What is an IEP?

An IEP is a written plan for a student with a disability who needs special education. In New York City, the NYC Public Schools call it a legal document. It says how the school system will give your child a free, appropriate education, as close to other kids as possible. This guide explains the basics in plain words, so you know what the paper in your folder actually means.

What the letters stand for

IEP means Individualized Education Program. "Individualized" is the key word. The plan is written for one child, based on that child's own evaluation, strengths and needs. Two children in the same class can have very different IEPs.

The DOE describes the IEP as a written statement of its plan to give your child a Free Appropriate Public Education, often shortened to FAPE, in the Least Restrictive Environment, often shortened to LRE. You will see both terms on notices and in meetings. Our glossary of special education terms explains these and other short forms.

Who gets an IEP

Not every child who struggles in school gets an IEP. For school-age children, the DOE says two things must be true:

1. Your child meets the criteria for at least one of the 13 disability classifications in New York State's Part 200 regulations.
2. The disability affects how your child does in school, or how well your child can benefit from the general education curriculum.

The team decides this after an evaluation. You are part of that team. If the team finds your child is not eligible, no IEP is written. The DOE says the evaluation results go to the principal instead, who can work with staff to help your child in other ways.

Preschool children can also get special education. The DOE says children may be eligible from the year they turn three through the end of the school year they turn five. That process runs through the Committee on Preschool Special Education, called the CPSE.

If you are still at the start and want to know how a child gets evaluated, read how a child gets an IEP in NYC.

What is written in an IEP

An NYC IEP has several major sections. Each one answers a different question about your child.

• Present levels of performance. How your child is doing right now. This includes evaluation results, academic skills, social and physical development, and management needs. If your child needs an accessible building, that is noted here.
• Measurable annual goals. Academic, social, behavior or physical goals your child can reasonably reach in one school year.
• Progress reports. When you will get updates on progress toward those goals.
• Recommended programs and services. The services your child needs, the start date, how often each one happens, where it happens, and how long each session lasts.
• Participation with students without disabilities. How much of the day your child spends in general education classes and activities.
• State and citywide tests. Whether your child takes the same tests as other students or an alternate test, and any testing accommodations.

For a parent, the recommended services section is usually the one that matters most later. It is the promise. If you want a closer walk through each section and how to copy the services onto one sheet, our page on reading your child's IEP covers that in detail.

What kinds of help an IEP can list

Special education is not one room or one class. The DOE says it describes a wide range of services that can happen in many school settings. An IEP might list:

• A class setting, such as a general education class with extra support, or a smaller special class.
• SETSS, a special education teacher support service. Our page What is SETSS? explains it.
• Related services, such as speech therapy, occupational therapy, physical therapy and counseling. See what related services are.
• Testing accommodations, assistive technology, or a paraprofessional.

The DOE says general education is always the first thing considered for a student with an IEP. Students are not supposed to be moved out of general education just because they need adaptations or accommodations.

How the school uses the IEP

Once the IEP is written and you give consent, it becomes the working plan for the school. Teachers use the goals to plan lessons. Providers use the service list to set up sessions. The school uses the frequency and session length to build a schedule. Progress reports are measured against the goals.

In short, the IEP tells everyone what should happen each week. It also gives you a way to check whether it did happen. If you get progress reports and are not sure what they mean, read how to read IEP progress reports.

Consent comes before services

The DOE says that after the IEP is developed, the team will ask for your written permission to start services. It will not arrange services until it gets your informed consent. You can withdraw consent for special education services at any time, and you can later change your mind.

Keep a copy of anything you sign. If you no longer have a copy of the IEP itself, you can ask for it. Our guide to requesting school records explains how.

IEP or regular help: what is the difference?

Many children get extra help without an IEP. That help can be very good, but it is not the same thing.

• Regular classroom support. In grades K to 5, the DOE says public schools use Response to Intervention, or RTI, before a referral. RTI adds more support in steps: strong teaching for everyone, then small groups or more time, then more intensive help.
• A Section 504 plan. The DOE says a student can also request a Section 504 accommodation. A 504 plan usually covers accommodations rather than special education instruction. Our page on IEP vs. 504 plan lays out the difference.
• An IEP. A formal plan, built from an evaluation, with written goals and a list of services the school system has committed to provide.

The big difference for families is the written commitment. Extra help from a kind teacher can stop when the teacher leaves. Services on an IEP are recorded with a frequency and session length, so a missed session can be counted.

What an IESP is

If your child attends, or will attend, a private or religious school in New York City and is found eligible, the DOE says the team writes an Individualized Education Services Program, or IESP, instead of an IEP. The IESP lists the special education and related services your child gets while attending that school. Many of the same questions about missed services apply.

Who writes the IEP

The IEP is written by a team, and the DOE says the family is part of it. Depending on the child, the team can include a general education teacher, a special education teacher, related service providers, a school psychologist and a district representative. You can bring people who know your child. Our page on preparing for an IEP meeting lists what to bring and ask.

If English is not your preferred language, you can ask for an interpreter and for translated documents. See how to request an interpreter.

What happens if services are not delivered

This is the part many families find out the hard way. An IEP can say speech therapy twice a week, and months can pass with no therapist. A provider leaves. A session gets canceled again and again. The school says it is still looking.

When a child does not get the services on the IEP, families sometimes ask for make-up help. This is often called compensatory services. Our page on what compensatory services are explains the idea, and who may qualify covers common situations. We cannot tell you whether your child is owed anything. That depends on the facts and on decisions made by others.

What you can do now is keep a record. Write down what the IEP says, what actually happened, and when. Our guide to documenting missed services shows a simple way to do it, and the parent checklist keeps the steps in order. If the DOE could not find a provider, it may have offered a voucher. Read about RSAs for related services.

Signs the IEP is not being followed

• Your child says they have not seen their speech or OT provider in weeks.
• Progress reports are blank or say a service was not provided.
• The school tells you a provider is "being assigned" for a long time.
• Your child's schedule has no slot for a service the IEP lists.
• You were handed a voucher but never found a provider who would take it.

None of these prove anything alone. Each one is a reason to ask questions and write down the answers. Frequent cancellations have their own guide: when IEP providers cancel.

Your rights as a parent

The DOE says you are a legally required member of the IEP team. You can ask for another IEP meeting to talk about concerns. If you and the team cannot agree, the DOE names mediation and an impartial hearing as ways to get help or challenge a decision. Our overview of parent rights in special education explains these in plain terms.

Your next step

If you think your child missed services on the IEP, start with the quick eligibility questions or the free printables. If you want to talk it through, ask for a free callback. IEP Hours is an independent information and referral service. We are not the NYC DOE and not a law firm, we do not give legal advice, and we cannot promise any result. There is no cost to you, now or later.

Official source: NYC DOE: the IEP.

Last reviewed: October 2026