Hong Kong

Compulsory Education Age

9 years of compulsory education is required, generally from 6-15 year of age.

Legal Status

Although Hong Kong’s Education Ordinance (L.N. 116 of 1971, Ch. 279) requires school attendance, several families have gained ‘exemptions’ to homeschool. Homeschooling is not illegal, but it is not a preferred alternative to schooling by the government, hence it doesn’t provide a formal channel for parents to apply. The Hong Kong Education Bureau (EDB) however would review each ‘application’ (enquiry) on a case-by-case basis. Our experience told us that the EDB handles expatriates the same way as nationals. There is an estimate of 50-100 homeschool families, a number that is hard to confirm. There is an increasing number of parents who choose not to send their children to kindergarten (aged 3-6), and we believe that there are older homeschool children as a result.  A local parent-initiated charity EDiversity published a book written by 14 local and expatriate homeschool families in 2015. They plan to publish an updated version in late 2019.

More information: “Don’t Ask, Do(n’t) Tell: Homeschooling in Hong Kong” Esther ERLINGS, College of Business, Government and Law, Flinders University, Australia.