Arizona IEP requirements: the 15-school-day response rule, the MET, and the 60-day evaluation clock
Arizona’s special education timelines live in State Board of Education rule A.A.C. R7-2-401, explained in the Arizona Department of Education’s timelines FAQ and its AZ-TAS technical assistance documents. Three things are distinctly Arizona. When a parent requests an evaluation in writing, the school has at most 15 school days to act — begin the evaluation or formally refuse it. The evaluation itself runs on a 60-calendar-day clock that ends at the MET (Multidisciplinary Evaluation Team) eligibility determination. And either side can force an IEP review meeting within 45 school days of a written request. Every deadline below is cited to the rule or the federal regulation it implements.
Every Arizona deadline in one table
| What has to happen | Deadline | Citation |
|---|---|---|
| Parent submits a written evaluation request → school begins the evaluation (review of existing data) or issues prior written notice refusing | Within a reasonable time, not to exceed 15 school days | A.A.C. R7-2-401(E)(4) |
| School receives informed written parental consent → evaluation complete at the MET determination of eligibility | 60 calendar days (school breaks count) | A.A.C. R7-2-401(E)(3); 34 CFR §300.301(c)(1) |
| Extension of the evaluation period — only in the child's best interest, with written parent–school agreement | Up to 30 additional days | A.A.C. R7-2-401(E)(5) |
| MET eligibility determination → IEP developed | 30 calendar days (first IEP only — later IEPs must be in place by the annual review date) | 34 CFR §300.323(c)(1) |
| IEP in effect for every eligible student | Beginning of each school year | 34 CFR §300.323(a) |
| Written request for an IEP review (parent or school, stating the basis) → review meeting held | 45 school days from receipt, at a mutually agreed date and time | A.A.C. R7-2-401(G)(7) |
| Transition content (measurable postsecondary goals from age-appropriate assessments + transition services), updated annually | First IEP in effect at age 16, or younger if the team determines appropriate | 34 CFR §300.320(b); AZ-TAS IEP |
| Reevaluation | Within 3 years of the previous evaluation; no evaluation-period extension may push past this | A.A.C. R7-2-401(E)(5) |
Sources: Arizona Department of Education, FAQs: Timelines and FAQs: Individualized Education Program; ADE, AZ-TAS: The Individualized Education Program.
The 15-school-day rule: Arizona’s answer to the stalled referral
Federal law never says how fast a school must respond when a parent asks for an evaluation — the 60-day clock only starts at consent, so a request can sit. Arizona closed that gap. Under R7-2-401(E)(4), once a parent’s written evaluation request arrives, the school has a reasonable time not to exceed 15 school days to either begin the evaluation by reviewing existing data or issue prior written notice refusing to evaluate. There is no third option; silence past 15 school days is a rule violation. For case managers, the practical takeaway is to date-stamp every written parent request the day it lands — the clock is counted in school days, so a request received before fall break behaves very differently from one received in February.
The 60-day clock ends at the MET determination — not at the report
Arizona’s 60-day evaluation period runs from the school’s receipt of informed written parental consent and “shall conclude with the date of the Multidisciplinary Evaluation Team (MET) determination of eligibility” (R7-2-401(E)(3)). That last clause matters: finishing the testing inside 60 days isn’t enough — the eligibility determination itself has to land inside the window. The days are calendar days, and the ADE’s FAQ is blunt that school breaks, including summer, count. The only stretch available is the (E)(5) extension: up to 30 extra days, only in the child’s best interest — the ADE’s gloss adds “not the convenience of the school” — and only with the parent’s written agreement. Compare that to Colorado’s 90-day consent-to-IEP outer clock or Texas’s 45-school-day framework: Arizona’s structure is federal-standard on the numbers but stricter than most states on what the deadline attaches to.
After eligibility: 30 days to an IEP, and a 45-school-day review lever
From the MET determination, the IEP must be developed within 30 calendar days (34 CFR §300.323(c)(1); restated in the AZ-TAS IEP guidance), and services begin as soon as possible after that. The ADE flags a trap in its FAQ: the 30-day window applies only to the first IEP — successive annual IEPs don’t get 30 days past the review date, and neither do transfer IEPs (our transfer-student guide covers that sequence). Once the IEP is in place, R7-2-401(G)(7) gives both sides a mid-year lever: a written review request stating its basis triggers a review meeting within 45 school days. Case managers should treat a parent email that says “I’d like to revisit the IEP” as starting that clock, and calendar it the same day.
Goals aren’t limited to the eligibility category
A point the ADE makes explicitly in its IEP FAQ, and one worth quoting in an IEP meeting: an Arizona IEP team may write a goal in an area not linked to the student’s eligibility category. A student found eligible under specific learning disability who also has behavior needs can — and if behavior impedes learning, should — have a behavior goal, because federal regulations require teams to consider positive behavioral interventions and supports whenever behavior impedes the student’s learning or others’ (34 CFR §§300.320(a)(2), 300.324(a)(2)). If you’re writing those, our behavior-goal guide has measurable examples.
FAQ
How long does an Arizona school have to respond to a parent's request for an evaluation?
15 school days. Under Arizona State Board of Education rules, within a reasonable time not to exceed 15 school days from receiving a parent's written request for an evaluation, the school must either begin the evaluation by reviewing existing data or provide prior written notice refusing to conduct the requested evaluation (A.A.C. R7-2-401(E)(4)). The 60-day evaluation period itself starts when the school receives the parent's informed written consent.
What is the evaluation timeline in Arizona?
60 calendar days from the date the school receives informed written parental consent, ending on the date the Multidisciplinary Evaluation Team (MET) determines eligibility (A.A.C. R7-2-401(E)(3)). The 60 days are calendar days and include school breaks, including summer. The period can be extended by up to 30 additional days, but only if the extension is in the best interest of the child and the parent and school agree to it in writing (R7-2-401(E)(5)) — and no extension can push a reevaluation past the three-year deadline.
What is a MET in Arizona special education?
The Multidisciplinary Evaluation Team — Arizona's name for the group that conducts the evaluation and determines eligibility. Where Texas says ARD committee and Colorado says administrative unit, Arizona documents talk about the MET report and the MET determination of eligibility. The MET determination date is the finish line for the 60-day evaluation clock; the IEP team then has 30 calendar days from that determination to develop the IEP (34 CFR §300.323(c)(1)).
Can a parent force an IEP review in Arizona before the annual review date?
Yes, on a clock most states don't publish. A parent or the school may request an IEP review in writing, identifying the basis for the request, and the review must take place within 45 school days of receipt at a mutually agreed date and time (A.A.C. R7-2-401(G)(7)). That is separate from the annual review requirement — it's the mechanism for mid-year concerns.
When does transition planning start in Arizona?
Arizona follows the federal floor: transition services must be in the first IEP in effect when the student turns 16, or younger if the IEP team determines it appropriate, and must be updated annually — with measurable postsecondary goals based on age-appropriate transition assessments (AZ-TAS IEP guidance; 34 CFR §300.320(b)). No state add-on like Colorado's age 15.