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

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

The part most parents miss: long school breaks pause the clock

Georgia excludes any break of 5 or more consecutive school days — plus the weekends attached to that break — from the 60-day count. This includes summer.

That is the single most important thing to understand about this deadline. A consent form signed in May does not mean a finished evaluation in July. The clock stops when the long break starts and picks back up when school resumes.

The flip side: short breaks do not pause anything. A three-day holiday weekend or a two-day teacher workday stretch is under five school days, so those days still count against the district.

The clock does not start when you ask — it starts when you sign

This trips up a lot of Georgia families. The 60 days runs from parental consent, not from your request. A district can burn weeks between the day you ask for an evaluation and the day it hands you a consent form to sign, and those weeks are not part of the 60 days.

So put your request in writing and keep the date. Date-stamp both the request and the signed consent. If the gap between the two starts stretching out, follow up in writing and ask when the consent paperwork is coming.

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. Add back any break of 5 or more consecutive school days — winter break, spring break, summer — plus the weekends attached to it.
4. That date is the deadline to complete the evaluation.
5. Separately: once your child is found eligible, federal law requires the IEP meeting within 30 calendar days of that determination. 34 CFR § 300.323(c).

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 Georgia this goes to the Georgia Department of Education (GaDOE). It is free and does not require a lawyer.
4. Keep the paper trail. Every date, every email, every response.