Section 214 HUD eligibility rules limit most federal rental assistance to U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, and non-citizens who hold one of seven specific immigration statuses named in the statute. Every person in the household, including children, has to declare their status, and most non-citizens must back that declaration with documents and an electronic check through USCIS. Families that mix eligible and ineligible members are not turned away; their subsidy is reduced through a proration formula instead.
Which HUD Programs Section 214 Covers
The eligibility restrictions apply to HUD’s main rental assistance programs:1eCFR. 24 CFR Part 5 Subpart E – Restrictions on Assistance to Noncitizens
- Public Housing operated by local Public Housing Authorities.
- Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers used in the private market.
- Section 8 project-based rental assistance, including Section 8 tied to Section 202 elderly housing.
- Section 235 homeownership assistance.
- Section 236 rental assistance in older HUD-insured buildings.
- The Rent Supplement Program.
- Housing Development Grant Programs, for low-income units only.
Section 214 does not reach every HUD program. Community Development Block Grants and HOME Investment Partnerships work differently because they fund states, localities, and nonprofits rather than paying rental subsidies to individuals. HUD homeless assistance programs such as Emergency Solutions Grants and Continuum of Care also sit outside Section 214, and certain activities funded through those programs qualify for a life-and-safety exception that permits assistance regardless of immigration status.
Who Counts as an Eligible Non-Citizen
A non-citizen must be a U.S. resident and fit at least one of the following categories:2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 US Code 1436a – Restriction on Use of Assisted Housing by Noncitizens
- Lawful permanent residents (green card holders). The statute expressly excludes visitors, tourists, diplomats, and students admitted temporarily.
- Refugees admitted under the refugee resettlement program and asylees whose asylum has not been terminated.
- People granted withholding of deportation or removal to a particular country.
- Parolees admitted for public interest or emergent reasons under the Attorney General’s discretionary authority.
- Registry aliens who entered before June 30, 1948, have continuously resided in the United States since, and are not ineligible for citizenship.
- Immigrants legalized under the Immigration Reform and Control Act.
- Citizens of the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, and Palau who are lawfully residing in the United States under the applicable Compact of Free Association.
HUD regulations also treat victims of severe forms of trafficking who hold T-visas as eligible, and VAWA self-petitioners are protected while their petition is pending. A self-petitioner establishes protection by submitting a filed Form I-360, a Form I-130, or a Form I-797 Notice of Action from USCIS. Once one of those documents is on file, the housing provider cannot deny, delay, reduce, or terminate assistance based on immigration status until USCIS makes a final determination, including any appeal.
What Every Household Member Has to Submit
The required paperwork depends on who the person is.3eCFR. 24 CFR 5.508 – Submission of Evidence of Citizenship or Eligible Immigration Status
U.S. citizens and nationals sign a declaration under penalty of perjury. The PHA can ask for a passport or other proof but is not required to.
Non-citizens age 62 and older who were receiving assistance on September 30, 1996 or applied on or after that date submit a signed declaration of eligible status and proof of age. They do not go through the SAVE electronic check and do not sign a verification consent form.
All other non-citizens claiming eligible status submit three items: a signed declaration, an original USCIS-issued immigration document, and a signed consent authorizing electronic verification. Acceptable documents include Form I-551 (the green card), Form I-94 annotated to show refugee, asylee, parolee, or other qualifying status, an unannotated Form I-94 paired with a court order granting asylum or a letter from a DHS asylum officer, or a DHS receipt showing that a replacement of one of these documents has been requested.4US Department of Housing and Urban Development. Public Housing Occupancy Guidebook – Eligibility Determination and Denial of Assistance
The PHA then runs the information through the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) system operated by USCIS. If the initial check does not confirm eligible status, the PHA must request secondary verification within 10 days. Secondary verification is a manual USCIS records check that takes roughly 20 federal workdays as of March 2026.5U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). SAVE Verification Response Time While verification or any appeal is still pending, assistance cannot be delayed, denied, reduced, or terminated on the basis of immigration status.
