Homeschooling in New Mexico
Welcome, New Mexico homeschool family. New Mexico asks you to notify the Public Education Department, teach five core subjects, meet the instructor qualification, provide the instructional hours NMPED identifies, and keep immunization records or an approved waiver. You choose the curriculum and direct the education. Here is how to put those pieces together.
Who this applies to
New Mexico compulsory attendance begins when a child is at least five years old before 12:01 a.m. on September 1 of the school year. The compulsory-attendance statute requires attendance until the child is at least eighteen, unless the student graduates, earns a high school equivalency credential, or lawfully withdraws on an approved hardship waiver.
NMPED’s FAQ also describes a broader statutory category called a “school-age person,” which can include a person who has not reached the person’s twenty-second birthday. That definition serves broader Public School Code purposes; it does not replace the compulsory-attendance endpoint in Section 22-12A-4.
A New Mexico home school is operated by the child’s parent or legal guardian. The parent remains responsible for the program, although another qualified person may provide instruction in a subject.
Notify the state
Notify the New Mexico Public Education Department within thirty days after establishing the home school. If you continue in later years, notify again on or before August 1. NMPED opens the annual notification period on June 1.
You may use the online Home School System or mail the official paper Notification of a Home School form. These are two valid methods, and you do not need to complete both.
Notify. Teach. Renew. Keep proof.
What New Mexico asks for
What New Mexico asks for
- Compulsory attendance
- Who operates it
- Initial notification
- Annual notification
- How to notify
- Instructor
- Required subjects
- Instructional time
- Health records
- Testing
- Proof
How to handle it
- Beginning under the September 1 age-five trigger and continuing until at least age eighteen, unless an identified exception applies
- The child’s parent or legal guardian operates the home school
- Notify NMPED within thirty days after establishing the home school
- Notify again by August 1 of each later year of operation
- Use the online Home School System or mail the official paper form
- Use a person who has at least a high school diploma or its equivalent
- Include reading, language arts, mathematics, social studies, and science
- NMPED instructs families to provide at least 1,140 hours, or 550 hours for half-day kindergarten
- Maintain immunization records or the approved waiver documentation
- NMPED states that annual standardized testing is not required
- Save the online notification report or delivery verification for a paper filing
What New Mexico asks for
How to handle it
- Compulsory attendance
- Beginning under the September 1 age-five trigger and continuing until at least age eighteen, unless an identified exception applies
- Who operates it
- The child’s parent or legal guardian operates the home school
- Initial notification
- Notify NMPED within thirty days after establishing the home school
- Annual notification
- Notify again by August 1 of each later year of operation
- How to notify
- Use the online Home School System or mail the official paper form
- Instructor
- Use a person who has at least a high school diploma or its equivalent
- Required subjects
- Include reading, language arts, mathematics, social studies, and science
- Instructional time
- NMPED instructs families to provide at least 1,140 hours, or 550 hours for half-day kindergarten
- Health records
- Maintain immunization records or the approved waiver documentation
- Testing
- NMPED states that annual standardized testing is not required
- Proof
- Save the online notification report or delivery verification for a paper filing
Choose online or paper notification
Online filers create an account, add each child, and click the blue Notify button beside each child’s name. Save or print the Parent Notification Report. Its five-digit registration number is unique to that child for that school year.
Paper filers may place multiple children on one official form. NMPED recommends Certified Mail with Return Receipt or another delivery-verification method. Department staff then enter the submitted information into the online database.
When a child graduates, transfers, moves out of state, or otherwise leaves home schooling, online users can use the portal’s Remove child or Unnotify function.
What to teach and who may teach it
Your basic academic program must include reading, language arts, mathematics, social studies, and science. NMPED places responsibility for selecting and purchasing grade-appropriate materials with the parent or guardian and does not endorse a particular curriculum.
The person providing instruction must possess at least a high school diploma or its equivalent. NMPED requires an affirmation of that qualification; it does not require the family to upload the diploma with the notification.
Instructional time
NMPED instructs home-school families to provide at least 1,140 instructional hours per year, or 550 hours for half-day kindergarten. These are the figures the Department publishes specifically in its home-school FAQ.
Keep your own attendance or instructional-time record even though NMPED describes that recordkeeping as recommended rather than a separate filing requirement.
Health records and testing
Maintain each student’s disease-immunization records or the approved waiver documentation. New Mexico’s immunization rules recognize medical and religious exemptions, and the Department of Health publishes Form 454 for an exemption request.
NMPED states that home-school students are not required to participate in annual standardized testing. A diploma created by a parent or issued by an unaccredited program is not recognized by the State of New Mexico. NMPED also states that state postsecondary institutions may not discriminate against home-educated applicants and must evaluate them fairly. Parents should maintain the academic records needed to document progress, courses, credits, and graduation.
NMPED is responsible for enforcing New Mexico’s home-school requirements. If the Department finds a home school out of compliance with law, it may order the student to attend a public or private school.
Your home base: SchoolhouseTeachers.com
New Mexico leaves the curriculum and day-to-day education with you while asking you to build a complete academic program and document the year. SchoolhouseTeachers.com can help you plan, teach, and keep your own records together.
One online family membership gives every child unlimited access to hundreds of online, self-paced courses from preschool through twelfth grade, all from a Biblical worldview, with graduation and college-preparation resources.
You will also find Virtual School Boxes, self-grading iST courses, World Book Online, and thousands of family-friendly videos.
The Homeschool Records & Compliance Center gives you tools to plan the year and keep your own records:
- Education Plan Builder for mapping each child’s year and the five required subject areas
- Custom Schedule Builder for laying out the instructional year
- Gradebook and report cards for tracking work and progress
- Portfolio Builder for gathering student work in one place
- Transcript tools for organizing high school courses and credits
- Applecore recordkeeping for grades, attendance, courses, and credits
- Certificates of Completion for documenting finished courses
One family membership. Every child in your HOME. No fee per child. No fee per course. No limits.
Official New Mexico links
Questions? Call 1.888.718.HOME or email
customerservice@theoldschoolhouse.com.
A real homeschooler answers.
Requirements vary and change. Confirm current requirements with the New Mexico Public Education Department, your resident district when needed, and current New Mexico law. SchoolhouseTeachers.com provides curriculum and recordkeeping tools. It is not a school, it is not accredited, and nothing on this page is legal advice.
Sources: NMSA 1978 Sections 22-1-2, 22-1-2.1, 22-2-2, 22-2-8.1, and 22-12A-4; 6.12.2 NMAC; 7.5.3 NMAC; Senate Bill 64, Chapter 55, 2026; New Mexico Public Education Department home-school guidance and forms.
Last reviewed: August 2026
