Homeschooling in California: Records, Requirements & Funding

You’ve decided California can’t tell you your kids have to sit in a classroom, and now you’re staring at the words “private school affidavit” wondering if you just signed up for something enormous. You didn’t. But California does give you a few different doors to walk through, and the paperwork looks different behind each one.

This is general information, not legal advice. Homeschool laws change. Verify current requirements with the California Department of Education or a local homeschool organization before you make decisions for your family.

Let’s walk through the routes plainly, then talk about the records each one asks you to keep. That’s the part nobody warns you about until you’re the one holding the folder.

Is homeschooling legal in California? How you start

Yes, homeschooling is legal in California. What’s different from many states is that California doesn’t have a single “homeschool statute.” Instead, families teach their own children under one of a few existing legal structures. As of 2026, the common routes are:

File your own private school affidavit (PSA) and run a small private school out of your home.
Enroll through a private school satellite program (PSP), an umbrella program that files the affidavit on your behalf and often provides support.
Enroll in a public charter school with an independent-study or homeschool program (this is the route with public funding).
Hire a credentialed private tutor, or teach as one yourself if you hold a valid California credential (less common for most families).

Most independent homeschoolers choose one of the first three. The one you pick shapes everything that follows, especially your records.

Route 1: The private school affidavit (PSA)

When you file a PSA, you are, in the eyes of the state, establishing a private school with your children as the enrolled students. You file the affidavit online with the California Department of Education. As of 2026, the statutory filing window is October 1 through 15 each year, though the system generally stays open from August through late June for schools that start mid-year. (Schools established in July generally wait for the August opening.) It’s free, and no one approves your curriculum or checks your credentials.

That freedom comes with a quiet responsibility. Because you’re now a private school, you keep the records a private school keeps. More on that below.

Route 2: A private school satellite program (PSP)

A PSP is an umbrella private school that enrolls your family and files the affidavit for you. You don’t file your own PSA in this case. The administrator does. Many PSPs offer record-keeping help, transcripts, and community. They typically charge a fee, and they’ll usually ask you to submit certain records to them.

Route 3: A public charter homeschool program

Here’s the route parents ask about most, because it comes with money. California has public charter schools that run independent-study or homeschool programs. Enroll, and your child becomes a public school student taught primarily at home, with a credentialed education specialist assigned to check in.

The draw is the instructional-funds allotment, money the charter sets aside for your child’s learning materials. As of 2026, allotments commonly fall somewhere in the several-thousand-dollar range per student per year (figures vary widely by charter and grade level, so check the current amount with any program you’re considering). You spend it through the charter’s approved-vendor system on secular, standards-aligned materials.

The trade-offs are real, and worth naming honestly:

You cannot use those funds for religious curriculum or materials. It’s public money.
You’ll do more reporting: work samples, learning records, and regular check-ins with your assigned teacher.
You’re on the charter’s calendar and rules, not fully independent.

Neither route is “better.” A family that wants full independence and a faith-based curriculum leans PSA. A family that wants funding and a support structure leans charter. Both are legitimate ways to homeschool in California.

What California asks of you

Under the PSA route, the requirements are lighter than most parents fear. Generally, as of 2026, California expects you to:

File the affidavit annually if you’re running your own home-based private school.
Offer instruction in the required subjects, the branches of study taught in California public schools, in English. This broadly covers English, math, science, social studies, and the arts, among others.
Keep attendance records.
Maintain a list of the courses of study you’re offering.
Keep a list of the people teaching, with their qualifications on file.

Notably, under the PSA route there is no state-mandated standardized test, no required teaching credential to teach your own children, and no curriculum approval. If you go the charter route, the charter, as your public school, sets its own assessment and reporting requirements on top of this, so ask them directly.

What records to keep in California

This is the section to bookmark. The records that trip families up aren’t hard. They’re just easy to forget until an evaluator, a charter, or your own future self needs them.

If you filed a PSA, keep the private-school records the state expects:

A copy of your filed affidavit, every year, kept with your records.
Attendance records, the days your school was in session and your child was present.
Courses of study, a simple record of the subjects and materials you’re teaching at each grade.
A faculty list, the names of anyone teaching (usually just you), with a note of qualifications.
Work samples and a portfolio, not strictly required by the affidavit, but the single most useful thing you can keep. It’s your evidence that real learning happened.

If you’re in a charter program, your record-keeping bends toward what the charter asks: work samples on their schedule, learning logs, and documentation for anything you buy with instructional funds. Keep your own copies of everything you submit.

The records aren’t the enemy. The scramble to reconstruct them at 11 p.m. in April is. Keep the file as you go, and the folder becomes a non-event.

For a broader look at how record-keeping requirements differ across the country, see our guide to homeschool records by state.

Funding for California homeschoolers

The honest picture: California offers no ESA or voucher for independent PSA homeschoolers. If you file your own affidavit, you fund your own materials.

The funded path is the public charter route described above. Enroll, and you get an instructional-funds allotment (as of 2026, commonly in the several-thousand-dollar range, varying by charter) to spend on approved, secular materials. That’s a meaningful amount, but remember the trade: public-school status, more reporting, and no religious materials.

Funding programs and amounts change every year and vary by charter, so treat any number you read, including here, as a starting point to verify, not a promise. For the bigger national picture on education savings accounts and approved-vendor marketplaces, see our ESA and funding guide.

How Kithle helps California families

Kithle doesn’t decide your route or teach your child. You own the method. What Kithle does is take the record-keeping load off your plate so the paperwork behind your chosen route stops being a source of dread.

With Kithle you can organize the records California asks for around your specific situation: attendance and instruction-day tracking, a portfolio and work-sample store for the evidence that matters, course records for your affidavit, and evaluator-ready reports if a PSP or charter asks for documentation. Bring your own curriculum or build worksheets from the library. Kithle is curriculum-neutral either way.

To be clear about what we are and aren’t: Kithle helps you keep and organize the records your state asks for. It doesn’t make your homeschool “compliant,” and it isn’t legal advice or a substitute for your state’s own guidance. It’s the folder that stays organized so you don’t have to think about it.

FAQ

Do I have to file a private school affidavit in California? Only if you’re running your own home-based private school. If you enroll through a PSP or a public charter, they handle enrollment differently. The PSP files the affidavit for you, and charter students are public-school enrolled. Verify your situation with your program.

Does California require standardized testing for homeschoolers? Under the PSA route, as of 2026, there’s no state-mandated standardized test. Charter programs, because they’re public schools, may require assessments. Ask your specific charter.

Can I use charter funds for religious curriculum? No. Charter instructional funds are public money and generally must be spent on secular, standards-aligned materials through approved vendors. If a faith-based curriculum is central to you, the PSA route may fit better.

Do I need a teaching credential to homeschool in California? Not to teach your own children under a PSA. A credential is only required if you’re teaching as a private tutor under that specific legal route.

How long should I keep my homeschool records? Keep them well beyond the current year. Attendance, courses, and especially work samples build the transcript and record that matter later. When in doubt, keep more, and verify retention expectations with your program.

Homeschooling in California is more flexible than the paperwork makes it feel. The routes are real, the records are manageable, and the funding is there if the trade-offs suit you. Kithle keeps the record-keeping quietly handled so you can spend that time teaching. See how Kithle keeps the record for you, and if you’re just beginning, start with our first-year guide.