IEP binder and special education checklist (United States)
For a parent or guardian of a US student with a disability: IEP and 504 paperwork in one organized file, on US Letter. Here is a practical way to organize the reports, letters and plans so you can find everything quickly and keep track of every time limit.
Checked against official sources on 3 November 2026.
The quick version
- Keep every report, letter and plan in one binder, split into the sections below.
- Write down every date and time limit the moment you get a letter.
- Follow up every call or meeting with an email, and log it.
- Check each week that the support in the plan is actually happening.
Requesting an evaluation
- Write down your worries, with examples from home and school
- Collect report cards, teacher notes and any test results
- Gather any doctor or therapist reports you already have
- Find your district's special education contact
- Put your request for an evaluation in writing and date it
- Say you want your child evaluated for special education
- Keep a copy and note how you sent it
- Ask for the district decision in writing
- Note the date the district received your request
- Look up your state's timeline for evaluations
- Sign consent and write down the date, since the clock runs from consent
- Ask for the evaluation reports before the eligibility meeting
- Find your state's Parent Training and Information Center
- Ask for the procedural safeguards notice if you don't have one
- Start your Correspondence Log today
Documents to gather
Gather these before you ask for an evaluation or go to an IEP meeting. Tick each one off as you find it. Your district may ask for others.
- Student ID number, school and grade
- Current teachers, case manager and school contacts
- List of diagnoses with dates and who made them
- Languages spoken at home and any communication needs
- Your student profile page, filled in
- Doctor, specialist and therapist reports
- Medication list and any health care plan
- Hearing and vision test results
- Private assessments, such as psychology or speech and language
- Hospital or clinic letters
- Report cards and progress reports
- Attendance and discipline records
- State and district test results
- Teacher notes, emails and work samples
- Your records request and the school reply
- Records from earlier schools
- Your written request for an evaluation
- Consent form you signed, with the date
- District evaluation reports
- Eligibility determination
- Independent educational evaluation (IEE) reports
- Prior written notice letters
- Current IEP and past IEPs
- Draft IEP received before each meeting
- Current 504 plan, if any
- IEP progress reports
- Meeting invitations and sign-in sheets
- Your notes on what was said and agreed
- Procedural safeguards notice
- Emails and letters with the school and district
- Correspondence Log
- Facilitation or mediation agreements
- State complaint or due process papers
- Receipts for private evaluations or therapy
- Contacts for your Parent Center and any advocate
Dates and deadlines to track
- Written request for evaluation sent
- Consent to evaluate signed
- Evaluation due (check your state)
- Eligibility decision
- IEP meeting
- Annual IEP review due
- Reevaluation due (every 3 years)
- Dispute filing deadline (check state)
Use the exact dates on the letters, forms and notices you receive.
How to section your binder
What this binder is for
Case Ready is a document organization tool for parents and carers. This edition is designed with reference to special education under the federal IDEA and Section 504, using U.S. Department of Education and Parent Center guidance, with state examples.
- Keep reports, letters and the plan in one place
- Track every time limit and meeting
- Check the support in the plan is actually happening
What this binder is not
Case Ready:
- Does not provide legal or educational advice
- Does not tell you what to argue or what your child is entitled to
- Does not replace the advice of a specialist adviser
For free, impartial advice, speak to your state's Parent Training and Information Center (find it at parentcenterhub.org) or a special education attorney.
How the process works here
Special education in the US runs under the federal IDEA, and each state adds its own rules and forms. These are the usual steps in order. Timelines can differ by state.
- Put your request for an evaluation in writing and keep a dated copy.
- Sign consent. The federal evaluation clock is 60 days from consent, or your state timeframe if it sets one.
- A team decides if your child is eligible for special education and what they need.
- If eligible, the IEP team writes the IEP. Services are made available as soon as possible after it is developed.
- Before it proposes or refuses a change, the district must give you prior written notice.
- The IEP is reviewed at least once a year, and your child is reevaluated at least every 3 years.
Section 504 is a separate civil rights law with its own evaluation and plan. It is covered in the pages that follow.
Where state timelines differ
The federal rule gives way to a state timeframe where a state sets one. These examples show the range. Check your state education agency for current rules.
- California: an assessment plan within 15 calendar days of referral. You get at least 15 days to decide.
- California: after consent, the team has 60 calendar days to review assessments and decide eligibility.
- California: a parent-requested IEP meeting must be held within 30 days of your written request.
- Texas: the written evaluation report is due by the 45th school day after the district gets your written consent.
- Texas: the ARD committee meets within 30 calendar days of the report to decide eligibility and, if eligible, the IEP.
