Getting started with home education
Home education is a lawful alternative to school in New Zealand, but it is not automatic — you apply for an exemption first. Here is what the process actually involves.
- Check whether you need an exemption yet
Children must be enrolled in school from age 6, so the exemption applies from 6 to 16. A five-year-old is not yet required to be enrolled, so an exemption takes effect once they turn 6.
- Complete the application, one per child
Each child needs their own application. All legal guardians must agree to home education, and you will need the child’s birth certificate, plus a passport or visa and any court orders where they apply.
- Send it to your regional office
Applications go to the Ministry’s regional office rather than a national inbox. There is no fee.
- Allow four to six weeks
That is the Ministry’s typical processing time. Keep your child enrolled at school until the exemption is granted.
- Start teaching, and claim the allowance
Once the exemption is in place you take full responsibility for your child’s education and curriculum, and the Supervision Allowance begins.
Keep your child at school until the exemption is actually granted. With a four-to-six week turnaround, applying well before you intend to start saves an awkward gap.
What you are taking on
Once the exemption is granted, you assume full responsibility for your child's education and for designing their curriculum. The expectation is that your child is taught as well as, and as regularly as, they would be at school — the standard is about substance and consistency, not about replicating a school timetable at home.
The money side
With an exemption in place you can claim the Supervision Allowance — $796 a year for a first child, stepping down for each additional child, paid in two instalments. Full rates and timing →
You are not doing this alone
There were 6,518 home-educating families in New Zealand as at 1 July 2025. The community is well connected and generally generous with advice — worth tapping before you buy anything.
Once you are up and running
Maths is the subject most home-educating parents tell us they want a second pair of hands on — it compounds, and gaps are hard to spot until they bite. That is the job Abbi does.