The IEP Toolkit

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

Mississippi runs the process in steps, each with its own deadline. Here is exactly what Mississippi requires, in order, and what to do if a date passes.

60 calendar days

From your signed consent, the district must complete the comprehensive evaluation. But that is the middle step — there is a 14-day deadline before it and a 14-day deadline after it.

Day type
Calendar days
Clock starts at
Your signed parental consent to the evaluation
What the deadline covers
The comprehensive evaluation (+14 days for the eligibility meeting)
Legal citation
Miss. SBE Policy 74.19 (formerly 7219)

The four steps, in order

  1. MET meets within 14 days of your request. After a request, the Multidisciplinary Evaluation Team (MET) convenes within 14 days to decide whether to evaluate your child.
  2. Comprehensive evaluation within 60 days of your consent. Once you sign consent, the district has 60 days to complete the evaluation.
  3. The report comes to you at least 7 days before the eligibility meeting. You are entitled to read it before you walk into the room.
  4. Eligibility meeting within 14 days of the evaluation report. That is where the team decides whether your child qualifies.
Track all four dates, not just the 60. Most families only watch the 60-day evaluation window. In Mississippi the first step — the MET convening within 14 days of your request — is often where things stall, before any consent form even exists. And the 7-day report rule is the one that decides whether you show up to the eligibility meeting prepared or blindsided.

Ask for the report early if it does not arrive

If your eligibility meeting is scheduled and you have not received the evaluation report, say so in writing right away. You are supposed to have it at least 7 days beforehand. Asking to reschedule is reasonable if the report comes late.

How to count your deadline

  1. Find the date you requested the evaluation, in writing. Count forward 14 days — that is when the MET should have convened.
  2. Find the date the district received your signed consent. Not the date you signed it — the date they got it.
  3. Count forward 60 calendar days, including weekends and holidays. That is the evaluation deadline.
  4. From the date of the evaluation report, count forward 14 days. That is the eligibility meeting deadline.
  5. Count back 7 days from the eligibility meeting. The report should have reached you by then.

What to do if the deadline passes

  1. Put it in writing the same week. Email the case manager and the special education director. Name which step was missed, the date it was due, 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 Mississippi this goes to the Mississippi Department of Education (MDE). It is free and does not require a lawyer.
  4. Keep the paper trail. Every date, every email, every response.

Free: IEP evaluation deadlines for all 51 jurisdictions

A one-page chart of every state's deadline, day type, and when the clock starts — plus a playbook for when a district blows the date.

Get the free cheat sheet

Need the letters too? The Evaluation Request Kit has fill-in templates for the request, the follow-up, and the complaint.

Sources

Verified July 2026. State rules change — confirm against the current code before relying on a date.