Homeschool funding & ESAs in Virginia

Can I get paid to homeschool in Virginia?

No. Virginia has no ESA or voucher that independent homeschooling families can use. 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: Virginia's homeschool rules require a test or an evaluation each year. The accepted options, and who administers each, are in the testing line below. Which pathway you homeschool under changes that, so read the testing line before you plan around it. If the option you choose charges a fee, plan for it.

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

Virginia requires a test or an evaluation each year. That is the part of the year a family arranges ahead of time. Which pathway you homeschool under changes this: Standard home instruction (§ 22.1-254.1); the separate religious-exemption pathway (§ 22.1-254(B)(1)) has no assessment. Which options Virginia 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 Virginia asks for — notice, instruction time, testing and records — is set out below, straight from the reviewed rules.

Notice

Yes. Virginia requires homeschooling families to file a notice. Where it goes: Division superintendent. How: Written Notice of Intent (annual) with a curriculum description + parent-qualification documentation. When: By August 15; within 30 days if beginning mid-year. Annual filing each school year.

Testing or evaluation

Yes. Virginia requires a test or another accepted form of evaluation. How often: Annual. Who this applies to: Standard home instruction (§ 22.1-254.1); the separate religious-exemption pathway (§ 22.1-254(B)(1)) has no assessment. Accepted options: nationally-normed standardized test at/above the 4th stanine (23rd percentile composite of math + language arts); an evaluation letter from a Virginia-licensed teacher or a person with a master's+ in an academic discipline; ACT/SAT/PSAT scores; and A report card/transcript from a college, distance-learning program, or correspondence school. Assessment evidence is due to the superintendent by August 1. A child who is under the age of six as of September 30 of the school year owes no evidence of progress for that year (§ 22.1-254.1(C)); a family providing home instruction still files the August 15 Notice of Intent. The separate religious exemption — once approved by the school board — requires no annual NOI, no curriculum description, and no assessment.

Days and hours

None. Virginia does not set a minimum number of instructional days or hours for homeschoolers. No minimum days or hours mandated for home instruction.

Records

Virginia requires these records: evidence of progress / assessment results. How long, or where they go: Submitted to the superintendent by August 1. Assessment evidence is submitted annually, starting with the first school year in which the child is six or older as of September 30 (§ 22.1-254.1(C)).

Full Virginia 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 →