What can I do if I disagree with my child’s IEP?

Tell the team, in writing, which parts you disagree with and what you’d like instead — many disagreements settle at a follow-up meeting. If they don’t, you can ask for the school’s reasoning in writing, and you have formal options: mediation, a state complaint, or a due process hearing. You can name just the one part you disagree with.

What to do

List the specific parts you disagree with — a goal, a service, the amount of time, the setting — and what you would like instead.
Send that list in writing and ask for a meeting to talk it through.
If the school refuses what you asked for, ask for prior written notice: what it refused, why, and what it based the decision on.
34 CFR § 300.503
If you are still stuck, consider mediation. It is voluntary, the state pays for it, and a neutral mediator runs it.
34 CFR § 300.506(b)
The formal routes are a state complaint (about a violation in the past year) or a due process complaint (generally within two years, unless your state sets a different limit).
34 CFR §§ 300.153(c), 300.507(a)(2)
Read the federal rights guide →

What the law says

The school must give you written notice a reasonable time before it proposes or refuses a change to your child’s evaluation, placement, or services, including its reasons and the options it considered.
34 CFR § 300.503(a)–(b)
Mediation must be voluntary, run by a qualified and impartial mediator, paid for by the state, and cannot be used to delay your right to a hearing. An agreement reached there is written and binding.
34 CFR § 300.506(b)
A parent may file a due process complaint about the identification, evaluation, placement, or services of their child, generally within two years of when they knew or should have known of the issue, or the time limit set by state law.
34 CFR § 300.507(a)
While a due process complaint is pending, your child generally stays in the current educational placement unless you and the school agree otherwise.
34 CFR § 300.518(a)
Your written consent is required before special education services are provided for the first time.
34 CFR § 300.300(b)(1)

Ready to put it in writing? The letter tool's “Disagreement with IEP” template is written for this.

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Common questions

Do I have to sign the IEP if I disagree with it?

Read what the signature line says first — on some forms it means you attended, on others that you agree. States and districts handle this differently. You can add a written note naming the parts you disagree with, and keep a copy for yourself.

What is the difference between mediation and due process?

Mediation is a voluntary conversation with a neutral mediator, and any agreement you reach is written down and binding. Due process is a hearing where a hearing officer decides the dispute. Mediation is usually quicker and less formal; a hearing is a legal proceeding where many families bring an attorney.

Will my child’s services stop while we disagree?

It depends on what happens next. If you file a due process complaint, your child generally stays in the current placement until it is resolved, unless you and the school agree otherwise. Under the federal default, a school can move ahead with a change after giving you written notice; some states (California, for example) require your consent before a change takes effect, so ask when any change would start and whether your state requires consent first.

Should I follow up in writing even if the meeting went well?

Yes, a short email helps. Summarize what you agreed on and what is still open. It gives everyone the same record and makes any later request easy to point back to.