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California Homeschool Documents & Templates

Every document you need to homeschool legally in California, based on EC Section 48222 (Private School Exemption).

These are general templates for Home-Based Private School (Private School Affidavit), the most common of California's 4 pathways. Our free wizard helps you prepare for the PSA and generates the supporting letters around it, with your name, address, and district filled in.

How California documents work

California's main filing is the Private School Affidavit (PSA), and that filing happens through the CDE's online portal. HomeschoolLeap helps you prepare for that filing. The documents we generate are the letters around it, especially if you are leaving a current school.

1. Prepare your PSA filing

Use the wizard to gather the exact school, address, grade, and administrator details you'll enter in the CDE portal.

2. Generate your withdrawal letter

If your child is currently enrolled, we generate the withdrawal letter that tells the school your child is transferring to a private school.

3. Generate a records request letter

We also generate a FERPA records request letter so you can collect transcripts, attendance, immunization records, and IEP paperwork if needed.

What documents do you need?

Private School Affidavit (PSA)

Required. File with California Department of Education (CDE) by October 1 through October 15 annually

This is an online filing, not a letter template.

Records Request Letter

Recommended if your child is currently enrolled. Use it to request transcripts, attendance, immunization records, and IEP paperwork.

Annual Renewal

Required by October 1-15

Private School Affidavit (PSA)

What to file
Private School Affidavit (PSA)
File with
California Department of Education (CDE)
Deadline
October 1 through October 15 annually
How often
annual
Official filing portal
Download / access form
Practical tip: The PSA is a notification, not an application for permission. The CDE does not approve or deny it. File online through the CDE portal. If beginning mid-year, file as soon as possible rather than waiting for the October window.

EC Section 33190 (annual Private School Affidavit filing); EC Section 48222 (private school exemption from compulsory attendance)

What HomeschoolLeap does here: we help you prepare the PSA details and direct you to the official CDE filing portal. The generated letters for California are the withdrawal and records-request letters around that filing.

If withdrawing from school

Status
Not required, but recommended to prevent truancy concerns
Send to
child's current school
Practical tip: Notify the school in writing. Send via certified mail or obtain written confirmation. File the PSA before or concurrent with withdrawal. Having the PSA on file helps avoid SARB (School Attendance Review Board) truancy referrals.

EC Section 48222 (private school attendance satisfies compulsory education under EC 48200)

Annual Renewal

Deadline
October 1-15
Practical tip: Your only reporting obligation is the annual PSA renewal (October 1-15). No progress reports, test scores, curriculum plans, or attendance reports need to be submitted.

EC Section 33190 (annual PSA filing between October 1 and October 15)

Recordkeeping requirements

Varies by pathway. Home-Based Private School (Private School Affidavit): true; Private School Satellite Program (PSP / Umbrella School): false; Private Tutor: true; Independent Study Through Public School or Charter School: false

  • ✓Attendance records
Practical tip: Keep a simple attendance log at home. Nobody collects it, but it protects you if your homeschool is ever questioned.

EC Section 48222 (attendance register); EC Section 33190 (enrollment records: names, addresses, birth dates)

Other ways to homeschool in California

This page covers Home-Based Private School (Private School Affidavit). California offers 4 different ways to homeschool, and each may require different documents:

  • •
    Home-Based Private School (Private School Affidavit)(this page): You file a one-page Private School Affidavit with the CDE each October, keep an attendance register, and teach required subjects. No testing, no curriculum approval, no reporting beyond the annual PSA. Most California homeschoolers choose this pathway.
  • •
    Independent Study Through Public School or Charter School: Your child enrolls in a public school or charter school independent study program and learns at home under a credentialed teacher's supervision. The school provides curriculum, handles all reporting, and your child retains full IEP and special education rights. Less parent autonomy but more support and services.
  • •
    Private School Satellite Program (PSP / Umbrella School): You enroll in a Private School Satellite Program (umbrella school) that handles all state paperwork on your behalf. The PSP files the PSA, maintains records, and keeps your home address out of the public CDE directory. You teach at home with PSP guidance. Good for families who want administrative support or privacy.
  • •
    Private Tutor: A credentialed California teacher tutors your child for at least 3 hours per day, 175 days per year, between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. No state notification required, but the tutor must hold a valid credential for the grade taught. This pathway is costly and impractical for most families.

Our wizard helps you choose the right one and generates the correct documents. Compare all pathways for California

Get your personalized documents

These are general templates. The wizard generates documents with your name, address, and district already filled in, ready to download and send.

Get your California documents

Requirements sourced from EC Section 48222 (Private School Exemption). Verified against primary legal sources. Last verified: March 2026