"Is homeschooling legal in Ontario, Canada?" Yes!
In this section of the website, we help you find the answers to all your questions about the legalities of homeschooling in Ontario, including what the education law says, what the government's current homeschooling policy is, and special case scenarios like homeschooling while you're on ODSP or Ontario Works. See the full Laws & Policies menu at the bottom of this page.
Know Your Rights
When finding out what your legal rights are, it's always best to refer to the original source. In each relevant page you will find some excerpts of laws and policies that are relevant to homeschooling, as well as links to the full text of each source document. Also relevant are the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms:
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Canada is among the signing nations of The Universal Declaration of Human Rights of the General Assembly of the United Nations. While it states [article 26(1)] that elementary education shall be compulsory, it also states [article 26(3)] that
Parents have a prior right to choose the kind of education that shall be given to their children. [emphasis added]
Because the public school system represents a gathering of people (schoolchildren and schoolteachers, etc) under a particular set of internal rules and regulations by which one is bound only if one is associating with it (- and not, for instance, if one is associating with a private school), one might also argue that it constitutes the equivalent of an association. In which case, article 20(2) applies:
No one may be compelled to belong to an association.
When there is a dispute concerning the legitimacy of the claim to be providing "satisfactory instruction," the principle underlying article 10 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights applies:
Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal, in the determination of his rights and obligations and of any criminal charge against him. [emphasis added]
The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms has a similar article:
Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
When there is a dispute concerning the legitimacy of the claim to be providing "satisfactory instruction," the principle underlying article 11 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms applies:
11. Any person charged with an offence has the right (d) to be presumed innocent until proven guilty according to law in a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal; [emphasis added]
External Links
To read the full text of the laws, policies, and documents on human rights that are referred to in this legal section:
- Ontario Education Act
- Policy/Program Memorandum No. 131
- Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
- United Nations Declaration of Human Rights
To find out more about home education legislation in other provinces:
Laws & Policies menu
- Current Law on Home Education in Ontario
- Current Policy on Homeschooling in Ontario
- Letter of Intent to Homeschool
- School Board Policies on Homeschooling
- School Board Investigations and the Provincial Inquiry
- Homeschoolers and Children’s Aid Societies
- Ontario Works and home based education
- ODSP and homeschooling
- Health Services Offered to Homeschoolers
- Part-Time Enrolment in Ontario Public Schools
- OFTP’s Legalities Archives
- 1981 – Johnson Memorandum
- 1997 – Correspondence with the Minister of Education
- 1997 – Leeds – School Trustees Questions and Answers
- 1997 – OFTP Response to a School Board
- 1998 – Ombudsman Report
- 1998 – Press Release for Ombudsman Submission
- 1999 – “Home Schooling: Successful Practices” (Draft Document)
- 1999 – A Message to School Board Trustees – intro
- 1999 – A Message to School Board Trustees – part 1
- 1999 – A Message to School Board Trustees – part 2
- 1999 – A Message to School Board Trustees – part 3
- 1999 – A Message to School Board Trustees – part 4
- 1999 – A Message to School Board Trustees – part 5
- 1999 – Durham District School Board Homeschooling Procedures
- 2000 – Home Education Fact Sheet
- 2000 – OACAS part 2: CATO article
- 2000 – Resource List for Information on Home Education
- 2000 – School Board Initiative
- 2000 – Social Services Initiative – intro
- 2000 – Social Services Initiative – part 3
- 2001 – Developing Homeschool Admission Policies
- 2001 – Funding of Colleges for Home-Educated Students
- 2001 – Home Rules Special Edition – info package
- 2001 – Homeschooling Policies of Ontario School Boards
- 2001 – Ministry Advice to a School Attendance Counsellor
- 2001 – Paper Inquiry
- 2001 – Private School Funding Ontario
- 2001 – Reply Letter to OFTP from the Minister of Education
- 2001 – Sample Reply Letters to School Boards
- 2001 – School Boards Increase Pressure
- 2002 – PPM Communication Plan
- 2002 – Views on Policy/Program Memorandum No.131
- 2005 – Letter to the Ministry of Child and Youth Services
- 2006 – Bill 52 and Homeschooling
- 2006 – OFTP Request for Changes to Directive 2.2 (ODSP) and Directive 21.0 (Ontario Works)
