The legality of homeschooling varies in many countries. Countries with the most prevalent homeschooling movements include Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Some countries have highly regulated homeschooling programs as an extension of the compulsory school system; others, such as Germany, have outlawed it entirely. In some other countries, while not restricted by law, homeschooling is not socially acceptable, or is considered undesirable, and is virtually non-existent.

Status of homeschooling across continents

Africa CountryStatusEstimatedBotswanaLegalIllegal, public education is mandatory without known exceptions.Legal as alternative to the mandatory public school system.Estimated between 30,000 and 100,000 children

North America

Country or region Status Statistics Canada Legal under regulating conditions (Alberta – regulation, British Columbia – registration, Manitoba – permit, Newfoundland – permit, New Brunswick – permit, Northwest Territories – regulation, Nova Scotia – regulation, Ontario – regulation, Prince Edward Island – regulation, Quebec – permit, Saskatchewan – permit, Yukon – regulation) 100,000 children Greenland Illegal, public education is mandatory without known exceptions. Virtually no homeschooling* United States Legal under regulating conditions, varies by state. Around 4 million children Guatemala Illegal, public education is mandatory without known exceptions. Unknown Mexico Legal as long as the student is registered, which can be a lengthy bureaucratic process. Compulsory attendance laws are unclear. Unknown

Latin America and the Caribbean Country or region Status Statistics Belize Expats have right to homeschool. Compulsory attendance is unclear for citizens. Unknown Brazil Legal. The supreme court deemed homeschooling constitutional, but pending legalization. Some states and cities already legalized it. Federal legislation is still pending. 35,000 students Constitution of Brazil Chile Legal. Freedom of education is guaranteed by the constitution. Prior registration with the Ministerio de Educación is required. 8,000-15,000 students Colombia Legal. Regulated by the Ministry of Education and the ICFES. The student would have to present a Public Validation Test and a State Test if they want to go to college. Unknown Costa Rica Illegal, but it is possible for foreigners staying in the country on a tourist visa. Cuba Illegal, public education is mandatory without known exceptions. Virtually no homeschooling* El Salvador Legal Panama Unclear, for it is neither legal nor illegal.There are a number of families who are currently homeschooling Peru Legal. Prior registration with the Ministry of Education is required.Unknown Suriname Legal. Virtually no homeschooling* Trinidad and Tobago Legal. Unknown

Asia

Country or region Status Statistics Armenia Illegal, public education is mandatory without known exceptions. Virtually no homeschooling* Azerbaijan Legal with "moderate" regulation.ChinaIllegal, but without an identity card (Hukou) it is not possible to register at public schools and parents must arrange for private schooling Cyprus Illegal, public education is mandatory without known exceptions. Virtually no homeschooling* Georgia Illegal, public education is mandatory without known exceptions. Virtually no homeschooling* India Legal as alternative to the mandatory public school system 2000 children Indonesia Legal as alternative to the mandatory public school system. 40,000 children Iran Illegal, primary school education is compulsory without known exceptions. Unknown Israel Legal under regulating conditions 500 children as of 2016/14 חינוך ביתי בישראל Kazakhstan Not illegal, but not provided by law. Legal and provided for gifted and disabled students. Door to door checks conducted regularly. Legal for non-residents. Many immigrant families homeschool Philippines Legal More than 10,000 MalaysiaLegal with regulation North Korea Illegal, public education is mandatory with no known exceptions.Unknown Russia Legal since 1992, law sometimes ignored. Every homeschooled child must be enrolled into a state-licensed school (can be a private school), and does not have to pass annual exams. Homeschooled children received diplomas from supervising school. 50,000–100,000 SingaporeLegal with regulation including needing an exemption50 per year South Korea Illegal by law, but law is unclear and the cause is supported by business leaders, therefore homeschoolers do not generally experience issues with authorities. 2000 Students Taiwan Legal since 2011 1000 Children Thailand Legal since 2004 1000 Children Turkey Illegal, public and private education is mandatory without known exceptions. Possible, but not likely* United Arab Emirates Legal, as alternative to the mandatory public school system. 2000 children*

