HUD Orders Verification for Tenants in HUD-Funded Housing

Last week, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) issued a press release entitled, ‘Cleaning House’: HUD Orders Immediate Citizenship Verification for All Tenants in HUD-Funded Housing Nationwide. The release states that HUD, working with DHS, conducted a nationwide audit of tenants in HUD-funded housing and identified nearly 200,000 cases needing eligibility verification, including about 25,000 deceased tenants and nearly 6,000 ineligible non‑citizens.

As a result, HUD has ordered Public Housing Authorities to verify immigration and citizenship status under Section 214 and a recent executive order. As part of a new agreement between HUD and DHS, tenant records were checked through the SAVE system for the first time. HUD warns that agencies failing to comply may face sanctions, including the recapture of funds paid on behalf of ineligible or deceased tenants.

In the letter sent out to Public Housing Authorities (PHA’s), HUD asks the PHA’s to verify the immigration status of persons identified in the HUD-DHS review. The letter explains that being listed on the report does not necessarily mean a person is ineligible for HUD assistance; some individuals simply need additional immigration-status verification through SAVE or supporting documents. PHAs should already have this information on file. Within 30 days, each PHA must review the report, confirm that citizenship or immigration status was correctly recorded on the HUD‑50058, and take any needed corrective action. This includes verifying SAVE checks, ensuring proper documentation is in tenant files, and correcting any miscoded information. If a person is ultimately found ineligible, the PHA may need to terminate assistance depending on the household’s composition.

As this moves forward, NARPM will continue to monitor this process for its effects on property owners and managers, particularly those who participated in the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program.