How to Withdraw Your Child from School in Colorado

Most Colorado parents assume the hard part of homeschooling is choosing curriculum. The part that actually causes legal problems is the withdrawal itself. A verbal notice to a teacher, a handshake with the principal, or a withdrawal letter that omits required language can leave your child logged as truant even though you believe the transition is complete. Districts do not automatically stop counting absences the moment you decide to homeschool.

Here is exactly how the withdrawal process works, in the correct order.

Step 1: Choose Your Legal Pathway Before You Withdraw

Colorado law offers two main routes for home education, and you must pick one before you touch the paperwork. Your choice determines which documents you file, in what order.

Option A — Home-Based Education (NOI Route): You operate as an independent home-based program under C.R.S. §22-33-104.5. This requires you to file a Notice of Intent (NOI) with a school district at least 14 days before you begin. You file the withdrawal letter with your child's current school simultaneously.

Option B — Umbrella School: You enroll your child in a Colorado independent school such as the CHEC Independent School or West River Academy. Your child's legal status becomes that of a private school transfer, not a homeschooler. You do not file an NOI. Instead, the umbrella school's enrollment documentation serves as your transfer record. Critically, you must secure that enrollment confirmation from the umbrella school before you submit your withdrawal to the public school, so the district has clear evidence of where the child is going.

Confusing these two pathways is the number one cause of truancy complications. Enrolling in an umbrella school while also filing an NOI creates duplicate records and conflicting enrollment statuses.

Step 2: Draft the Withdrawal Letter

The withdrawal letter goes to the principal or registrar of your child's current school. It is a separate document from the NOI — different purpose, different recipient.

A compliant withdrawal letter must:

• State your child's full name, grade, and current school
• Give the specific date the withdrawal is effective
• State that the child will be receiving instruction in a nonpublic home-based educational program in accordance with Colorado law (if using the NOI route), or that the child has transferred to a Colorado independent/private school (if using the umbrella school route)
• Be signed by the parent

What the letter should not do: explain why you are leaving, apologize, invite discussion, or request an exit conference. You are not legally required to attend any meeting, submit your intended curriculum, or justify your decision to the school.

Keep it professional and brief. One paragraph is sufficient.

Step 3: Send It the Right Way

Do not hand-deliver the withdrawal letter, send it via untracked email, or rely on your child to deliver it. These methods create no verifiable delivery record.

Send the letter via certified mail with return receipt requested. This gives you a physical record — stamped by the post office and signed by the recipient — showing exactly when the school received your notice. If the district later claims your child was absent without excuse or opens a truancy investigation, that certified mail receipt is your legal protection.

Some parents also email the letter simultaneously for speed, but the certified mail copy is what matters if there is ever a dispute.

Step 4: File the Notice of Intent (NOI Route Only)

If you are using the independent home-based route, you must submit your NOI to a Colorado school district at least 14 days before your child begins the home program. The 14-day window is mandatory — it is not a suggestion and there is no way to compress it.

Timing example: if you want your child home starting March 31, the NOI must be filed no later than March 17.

Ideally, you submit the withdrawal letter and the NOI at the same time, both via certified mail, so there is no gap where your child appears unenrolled and also not yet registered in the home program.

The NOI can be filed with any Colorado public school district — you are not restricted to your resident district. Most legal advocates recommend filing with the resident district anyway, because it prevents automated truancy triggers caused by your child's disappearance from local enrollment data.

What the NOI must include under C.R.S. §22-33-104.5:

• Child's name, age, and place of residence
• Number of projected attendance hours
• Parent's signature

That is the complete statutory list. If a district demands curriculum outlines, psychological assessments, home visit agreements, or any other information, they are exceeding their legal authority. Politely decline in writing and cite the statute.

Step 5: Wait Out the 14-Day Window

This is where parents run into problems. The 14-day waiting period means your child technically should not begin the home program until day 15. However, once the withdrawal letter is delivered, the school should mark the student as officially withdrawn. Do not allow your child to attend school during this transition period without a plan — the school cannot hold their enrollment open if you have already sent the withdrawal letter.

For mid-year withdrawals, Colorado law allows you to prorate the 172-day instructional requirement. If your child attended public school for part of the year, the days they spent there count toward the annual requirement. You are only responsible for the remaining fraction.

Mid-Year Withdrawals: Special Considerations

Withdrawing mid-year is legal and common. Colorado does not require you to wait for the start of a new academic year. However, three situations require extra attention:

If your child has been habitually truant: Under C.R.S. §22-33-104.5, a child is classified as habitually truant if they have accumulated four unexcused absences in a single month or ten in a calendar year. If your child meets this definition at any point during the six months before you attempt to homeschool, you lose the standard exemption from curriculum oversight. In this specific scenario, you must attach a written description of your intended curriculum to your NOI. Failing to do so invalidates the home program establishment and exposes your family to continued truancy investigations and potential CPS contact.

If you are withdrawing from a private school: Private schools operate under contract law, not state truancy statute. Your enrollment contract likely covers the entire academic year. Read the cancellation and withdrawal provisions carefully before submitting anything. Some contracts allow prorated refunds if you notify within a specific window; others enforce full-year tuition regardless of attendance. Your state statutory rights under Colorado homeschool law do not override a private contract.

If your child has an active IEP or 504 plan: When you file an NOI, the public school is required to issue a Prior Written Notice of Special Education Action confirming that FAPE services will cease. Your child's right to free, appropriate public education ends when they transition to home-based education. Some limited equitable services — evaluations, limited therapy consultations — may still be available at the district's discretion. Understand the sequence before you submit the paperwork so you do not create an unintended gap in services.

Handling District Pushback

Some districts, particularly in counties with aggressive enforcement histories, attempt to reject NOIs, schedule mandatory meetings, or request home inspections. None of these are legal requirements.

Colorado's home-based education statute explicitly states that nonpublic home-based programs are subject to "minimum state controls." You are not required to allow home inspections, attend exit conferences, or submit curriculum for district review. When an administrator pushes back, respond in writing, cite C.R.S. §22-33-104.5, and do not agree to anything verbally. If the district escalates, organizations like HSLDA can intervene to correct misinformed officials.

After Withdrawal: Immediate Record-Keeping Obligations

Once your home program is established, Colorado law requires you to permanently maintain three categories of records:

1. Attendance documentation (172 days, averaging 4 contact hours per day)
2. Assessment results for odd-numbered grades (3, 5, 7, 9, and 11)
3. Immunization records or legal exemption forms

Districts cannot request these records arbitrarily. A superintendent may only demand them after providing 14 days' written notice and only if they have specific probable cause that the program is violating state law. No routine annual submissions are required.

The paperwork sequence — withdrawal letter, NOI timing, certified mail protocol, and truancy exception language — is the part of this process where procedural mistakes happen. The Colorado Legal Withdrawal Blueprint provides fill-in-the-blank templates for every document, a day-by-day timing checklist, and scripts for responding to district resistance, so you do not have to piece this together from multiple sources.

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