers each one — is in the testing line below, in the reviewed rules' own words. If the option you choose charges a fee, plan for it. What Minnesota asks for — notice, instruction time, testing and records — is set out below, straight from the reviewed rules.

Notice

Yes. Minnesota requires homeschooling families to file a notice. Where it goes: Resident district superintendent. How: Initial registration form the first year — and a new one after you move — then a letter of intent to continue each year. When: By October 1 each year. Also within 15 days of withdrawing a child from public school after age 7, within 15 days of moving out of a district, and by October 1 after a new resident district is established. The initial registration lists the child's name, birth date and address, the name of each instructor, the annual test you intend to use, and evidence that the instructor meets one of the qualification options. Attach immunization records for each student — or a notarized statement of conscientiously held beliefs — and send them again in the grade 7 year; the Department's own form treats that as seventh grade and/or age 12 (Minn. Stat. 121A.15 subds. 3 and 8).

Testing or evaluation

Yes. Minnesota requires a standardized test. How often: Annual. What is accepted: Nationally norm-referenced standardized achievement test agreed on with the superintendent. Every child aged 7 through 16 who is not enrolled in a public school takes a nationally normed standardized achievement test each year — the requirement runs on age, not grade (Minn. Stat. 120A.22 subd. 11(a)). That subdivision adds a second group, a child 'ages 16 through 17' for whom the first report was filed after the child turned 16; every 16-year-old is already covered by the first group, whatever year you first reported. The Department of Education's guidance draws no such line: its Homeschool Questions and Answers, updated 22 May 2026, tells families to test 'each student between the ages of 7-17'. Where a 17-year-old has not graduated, the statute's wording and the Department's guidance do not plainly agree, and the safe course is to test. You and the superintendent agree on the specific test, how it is given and where. You keep the results: the Department's guidance is that they 'do not have to be submitted to the district, unless requested'. What the statute requires you to keep is proof that the test was administered, together with class schedules, copies of your materials and a description of how you assess the child (Minn. Stat. 120A.24 subd. 2(a)); the Department adds that the results and scores be kept with that documentation. Scores go to a public school if the child later enrolls there full time, and the documentation goes to the county attorney if a case is commenced (subd. 2(b), (c)). Additional evaluation is required if the total battery score is at or below the 30th percentile or one grade level below children of the same age — either one triggers it. If you are not a licensed teacher and are not supervised by one, you must also assess any required subject the test does not cover (subd. 11(b)). A homeschool accredited by a recognized agency is exempt from the testing requirement.

Days and hours

None. Minnesota does not set a minimum number of instructional days or hours for homeschoolers. No minimum hours or days specified.

Records

Minnesota requires these records: class schedules, copies of instructional materials, descriptions of assessment methods, and annual test results. How long, or where they go: Kept with your homeschool records, and produced to an enrolling public school or a county attorney when asked. Accredited homeschools are exempt from the documentation requirements.

Full Minnesota homeschool requirements →

Nationwide grants

• ACT Today! Grant · Autism Care Today
  For U.S. families of a child with an autism diagnosis (priority to household income under $100k).
  Open to any family of a child with autism — not homeschool-specific, but useful for therapy costs.
• Dyslexia Services Foundation Grant · Dyslexia Services Foundation
  For low-income U.S. children with dyslexia who cannot otherwise afford treatment (need shown via free/reduced lunch, Medicaid, or SNAP).
  Typically identified through a teacher or provider; not homeschool-specific.
• HSLDA Compassion Curriculum Grant · Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA)
  For HSLDA members with significant financial need (legal custody of a child 6-19, homeschooling 3+ months).
  You must privately fund your homeschool (not receiving ESA or other public funds).
• HSLDA Disaster Relief Grant · Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA)
  For homeschooling families (child 6-19) with physical disaster damage in the past 18 months.
• MyGOAL Autism Grant · MyGOAL Inc.
  For the primary caregiver of a child under 18 with autism, with demonstrated financial need.
  Open to any family of a child with autism — not homeschool-specific.
• Our Military Kids Grant · Our Military Kids
  For children (1-18) of deployed National Guard/Reserve members (60+ days) or of post-9/11 combat-injured service members and veterans.
  Funds organized, provider-led activities (not parent-taught core instruction).
• UnitedHealthcare Children's Foundation Grant · UnitedHealthcare Children's Foundation
  For U.S. children aged 16 or under with commercial (non-public) health insurance, subject to income guidelines.
  Medical (not education) funding — useful for special-needs homeschoolers' therapy costs.

Full details, amounts and deadlines for every program →