Homeschool laws in Iowa

Checked Oct 12, 2026 against 9 sources · General information, not legal advice.

Your Iowa to-do

For “Competent private instruction by a parent, no reporting (CPI Option 2 opt-out)”. 3 other legal ways below.

Nothing to file with Iowa. Teach, and keep your own simple records.

Homepen turns this into reminders and ready-to-send letters, and counts your days and hours.

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What Iowa asks

Iowa has several homeschool paths: most parents teach under competent private instruction without reporting, or under independent private instruction, and neither path needs a form, a test or a report. Parents who want dual enrollment or other district services file Form A by September 1 and have their child evaluated each year by May 31, while instruction by or under a licensed teacher (including a district home school assistance program) needs Form A and at least 148 days a year.

School age: Ages 6–15. A child who is 6 and under 16 by September 15 is of compulsory attendance age; a child who turns 16 after September 15 finishes that school year. A 5-year-old enrolled in a public school district is also covered unless the parent withdraws the child in writing.

Iowa has 4 legal ways to homeschool. Pick the one that fits your family; Homepen asks you when you set up.

Competent private instruction by a parent, no reporting (CPI Option 2 opt-out)

Iowa Code §§ 299A.1(2)(a)(2), 299A.3; 281 IAC 31.3(2), 31.7(5) · Level 1: Very light

Notice: none required
Time: not verified yet (state guidance says 148 days)
Subjects: not verified yet (state guidance names 4 core areas)
Assessment: none required
Records: none required by the law

All the details and notes

Notice: No notice to file
Time: Not verified yet: check with your state
Subjects: Not verified yet: check with your state
Assessment: No assessment required
Portfolio: Not required
Reports: No reports to send
Records to keep: No records required by the law
Teacher: No qualification required

Families on this path cannot dual enroll for classes, activities or special education services; requesting district services means using a reporting option instead.
If your child is enrolled in a school, the state suggests (but does not require) telling the district you are withdrawing to homeschool, so the absence is not treated as truancy.
Since 2026, parents may issue a diploma and final transcript, which Iowa law accepts like a school's diploma.

How Homepen helps

Homepen counts your days and hours as you tick lessons, and makes: Attendance & hours report, Daily log, Report card, High-school transcript.

Another option: Independent private instruction (IPI)

Iowa Code § 299A.1(2)(b) (as amended by 2026 HF 2754) · Level 1: Very light

Notice: none; a short report only if the district asks in writing
Time: no set days or hours
Subjects: math, reading and language arts, science, social studies
Assessment: none required
Records: none required by the law

All the details and notes

Notice

No notice to file

Time

No set number of days or hours

Subjects

mathematics
reading and language arts
science
social studies

Assessment

No assessment required

Portfolio

Not required

Reports

No reports to send

Records to keep

No records required by the law

Teacher

No qualification required

On written request from the district superintendent or the state director of education, the family reports the primary instructor, the location, the responsible authority and the students' names.
Since HF 2754 (signed May 12, 2026), an IPI is no longer limited to four unrelated students and may charge tuition.
IPI students cannot dual enroll; they can still take driver education, concurrent enrollment courses and a yearly test at the family's cost.

How Homepen helps

Homepen counts your days and hours as you tick lessons, and makes: Attendance & hours report, Reading list, Report card, High-school transcript.

Another option: Competent private instruction by a parent, with Form A and yearly evaluation (CPI Option 2 with reporting or dual enrollment)

Iowa Code §§ 299.4, 299A.3, 299A.4, 299A.5, 299A.6, 299A.8; 281 IAC 31.3(2), 31.4 · Level 4: More involved

Notice: Form A to your district by Sept 1 each year
Time: not verified yet (state guidance says 148 days)
Subjects: not verified yet (tested: reading, language arts, math)
Assessment: yearly test or portfolio review by May 31
Records: none required by the law

All the details, deadlines and notes

Notice: Every year: Form A (the competent private instruction report) to the resident school district by September 1 of each school year; the first time, also proof of immunizations and, for elementary-age children, a blood lead test. Starting after September 1 after leaving a school: the Department's handbook allows 14 calendar days from withdrawal (sources differ, see below).
The state's form
Time: Not verified yet: check with your state
Subjects: Not verified yet: check with your state
Assessment: An assessment you choose from the allowed options: Every year, all grades of compulsory age, with a baseline evaluation at age 7 or the first year: an approved standardized test, or a portfolio reviewed by a licensed Iowa teacher approved by the superintendent. Adequate progress means above the 30th percentile in reading, math and language arts (plus science and social studies from grade 6) and six months' progress or at grade level.
Evaluation by May 31; results to the school district and the Department of Education by August 1 after the school year.
Portfolio: Not required
Reports: No reports to send
Records to keep: No records required by the law
Teacher: No qualification required

Deadlines

File Form A with your school district: By September 1 of each school year.
File Form A after leaving a school: If you withdraw your child from a school after September 1: within 14 calendar days (Department handbook).
Complete the yearly evaluation: By May 31 each year (approved standardized test or portfolio review).
Send the evaluation results: By August 1 after the school year, to the resident school district and the Department of Education.

