Moderate requirements
Homeschooling in Virginia
One notice by August 15 and one proof of progress by August 1, with four different ways to qualify as the teaching parent.
Getting started (notice)
annual notice of intent to the division superintendent by August 15, listing the subjects you intend to cover and evidence of whichever qualifying option you are using. Move in or start after the year begins and you notify as soon as practicable, then comply within 30 days. Virginia also has a separate religious exemption under section 22.1-254(B)(1), which is a different route with no annual reporting.
Required subjects
none set by the state. You choose the curriculum, and your annual notice lists the subjects you plan to cover.
Records you must keep
nothing is filed with the state beyond the annual notice and the yearly evidence of progress. What you keep at home is up to you.
Testing / evaluation
by August 1 after each school year, give the superintendent either a composite score at or above the fourth stanine on a nationally normed standardized achievement test (an ACT, SAT or PSAT score also counts), or an evaluation or assessment showing the child is progressing adequately. Provide neither and the program can be placed on probation for one year.
Parent qualifications
any one of four: hold a high school diploma, be a teacher with the qualifications the Board prescribes, provide a program of study or curriculum (a correspondence course or distance learning program counts), or show evidence that you can otherwise provide an adequate education.
Where Letters & Devotion fits in Virginia
Whatever Virginia asks you to keep, keeping it should not be a job. Letters & Devotion logs instructional hours automatically while your child works, tracks mastery per skill as a ready-made portfolio record, and prints a transcript in one click, so notices, portfolios and evaluations start from records that already exist. The curriculum itself covers every core subject, K through 12.
Read all 84 courses in full before you pay anythingEvery unit, every skill, every objective. No account, no card.$29 a month after the first month. Cancel anytime, in one click.
This is a plain-language summary, not legal advice, and laws change. Last verified 2026-08. Always confirm current requirements with your state before relying on them. Sources:
- https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title22.1/chapter14/section22.1-254.1/
- https://www.doe.virginia.gov/parents-students/for-parents/home-instruction
HSLDA also publishes a plain-language summary of Virginia's law, at hslda.org/legal/virginia, and sells a paid legal-defense membership built on top of it. It is an advocacy organization, not a legal authority: its leadership is explicitly Christian, and it lobbies on homeschool legislation, positions a family may or may not share. Read what membership actually costs and covers before joining anything.