SC

How to Start Homeschooling in South Carolina (2026)

South Carolina law lets parents teach children at home under three options: approval by the district board of trustees (S.C. Code Section 59-65-40), the South Carolina Association of Independent Home Schools (Section 59-65-45), or an association for home schools with no fewer than fifty members (Section 59-65-47).

Legal framework

South Carolina law recognizes three ways to teach children at home. Under Section 59-65-40, parents or guardians may teach their children at home if the instruction is approved by the district board of trustees of the district in which the children reside, and the board approves programs that meet the standards in that section, including a parent who holds at least a high school diploma or the equivalent GED certificate. Under Section 59-65-45, in lieu of those requirements, parents or guardians may teach their children at home if the instruction is conducted under the auspices of the South Carolina Association of Independent Home Schools; bona fide membership and continuing compliance with its academic standards exempts the home school from the further requirements of Section 59-65-40. Under Section 59-65-47, in lieu of the requirements of Section 59-65-40 or Section 59-65-45, parents or guardians may teach their children at home if the instruction is conducted under the auspices of an association for home schools that has no fewer than fifty members and meets the requirements of that section, which include that a parent hold at least a high school diploma or the equivalent GED certificate and that the instructional year be at least one hundred eighty days.

ESA & scholarship opportunities

South Carolina's Education Scholarship Trust Fund is administered by the South Carolina Department of Education. Its program site states that a student cannot attend homeschool under Option 1, Option 2, or Option 3 and receive the scholarship.