Social Security Numbers are required from every household member, with one exception: members who do not claim eligible immigration status are not required to disclose an SSN, and the PHA assigns an alternate identification number instead.6HUD. PHA Letter on Citizenship and Immigration Status Verification
Mixed-Status Households and Prorated Assistance
A mixed household has at least one eligible member and at least one ineligible member. These families are not disqualified. Instead, the subsidy is reduced to reflect only the eligible members, and income from every member (eligible or not) is included in the underlying rent calculation.7eCFR. 24 CFR 5.520 – Proration of Assistance
For Section 8 vouchers, the PHA calculates the full Housing Assistance Payment as if everyone were eligible, then multiplies it by the number of eligible members divided by the total number of family members. A family of four with one ineligible member has a proration factor of 3/4: if the full HAP would be $1,200, the prorated payment is $900, and the family covers the remaining $300 out of pocket on top of its normal rent share.
For public housing, the PHA calculates the family’s Total Tenant Payment using income from all members, subtracts that from the flat rent to find the maximum subsidy, divides by the total number of members, and multiplies by the number who are eligible. The rent is then the flat rent minus the eligible subsidy. The practical effect is the same as with vouchers: ineligible members raise the family’s out-of-pocket cost.
Families also have the option to have an ineligible member “not contend” eligible status rather than go through verification. That person is excluded from the subsidy calculation and does not count toward bedroom-size determinations. Depending on the member’s income and the household’s makeup, this can produce a better financial result than proration.
A narrower path exists for mixed families who were already receiving assistance on June 19, 1995. They may qualify for “continued assistance” rather than proration if the head of household or spouse has eligible immigration status and no ineligible person in the home falls outside the head, spouse, parents, and children of the head.8eCFR. 24 CFR 5.518 – Types of Preservation Assistance Available to Mixed Families and Other Families
What Happens If a Member Is Found Ineligible
The PHA has to notify the family in writing. Assistance stays in place while verification or an appeal is still open.9GovInfo. 24 CFR 5.512 – Verification of Eligible Immigration Status
If secondary SAVE verification does not confirm eligible status, the family has 30 days from the PHA’s notification to appeal directly to USCIS. USCIS must decide within 30 days of receiving the appeal, and if it cannot, it must notify the family and the PHA of the reason for the delay. After the USCIS appeal, or instead of it, the family can request an informal hearing from the PHA within 30 days of receiving either the original ineligibility notice or the USCIS decision. The hearing can challenge the verification results or any other underlying fact.10eCFR. 24 CFR 5.514 – Determination of Ineligibility
Families that reject prorated assistance, or that have no eligible members at all, can ask for a temporary deferral of termination to avoid immediate displacement. To qualify, the family must show at least one of the following: reasonable efforts to find affordable housing of appropriate size have been unsuccessful, the local vacancy rate for such housing is below five percent, or the local PHA’s annual plan or consolidated plan identifies a lack of affordable housing. Deferrals run in six-month increments, are reviewed at each renewal, and cannot exceed 18 months in total.8eCFR. 24 CFR 5.518 – Types of Preservation Assistance Available to Mixed Families and Other Families
Penalties for False Declarations
The declaration is signed under penalty of perjury. Knowingly making a false statement to a federal agency is punishable by a fine, up to five years in prison, or both.11Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 US Code 1001 – Statements or Entries Generally
A separate administrative penalty applies when a family knowingly allows an ineligible person to live permanently in the assisted unit without disclosing that person’s status. The PHA must terminate assistance for the entire family for at least 24 months. That penalty does not apply if the ineligible individual was already factored into a proration calculation.4US Department of Housing and Urban Development. Public Housing Occupancy Guidebook – Eligibility Determination and Denial of Assistance
Recent Enforcement Changes
HUD stepped up Section 214 enforcement beginning in early 2025. The agency signed a memorandum of understanding with the Department of Homeland Security to coordinate citizenship and immigration status verification across HUD-funded housing, and audited tenants across its programs nationwide, giving PHAs and property owners 30 days to correct any discrepancies. In 2026, HUD proposed a new rule that would require proof of citizenship or eligible status for every resident in HUD-funded housing, including all members of mixed-status households.12HUD. HUD Moves to Close Mixed Status Households Roommate Loophole
PHAs now cross-reference their tenant rolls against SAVE through the EIV-SAVE Tenant Matching Report. Appearing on the report does not by itself mean a resident is ineligible; it triggers a review. Families caught up in these audits keep the same appeal and hearing rights that apply to any other ineligibility determination.