- New York: evaluation within 60 days of consent. Services for a new student within 60 school days of consent.
- Florida: the evaluation must be completed within 60 school days of consent, counted while the student is in attendance.
Days can be calendar days or school days. Ask your district which your state uses, and ask for the dates in writing.
The iep and section 504 plans
The IEP is the written plan for a student found eligible for special education. Federal law lists what it must contain.
- Present levels: how your child is doing now and how the disability affects progress in the general curriculum.
- Annual goals: measurable academic and functional goals, plus how progress is measured and reported to you.
- Services and supports: special education, related services and aids, with start date, frequency and place.
- It covers testing accommodations and time in general classes. Transition planning starts by the first IEP at age 16.
- Section 504 covers a student with an impairment that substantially limits a major life activity.
- The district must evaluate before 504 services begin. The first evaluation needs your informed consent.
- Under 504 you get notice, access to records and a right to an impartial hearing.
IDEA is a funding law that requires an IEP for eligible students. Section 504 is an anti-discrimination law with no funding.
Reviews and notices
Federal rules set a minimum. Your state may add more.
- The IEP team reviews the IEP periodically, and at least once a year, to see if annual goals are being met.
- The IEP is revised when needed, such as after a reevaluation, new information from you, or too little progress.
- Reevaluation happens at least every 3 years, unless you and the district agree it is not needed.
- You or a teacher can ask for one. It generally can't happen more than once a year unless you both agree.
- Prior written notice comes a reasonable time before a proposed or refused change to evaluation, placement or services.
- It must give the reasons, what the district relied on, other options considered, and where to get help.
- If a decision is made by phone or in a meeting, you can ask for the notice in writing.
A 504 student must be reevaluated periodically, and before a significant change in placement.
If you disagree
IDEA gives parents several ways to settle a disagreement, from informal to formal. A Parent Center can explain your state's process.
- Start by asking for an IEP meeting. Some places offer a facilitated IEP meeting.
- Mediation is voluntary: a neutral mediator helps you and the district reach a settlement or compromise.
- State complaint: covers a violation of IDEA that happened not more than one year before it is received.
- Due process complaint: the first step to a hearing. The federal limit is 2 years unless your state sets its own.
- After a due process complaint, the district must hold a resolution meeting within 15 days.
- If you disagree with an evaluation, you can ask for one independent evaluation (IEE) at public expense.
- The district must then pay for the IEE or request a hearing to show its evaluation is appropriate.
For 504 you have a right to an impartial hearing, and you can complain to the Office for Civil Rights.
Terms used in this organizer
- IDEA: the federal special education law. States add their own rules.
- IEP: individualized education program, the written plan for special education.
- FAPE: free appropriate public education.
- Evaluation: the assessments that decide eligibility and needs. Reevaluation repeats them.
- IEE: an independent educational evaluation you can request if you disagree with the district.
- Prior written notice: the written notice a district gives before it proposes or refuses a change.
- ARD committee: the Texas name for the IEP team. Other states use other names.
Your state and district may use other words. Follow the words on your own forms.
Who this is for and where to get help
A parent or guardian of a student with a disability in the United States, or a family advocate. Examples come from California, Texas, New York and Florida. General information, not legal advice.
- Parent Centers (PTIs) work with families of children with disabilities, from birth to age 26.
- Find your state's center at parentcenterhub.org/find-your-center. There are nearly 100 across the US and territories.
- State rules and forms: California Department of Education, Texas Education Agency, NYSED, Florida DOE.
- Section 504 complaints can go to the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights.
- A special education attorney can advise you on your own situation.
Rules, forms and deadlines vary by state. This organizer is not a substitute for the advice of an attorney.
Before the iep meeting
- Request for evaluation sent in writing, with a dated copy kept
- Consent form signed and the evaluation due date noted
- Evaluation reports and school records requested and read
- Draft IEP or 504 plan requested before the meeting
- Present levels and annual goals checked against your notes
- Services and accommodations written down as you understand them
- Questions and concerns listed, with your top priorities marked
- Prior written notice kept for any change requested or received
- Support person or advocate told about the meeting date
- Review preparation and meeting notes pages printed
Save time with Case Ready
Case Ready is a printable, fillable organizer for United States: one-page profile, provision tracker, review preparation pages, reports index and a tracker workbook for Excel and Google Sheets, with your child’s details on every page. Type into it on screen or print it at home.
This binder is a general organizational aid. Rules, time limits and terms vary by country and area, and can change. Always follow the letters and decisions you receive and check current guidance. This binder is not a substitute for the advice of an attorney. Nothing in this binder is legal advice.