How to apply for a home education exemption in NZ

If you want to educate your child at home in New Zealand, you need a Certificate of Exemption from the Ministry of Education. This is a Section 38 exemption under the Education and Training Act 2020.

This guide walks you through every step: what to write, how to submit it, how long it takes, and what happens if the Ministry comes back with questions.

One thing worth saying upfront: the application is not a form you fill in. It is a 10 to 15 page written document about your child, your approach to education, and how you plan to teach them. Most families spend several weeks writing it.

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What is a Section 38 exemption?

New Zealand law requires children aged 6 to 16 to attend a registered school unless they hold a Certificate of Exemption. Section 38 of the Education and Training Act 2020 allows parents to apply for that certificate.

The Ministry will grant the exemption if they are satisfied that your child will be taught "as regularly and well as in a registered school." That is the entire legal test. There are no compulsory subjects, no required hours, and no teaching qualifications required.

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Who needs to apply?

You need a Section 38 exemption for every child you want to home educate, from their sixth birthday until they turn 16. You can submit an application after your child's fifth birthday.

If your child is currently enrolled at school, they should remain enrolled until the Certificate of Exemption arrives. Withdrawing them before approval can make them technically truant. The exception is if there is a documented welfare reason such as bullying, serious illness, or significant distress.

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Step 1: Download the form

The current MoE home education application form was updated in March 2024. Download it directly from the Ministry of Education website. Save the file before you start filling it in. Do not complete it in-browser.

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Step 2: Write your teaching and learning programme

The form is the wrapper. The substance of your application is a written document attached to it, typically 10 to 15 pages long. This is the part that takes most families by surprise.

Most parents underestimate this step. You are not filling in boxes — you are writing original content about your educational philosophy, your curriculum plan, your approach to assessment, and your child specifically. It needs to sound like you, and it needs to address all 11 sections below. Parents who are confident writers still typically spend 20 to 40 hours on a first application.

You do not need formal teaching qualifications to write a strong application. What the Ministry wants to see is that you have a plan, you understand it, and you are confident in it. But "just write what you know" is harder than it sounds when you are staring at a blank page trying to describe your entire educational philosophy.

The form asks you to address 11 sections. Here is what each one is asking for:

Section 1: Special education needs

This section carries the most risk and needs careful handling. See the note on learning differences below before you write anything here.

Section 2: Parent knowledge and understanding

This is about you, not your child. What is your teaching background, your experience, your philosophical approach? You do not need degrees or formal qualifications. What you do need to show is that you have thought seriously about education and understand how you will approach it.

This section is harder to write than it looks. Most parents undersell themselves, or write something so general it gives the officer nothing to go on.

Section 3: Curriculum description

Describe the curriculum you plan to follow. You are not required to follow the New Zealand Curriculum, but you can reference it if it is useful. Most applications describe a mix of learning areas: literacy, maths, science, social sciences, health and PE, the arts, technology, and te reo Maori.

The Ministry accepts any coherent philosophy: structured school-at-home, interest-led, Charlotte Mason, Waldorf, Montessori, unschooling, or a mix. What matters is that you can describe your approach in your own words.

Section 4: NZ Curriculum reference

This section is for MoE information only. You do not need to write a response.

Section 5: Topic plan

This is the section that causes the most anxiety and requires the least elaboration.

You need one topic plan, covering one subject, structured around five components:

• Title — what topic you are covering
• Aim — what your child will learn
• Resources — what you will use (books, websites, visits, people)
• Method — how you will teach it (projects, discussions, field trips, experiments, reading)
• Evaluation — how you will know they have learned it

The topic does not need to be impressive. A family with two PhDs once submitted a topic plan on how to boil an egg. It was accepted. The Ministry is checking that you understand the structure, not that you have chosen a suitably academic subject.

Pick something your child is genuinely interested in and build the plan around it.

Section 6: Resources and reference material

List the types of resources you will use: library books, online platforms, community organisations, museums, sports clubs, tutors. You do not need to list specific book titles.

Section 7: Environment and community

Describe where your child will learn and how they will connect with the wider community. Libraries, marae, museums, sports teams, homeschool co-ops, iwi connections, community groups. Everything counts.

Section 8: Social contact

How will your child interact with other children? Sporting clubs, homeschool groups, neighbourhood connections, extended family, community activities.

