Moving to Montana: Homeschool Checklist

Required hours

720 hrs/year, 1,080 in grades 4-12

Required subjects

7 subjects

Notice

Required each year

Testing / evaluation

Not required

Recordkeeping

Required

Jump to the full Montana requirements for plain-English detail on each of these.

Where are you moving from?

Pick your current state to see how to close it out before you go, and how its homeschool rules compare to Montana's.

Coming from a nearby state?

Rule-by-rule comparisons for the moves into Montana families make most often, with what changes on the way in and on the way out.

• Idaho vs Montana (3 rules differ)
• North Dakota vs Montana (4 rules differ)
• South Dakota vs Montana (5 rules differ)
• Wyoming vs Montana (4 rules differ)

What to do when you arrive in Montana

Once you're a Montana resident, you follow Montana's rules, not your old state's. Montana requires notice, so file with your county school superintendent to put your homeschool on record. File before you begin instruction at your new address. If your child was enrolled in a school on the way in, send that school a short withdrawal note too.

Do your homeschool records transfer?

No state, including Montana, requires you to hand over homeschool records from your previous state, and there's no central transfer process. What matters is that you keep your own records: an hours or attendance log, work samples, and any grades or transcripts. Those travel with you and are what colleges and your new state may ask to see. This is exactly what Homeschool Fox is built for. Your log, hours, and reports live in one account and move with your family, so a cross-country move doesn't reset your records.

Timing your move: mid-year vs summer

Try to line your move up with Montana's school-year calendar where you can. If you arrive mid-year, file Montana's notice as soon as you're settled rather than waiting for fall, so there's no gap where your child looks unenrolled. A summer move is simpler: get your filing in before the new school year starts. Either way, keep dated proof of when you filed.

Moving as a military family

Military families move often, and the rule of thumb is simple: follow the homeschool law of the state you're physically living in. Once you're stationed in Montana, you homeschool under Montana's rules, even if your legal residency for taxes or voting is another state. The Military Interstate Children's Compact smooths public-school transfers, but it doesn't override homeschool law, so plan around Montana's requirements. Keeping portable digital records makes each PCS move far less disruptive.

What Homeschool Fox tracks for Montana

The records Montana asks you to keep, plus the rest of your year, in one place. No spreadsheets, no lost notebooks.

• Hours toward each child's 720- or 1080-hour goal
• Required subjects
• The records Montana asks you to keep
• Daily activity logs
• Printable PDF reports
• Progress tracking
• High school transcripts

More Montana guides

• Montana Homeschool Requirements Hours, notice, assessment, and subjects at a glance.
• Homeschooling High School in Montana Credits, GPA, transcripts, and graduation.
• Record Keeping in Montana What to document, how to organize it, and staying compliant.
• How to Withdraw From School in Montana The steps, the letter, and timing to avoid truancy issues.
• Public School Sports in Montana Whether homeschoolers can play, what it takes, and who to ask.
• Homeschool Hours Required in Montana The number, what counts toward it, and the pace to hit it.
• Required Subjects in Montana The list, how much time each needs, and proving you taught them.
• Montana Letter of Intent Who to file with, when it's due, and a free generator.