This path lets the child dual enroll in the public school for classes, activities or special education services.
If the evaluation does not show adequate progress, the child must attend an accredited school the next year unless a retest or portfolio review shows adequate progress or a remediation plan is approved.

How Homepen helps

Homepen counts your days and hours as you tick lessons, and makes: Notice-of-intent letter, filled in, Attendance & hours report, Daily log, Reading list, Portfolio and evaluator packet, Year-end summary, Report card, High-school transcript, Course descriptions.

Another option: Competent private instruction by or under a licensed teacher, incl. home school assistance programs (CPI Option 1)

Iowa Code §§ 299A.1(2)(a)(1), 299A.2, 299.4; 281 IAC 31.3(1), 31.6 · Level 3: Moderate

Notice: Form A to your district by Sept 1 (Sept 15 for a district HSAP)
Time: 148 days a year, at least 37 days each quarter
Subjects: no list in the law
Assessment: none required by the state
Records: the supervising teacher keeps a log of visits

All the details, deadlines and notes

Notice

Every year: Form A to the resident school district by September 1 each school year. In a district home school assistance program (HSAP), tell the district by September 15 and the program files its own report; after a move or withdrawal from school past those dates, 14 calendar days.
The state's form

Time

148 days a year
Instruction on a daily basis for at least 148 days a school year, with at least 37 days in each school quarter.

Subjects

No subjects listed in the law

Assessment

No assessment required

Portfolio

Not required

Reports

No reports to send

Records to keep

diary, record or log of visits and assistance (kept each year by the supervising licensed teacher)

Teacher

A teacher with a valid Iowa teaching license appropriate to the child's ages and grades (the parent if licensed, a privately retained teacher, or an HSAP teacher). A supervising teacher contacts the family at least twice per 45 days of instruction (HSAP: four times), one of every two contacts face to face, and serves at most 25 families or 50 children a year unless exempted.

Deadlines

File Form A with your school district: By September 1 of each school year (not needed when the district's home school assistance program reports for you).
Ask to join the district home school assistance program: By September 15 of the school year, if your district offers a program.

Districts do not have to offer a home school assistance program; where offered it is free, and the program may require a yearly assessment.

How Homepen helps

Homepen counts your days and hours as you tick lessons toward this goal, and makes: Notice-of-intent letter, filled in, Attendance & hours report, Daily log, Portfolio and evaluator packet, Report card, High-school transcript.

Sources disagree

The Department says all competent private instruction, including by a parent, needs at least 148 days a year (37 per quarter); the statute ties the 148-day wording to instruction by or under a licensed practitioner and defines parent instruction only by reference to § 299A.3. Not settled here.
Same as the opt-out path: the Department applies 148 days (37 per quarter) to every CPI option, while the statute attaches the 148 days to the licensed-practitioner clause only.
The Department handbook says opt-out families are required to teach reading/language arts, math, science and social studies, but its general CPI section says these areas are only encouraged; § 299A.3 lists no subjects for parent instruction.
The Department handbook says CPI families are encouraged (not required) to teach reading/language arts, math, science and social studies; the statute lists no subjects for parent instruction, only the areas that are evaluated.
The statute says Form A is due by September 1; the administrative rule says within 30 days of starting instruction; the Department's timeline says by September 1 or within 14 calendar days of moving or leaving a school (fully completed within 30 days). We show the statute's September 1.
The statute and rule require reading, math and language arts in every grade, plus science and social studies from grade 6; the Department handbook names different grades in different places (science in grades 5, 8 and 10 or 11; social studies in grades 8 and 11). We show the statute's rule.

Sources

Iowa Code 2026, chapter 299A Private Instruction (printed Dec 2025, before 2026 HF 2754) · Statute · checked Oct 12, 2026
Iowa Code 2026, § 299.1A Compulsory attendance age · Statute · checked Oct 12, 2026
Iowa Code 2026, § 299.4 Reports as to private instruction · Statute · checked Oct 12, 2026
2026 Iowa Acts, House File 2754 (enrolled; Division XIII Private Instruction; approved May 12, 2026, effective on enactment) · Statute · checked Oct 12, 2026
Iowa Administrative Code 281, chapter 31 Private Instruction and Dual Enrollment (IAC 3/5/25) · Regulation · checked Oct 12, 2026
Iowa Department of Education: Homeschooling (Private Instruction) · State education agency · checked Oct 12, 2026
Iowa Department of Education: Private Instruction Handbook (August 2026, PDF) · State education agency · checked Oct 12, 2026
Iowa Department of Education: Homeschool Technical Assistance Based on 2026 Legislation (HF 2754, PDF) · State education agency · checked Oct 12, 2026
Iowa Department of Education: Summary of Timelines and Procedures for CPI (PDF) · State education agency · checked Oct 12, 2026

General information, not legal advice. Laws change: we check every source at least every 6 months and before each school year. If something looks wrong, tell us. The state agency for homeschooling questions is the Iowa Department of Education.

Keep your Iowa records without the paperwork

Plan the week, tick lessons, and Homepen keeps the days, hours and portfolio Iowa asks for.

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