Europe Country or region Status Statistics Albania Legal with regulation after passing of new law in 2012 Andorra Illegal, public education is mandatory without known exceptions. Virtually no homeschooling* Armenia Illegal, public education is mandatory without known exceptions. Virtually no homeschooling* Austria Legal under restrictive conditions, homeschooling is allowed as long as the instruction is equal to that of the state school. 2,500 Children Azerbaijan Legal with "moderate" regulation Belarus Illegal, public education is mandatory without known exceptions. Virtually no homeschooling* Belgium Legal under restrictive conditions, Homeschooling is a constitutional right in Belgium. 500 Bosnia and Herzegovina Illegal, public education is mandatory without known exceptions. Virtually no homeschooling* Bulgaria Illegal, public education is mandatory. Only children with special needs may be homeschooled under strict government control.Fewer than 100 families Croatia Illegal, public education is mandatory without known exceptions. Virtually no homeschooling* WP Cyprus Illegal, public education is mandatory without known exceptions. Virtually no homeschooling* Czech Republic Legal under restrictive conditions by law as an alternative (for "serious reasons" ) for primary school. National curriculum examinations are mandatory twice a year. 2,500 families Denmark Legal, homeschooling is allowed as long as the instruction is equal to that of the state school. The inspections are controlled by the local district public school or a third-party inspector.min. 1.238 children (school year 2020–2021) WP Estonia Legal under the control of the school. An authorized school must supervise every homeschooled child (can be a private school) and pass annual exams. Homeschooled children receive diplomas from supervising schools. Fewer than 100 WP Finland Legal as an alternative to the mandatory public school system. Written and oral examinations to check on progress are mandatory. 400–600 WPHem och skola 4/2011 p. 7 (Swedish) France Legal as an alternative to the mandatory public school system, but subject to very harsh authorizations and yearly inspections since the 2022 law on separatism. 63 000 (February 2021) Georgia Illegal, public education is mandatory without known exceptions. Virtually no homeschooling* Germany Illegal, public, or approved private education is mandatory with the only exception being where continued school attendance would create undue hardship for an individual child. 400 WP Greece Illegal, public education is mandatory without known exceptions. Virtually no homeschooling* Hungary Legal, Homeschooling has been practically banned since 2019, but is permitted in exceptional cases. There is no law against homeschooling per se, but approval from the authorities is necessary. 7673 (2017) Iceland Legal only for holders of teaching certificates, in other cases public education is mandatory. Unknown WP Ireland Legal, homeschooling is allowed by the Constitution. 1100 WP Italy Legal, homeschooling is allowed by the Constitution. 11,000 families WP Latvia Legal under the control of the school. An authorized school must supervise every homeschooled child (can be a private school) and pass annual exams. Homeschooled children receive diplomas from supervising schools. Fewer than 100 families Liechtenstein Legal, in Liechtenstein, homeschooling is possible under certain conditions and requires approval from the school authorities in Vaduz. Lithuania Legal under the control of the school. An authorized school must supervise every homeschooled child (can be a private school) and pass annual exams. Homeschooled children receive diplomas from supervising schools. Virtually no homeschooling* Luxembourg Legal Unknown Malta Illegal, public education is mandatory without known exceptions. Virtually no homeschooling* Moldova Not illegal 100–200 Montenegro Illegal, public education is mandatory without known exceptions. Virtually no homeschooling* WP Netherlands Illegal, public, or private education is mandatory, with some exceptions. 2475 children exempt* (2023–2024) WP North Macedonia Illegal, public education is mandatory without known exceptions. Virtually no homeschooling* Norway Legal under restrictive conditions, homeschooling is allowed as long as the instruction is equal to that of the state school. 400+ Poland Legal under restrictive conditions. Every home-schooled child must be supervised by an authorized school (can be a private school) and pass annual exams. Homeschooled children receive diplomas from supervising schools. In fact, exams are a formality, they take place online, and all students receive grades around the maximum. No one checks whether students are actually learning. 54836 (Feb 2024) Portugal Legal. Children living longer than 4 months in Portugal must attend school by law. Home education under the Portuguese national curriculum only. Mandatory annual exams in Portuguese. 1,000 families Romania Legal under restrictive conditions. Children with disabilities, special needs or whose condition does not allow them to be physically present in a school may be home-schooled, under the supervision of an accredited teacher. Foreign Curriculum can be studied, overseen by an umbrella school from abroad. 500 Russia Legal since 1992, law sometimes ignored. Every homeschooled child must be enrolled in a state-licensed school (can be a private school), and does not have to pass annual exams. Homeschooled children received diplomas from supervising schools. 50,000–100,000 San Marino Illegal, public education is mandatory without known exceptions. Virtually no homeschooling* Serbia Legal, only children who cannot attend school for health reasons. Unknown The Law on the Fundamentals of the Education System, Article 8 and 38. Slovakia Legal, under conditions. Only 6-15 year olds are allowed to attend. Several hundred Slovenia Legal Unknown Spain Unknown, as the Constitution recognizes freedom of education, national education law stipulates that compulsory education must be met through school attendance. About 2,000 families Sweden Illegal, as of June 2010; supposedly allowed under special circumstances such as student health reasons or family travel, but virtually never approved. When compulsory schooling ends at 16, can deregister from school and return to homeschooling. Many swedish homeschooling families emigrated to the neighboring provinces of Åland (Finland) and Bornholm (Denmark). 200 families — half legally Switzerland Legal in about three quarters of the cantons, with many being restrictive to very restrictive. 4136 Children Turkey Illegal, public, and private education is mandatory without known exceptions. Possible, but not likely* Ukraine Legal but heavily regulated 200 families United Kingdom Legal as an alternative to the mandatory state school system. 57,132 Vatican City No indication for educational laws to exist were found.Unknown

Oceania