One quick filing
Whole house
Immunizations
The home education law does not mention shots.The notice holds only your name and address, your child's name, and a promise to teach six subjects.The school shot law is written for a pupil at a school that must meet the state's minimum standards.
You do. 1.Send your notice with only what the law lists.2.Keep a shot record or a signed exemption at home, in case a school or child care asks.
Source. codes.ohio.gov, education.ohio.gov
The law allows each choice below. Read what each one covers.
An exemption is a paper that says a shot rule does not apply to this person.
The state says
You do
The paper
Written statement of the parent or guardian declining immunization for reasons of conscience, including religious convictions. There is no state form to fill in. How long it lasts: The school law sets no expiry. Schools ask for shot papers when a child first starts and at the start of each school year. Licensed child care asks again every thirteen months.
Source. codes.ohio.gov
You do
The paper
The shot record from the doctor's office or the health department.
The state says
You do
The paper
Physician's written certification that immunization is medically contraindicated. A doctor signs it. How long it lasts: The school law sets no expiry. Schools ask for shot papers when a child first starts and at the start of each school year. Licensed child care asks again every thirteen months.
Source. codes.ohio.gov
You do
Source. codes.ohio.gov
The sports law never names shots, so ask the district; if a shot record is on its list, the shot record or signed exemption works.
Can my child play? See the full guideThe state says. To live in campus housing at a nonprofit college, a student tells the college about two shots: meningitis and hepatitis B.A parent tells the college if the student is under 18.The law asks whether the student had them. It does not make the college give or pay for them.Each college has its own student health rules.
You do. 1.Read the college's student health shot page.2.Get its exemption form, if it has one.3.Check whether the form needs a notary, and book one early if it does.
Where. The college door in the Academic Planner
Source. codes.ohio.gov
The state says. Licensed child care has its own clock.It covers a school-age child who is not enrolled in a school, too.Give the center a medical statement within 30 days of starting.Give a new one every 13 months after that.The statement has a place to mark that you declined shots.
You do. 1.Within 30 days of the first day, give the center the medical statement.2.If you decline, mark that part of the statement.3.Set a reminder for 12 months later.
Source. codes.ohio.gov
The state says. The immunization record for each person, or the written exemption, belongs in the same folder as the rest of the school records.
You do. Keep the record, or the exemption, with everything else the state asks you to keep.
Where. Keep the records
Checked against Ohio's own law on October 20, 2026.
Everywhere in America
Where a shot record actually gets asked for, and where it does not.
Before any shot, what federal law already gives you
This is a summary of public law, not legal advice. Requirements change, so always check your state's own page before you rely on it.