HUD’s Office of Multifamily Housing sent a letter reminding multifamily owners and agents of the current required procedures for verifying citizenship and immigration status and for calculating prorated assistance for mixed-status households, which include:
- Eligibility for federal housing assistance is limited to U.S. citizens and noncitizens with eligible immigration status.
- Under Section 214 of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1980, HUD is prohibited from providing financial assistance to individuals who do not meet these eligibility requirements.
- Owners/Agents must:
- Document and verify the citizenship or eligible immigration status of all individuals prior to admission into the Section 8 Project Based Rental Assistance (PBRA) Program; and
- Prorate assistance for any “mixed-status household” that includes an individual who is not eligible for federal housing assistance.
Why This Matters: In September 2025, ProPublica leaked a proposed “mixed-status rule,” which would drastically change current policy. You can read a description of the changes in our October 3 edition.
Go Deeper with Resources:
The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities put together a resource tracking national demographic data on who would be subject to the leaked proposed rule’s new documentation requirements, those barred from rental assistance by a prohibition on mixed-status households, and the number of households and individuals, by state, who would be subject to the proposed changes.
Stewards of Affordable Housing for the Future (SAHF) developed a guide to help affordable housing providers strengthen their readiness and response to the requirements. The guide is organized into three focus areas:
- Understanding Requirements and Resources
- Developing or Updating Policies and Response Plans
- Communicating with Front-Line Staff and Engaging Residents