Section 9: Assessment and evaluation

How will you track your child's progress? You do not need formal tests. The Ministry accepts informal observation, conversation, and keeping dated samples of work. Describe what you will actually do, not what sounds most rigorous.

Section 10: Regularity

Describe your approach to routine. You do not need to submit a timetable or account for every hour. A general description of your weekly rhythm is enough: what a typical day looks like, which days you prioritise which subjects, how flexible the schedule is.

Section 11: Other information

Anything else relevant to your application. Older siblings who have been successfully home educated, previous teaching experience, specific family circumstances.

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Step 3: Submit by email

Email is the preferred submission method. It gives you a proof-of-submission timestamp and typically results in faster acknowledgement.

Submit to your local Ministry of Education regional office. Include:

• The completed application form
• Your teaching and learning programme document
• Your child's birth certificate
• Proof of guardianship if applicable

You should receive an acknowledgement within a few days to a week. If you hear nothing after a week, follow up.

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Step 4: Wait for the response

Approval typically takes four to six weeks. The maximum by law is six months.

About one in three applicants receives a follow-up letter from the Ministry after submitting. This letter is written in formal government language and often reads like a rejection. It almost never is — but that does not make it easy to deal with.

The letter asks for more information about sections the officer found unclear. Responding means going back into the document, reworking the parts that did not land, and resubmitting — often weeks after you thought you were done. Many parents find this round harder than the original submission, because now they know which parts of their thinking they struggled to explain the first time.

Parents who respond clearly to these letters almost always receive approval. But if you are already stretched, the prospect of a revision round is worth factoring in before you submit.

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Step 5: After approval

Your Certificate of Exemption is valid until your child turns 16. You do not need to reapply annually.

You will need to submit a declaration twice a year, roughly in May and November, confirming that you are still home educating. This is low effort but easy to forget. Set a calendar reminder.

Your teaching programme is not a contract. You can change your approach at any time after approval. The Ministry expects this and would be concerned if a programme had not changed at all over several years.

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A note on learning differences

Many families choose home education specifically because a child has dyslexia, ADHD, autism, or another learning difference. If that is your situation, be careful about how you address it in Section 1.

Mentioning a learning difference can trigger assessment under a different, more demanding standard under the Act. Standard advice from experienced home education advisors is not to mention minor learning differences in the application unless they are severe or unavoidable.

This is one of the most important nuances in the whole process and one most guides gloss over. If your family is in this situation, get specific advice before you submit.

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Regional variation

Outcomes vary by region and by individual officer. The same application can be approved in one region and queried in another. If your application is declined and you believe it is solid, you can request that a different regional office assess a fresh submission.

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Common questions

Do I need teaching qualifications to home educate in NZ? No. The Ministry does not require any formal qualifications.

Do I have to follow the New Zealand Curriculum? No. You are not required to follow the NZ Curriculum, though you can reference it if it is helpful.

How long does the MoE take to respond? Typically four to six weeks. The legal maximum is six months.

What if I get a letter asking for more information? Answer the specific questions the officer asked and resubmit. This is not a rejection. About one in three applicants receives this kind of letter.

What if my application is declined? Outright rejection on a first submission is uncommon. If it happens, file a completely fresh application. Do not appeal the original. A new application is assessed on its own merits without reference to the previous one.

Can I withdraw my child from school before the exemption arrives? Generally no. Keep them enrolled until the certificate comes through. If there is a serious welfare concern, document it carefully.

Does the exemption cover more than one child? No. You need a separate application for each child.

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Writing tips from approved applications

A few things that show up in almost every strong application:

Write in your own voice. The Ministry can tell when an application has been copied from a template or written to sound like someone else. Warm, specific, personal writing scores better than formal, comprehensive writing. This is easier said than done when you are self-conscious about being assessed.

Be confident. Tentative language like "we may cover" or "we hope to include" signals uncertainty. "We plan to cover" and "we will use" signal a parent who knows what they are doing. Most parents write tentatively on a first draft and need to go back through and remove all of it.

Be specific about your child. An application about a real child with real interests is more convincing than a general description of what home education looks like. The more your application sounds like it could only be about this particular child, the stronger it is.

Cover the basics. Whatever your philosophy, make sure literacy, maths, and some form of science and history are clearly addressed. The Ministry is not asking for much, but they are checking that the basics are there.

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Last updated: May 2026. Based on the March 2024 MoE application form and the Education and Training Act 2020.