Applying for a home education exemption in New Zealand

Section 35 of the Education and Training Act 2020 requires children to be enrolled at a registered school from age 6 until they turn 16. Section 38 allows the Ministry of Education to grant a parent a certificate exempting their child from that requirement.

The test in the Act is that the Ministry must be satisfied the child will be taught at least as regularly and as well as in a registered school. For a child who would otherwise need special education, the comparison is with a specialist school or special education service.

A parent applies, using the Ministry's home education application form, sent to their regional Ministry office. A separate application is needed for each child.

You can apply for a child who has not yet started school or for a child who is already enrolled. If your child is aged between 6 and 16 and enrolled, the application form says they must stay enrolled at and attending school while the application is under way.

Applying is free, and the Ministry says applications normally take 4 to 6 weeks. If an application lapses or is withdrawn, the child needs to be enrolled at school.

The application asks you to explain, in your own words, how you plan to teach your child. The Ministry's form and guidance cover areas such as:

• your approach to education and how you will organise learning
• the resources you plan to use, such as books, the internet, libraries, pre-packaged curriculum, the community and the environment, and whether anyone else will teach part of the programme
• your educational goals for the next 12 months, ideally at least one for each area of learning
• how you will monitor progress towards those goals and what records you will keep

The guidance suggests goals that are specific enough to measure progress against, and records that are written or digital rather than relying on memory. If your child has special education needs, the application needs to show how those needs will be met.

If the Ministry is satisfied, it issues a Certificate of Exemption. Only start home educating, and withdraw your child from school, once you have it.

If the application is declined, the Act allows the parent to appeal to the Secretary for Education, whose decision is final. A child whose application is declined needs to remain enrolled at school.

The Ministry says a Certificate of Exemption stays valid until your child turns 16 or enrols in a registered school, whichever comes first.

With a current exemption you can receive the home education supervision allowance. It is paid twice a year, and before each payment the Ministry asks you to declare that you are still home educating your child. The allowance is not paid unless the declaration is completed.

The Ministry's procedures describe declarations being sent out around March and August, with payments around June and November, and say the allowance can continue until the end of the year in which the child turns 19. Amounts are set per child and change from time to time, so check the Ministry's website for current rates.

Reviews of home education programmes do not happen routinely. The Ministry may ask the Education Review Office (ERO) to review a programme if it has concerns about whether the exemption's requirements are being met.

In a review, ERO considers whether the child is being taught at least as regularly and well as in a registered school, and reports to the Ministry and the parents. The Act allows the Secretary for Education to revoke a certificate in certain circumstances, after which the child needs to be enrolled at school.

If your child enrols in a registered school, the exemption ends. Contact the school you would like your child to attend about enrolment; they can talk you through their process.

If you later want to home educate again, you would need to check with the Ministry of Education about applying for a new exemption.