Arizona IEP evaluation deadline: how long does the school have?

You signed consent for the evaluation. Here is exactly what Arizona law requires next, and what to do if the date passes.

The part most parents miss: the district has 15 school days to respond to your request

Before the 60-day clock ever starts, Arizona gives the district a hard deadline of its own. After you make a written request for evaluation, the district has 15 school days to either begin reviewing existing data or issue a prior written notice refusing to evaluate.

It cannot just go quiet. If 15 school days pass with no data review and no written refusal, that is already a violation — even though the 60-day clock has not technically started.

How to count your deadline

1. Find the date the district received your signed consent. Not the date you mailed it — the date they got it.
2. Count forward 60 calendar days, including weekends and holidays.
3. That date is the deadline for the evaluation and the MET eligibility determination.
4. If you were asked to agree in writing to a 30-day extension, add those days — but only if you actually signed.

What to do if the deadline passes

1. Put it in writing the same week. Email the case manager and the special education director. State the consent date, the deadline date, and that it has passed. A phone call creates no record.
2. Ask for prior written notice. If the district refuses or delays, you are entitled to a written explanation of what it is doing and why.
3. File a state complaint. A missed timeline is a straightforward compliance violation. In Arizona this goes to the Arizona Department of Education (ADE), Exceptional Student Services. It is free and does not require a lawyer.
4. Keep the paper trail. Every date, every email, every response.