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Homeschooling in South Carolina: what the law requires and who pays

S.C. Code 59-65-40 (Option 1): parents may teach at home if the district board of trustees approves the program. We have not found an official source saying a South Carolina program pays homeschooled students.

Quoted from official sources, read October 8, 2026. A law summary, not legal advice.

What South Carolina’s law requires

The law that allows it

S.C. Code 59-65-40 (Option 1): parents may teach at home if the district board of trustees approves the program.

“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.” South Carolina Code of Laws, Title 59 Chapter 65 (59-65-10, 59-65-40, 59-65-45, 59-65-47)

S.C. Code 59-65-45 (Option 2): parents may instead teach at home under the South Carolina Association of Independent Home Schools.

“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” South Carolina Code of Laws, Title 59 Chapter 65 (59-65-10, 59-65-40, 59-65-45, 59-65-47)

S.C. Code 59-65-47 (Option 3): parents may instead teach at home under a home school association with at least 50 members.

“parents or guardians may teach their children at home if the instruction is conducted under the auspices of an association for home schools which has no fewer than fifty members” South Carolina Code of Laws, Title 59 Chapter 65 (59-65-10, 59-65-40, 59-65-45, 59-65-47)

Telling the state or district

Option 1 families apply to the district board, describing the program, texts and materials, evaluation methods and place of instruction.

“The district board of trustees shall provide for an application process which elicits the information necessary for processing the home schooling request” South Carolina Code of Laws, Title 59 Chapter 65 (59-65-10, 59-65-40, 59-65-45, 59-65-47)

Options 2 and 3: the association reports the number and grade level of its home schooled children to their school districts by January 30 each year.

“By January thirtieth of each year, all associations shall report the number and grade level of children home schooled through the association to the children's respective school districts.” South Carolina Code of Laws, Title 59 Chapter 65 (59-65-10, 59-65-40, 59-65-45, 59-65-47)

What and how long to teach

Under all three options the year is at least 180 days; Option 1 also requires an instructional day of at least four and a half hours.

“the instructional day is at least four and one-half hours, excluding lunch and recesses, and the instructional year is at least one hundred eighty days” South Carolina Code of Laws, Title 59 Chapter 65 (59-65-10, 59-65-40, 59-65-45, 59-65-47)

Subjects: reading, writing, mathematics, science and social studies, plus composition and literature in grades 7 to 12.

“the curriculum includes, but is not limited to, the basic instructional areas of reading, writing, mathematics, science, and social studies and in grades seven through twelve, composition and literature” South Carolina Code of Laws, Title 59 Chapter 65 (59-65-10, 59-65-40, 59-65-45, 59-65-47)

Testing or evaluation

Option 1 students take part in the annual statewide testing program for their grade level.

“students must participate in the annual statewide testing program and the Basic Skills Assessment Program approved by the State Board of Education for their appropriate grade level” South Carolina Code of Laws, Title 59 Chapter 65 (59-65-10, 59-65-40, 59-65-45, 59-65-47)

Records to keep

Option 1 and Option 3 parents keep a plan book or diary of subjects and activities, a portfolio of work samples, and progress records; Option 1 also sends a semiannual progress report to the district.

“a plan book, diary, or other written record indicating subjects taught and activities in which the student and parent engage” South Carolina Code of Laws, Title 59 Chapter 65 (59-65-10, 59-65-40, 59-65-45, 59-65-47)

Who may teach

Under Options 2 and 3 the parent must hold at least a high school diploma or GED.

“a parent must hold at least a high school diploma or the equivalent general educational development (GED) certificate” South Carolina Code of Laws, Title 59 Chapter 65 (59-65-10, 59-65-40, 59-65-45, 59-65-47)

Ages the law covers

Compulsory attendance runs from the school year a child is 5 before September 1 until age 17 or high school graduation.

“from the school year in which the child is five years of age before September first until the child attains his seventeenth birthday or graduates from high school” South Carolina Code of Laws, Title 59 Chapter 65 (59-65-10, 59-65-40, 59-65-45, 59-65-47)

The state’s own page for families: South Carolina Department of Education, Home Schooling.

State money for homeschoolers in South Carolina

We have not found an official source saying a South Carolina program pays homeschooled students.

Programs that do not pay homeschoolers

Education Scholarship Trust Fund (ESTF). Excluded: each year an ESTF parent attests that the child will not take part in a home instruction program under Options 1, 2 or 3. (South Carolina Code of Laws, Title 59 Chapter 8 (Education Scholarship Trust Fund), 59-8-115)

South Carolina ESTF: amount and how to apply Private schools in South Carolina

Which states pay homeschoolers, and how: South Carolina next to every other state.

Questions parents ask

Do I have to tell anyone I am homeschooling in South Carolina?

Option 1 families apply to the district board, describing the program, texts and materials, evaluation methods and place of instruction. Options 2 and 3: the association reports the number and grade level of its home schooled children to their school districts by January 30 each year.

Do homeschoolers in South Carolina have to take tests?

Option 1 students take part in the annual statewide testing program for their grade level.

Can a homeschooler in South Carolina get state money?

We have not found an official source saying a South Carolina program pays homeschooled students. Excluded: each year an ESTF parent attests that the child will not take part in a home instruction program under Options 1, 2 or 3.

Every line above is our plain-English summary of the quoted text, which is copied from the official page named beside it. Laws change: the quoted page is the authority, and a lawyer or the state can answer questions about your family.

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