Section 8 housing and Immigrants

[dwheels76 5,468]

Asking for a friend.

If you are living in Section 8 housing can you add your immigrant spouse to lease?

I ask because I wasn't sure to tell her and thought Section 8 is means tested, but she was told her husband can't live there if not added to lease, but if he's added to lease isn't that a violation?

[Ryan H 3,812]

Moved from IR-1/CR-1 Process & Procedures to General Immigration-Related Discussion.

[NigeriaorBust 4,087]

He can't be used to qualify for the housing unit but his imcome is added to the family income. So if a family of X gets a bigger place than Y he can't be counted towards X . But any income he makes must be added to the spouses and that may put them over the limit to qualify . If it is just the 2 of them then they are considered a one person household for section 8 purposes but the qualifying income is his plus hers.

[dwheels76 5,468]

He can't be used to qualify for the housing unit but his imcome is added to the family income. So if a family of X gets a bigger place than Y he can't be counted towards X . But any income he makes must be added to the spouses and that may put them over the limit to qualify . If it is just the 2 of them then they are considered a one person household for section 8 purposes but the qualifying income is his plus hers.

Well he is immigrating here so no job. She lives in Section 8 housing in California with her child. So it will be 3 once he comes here. And she was saying she has to add him otherwise she can be evicted so I thought I would double check.

Thank you.

[NigeriaorBust 4,087]

Once he does get work it is added to whatever income she has and it will probably change their co pay and may make them no longer eligible.

[sbai2000 31]

Hi Dwheels - here is my take;

She is definitely in a catch-22. She is correct - she does need to add him or she can be evicted by the landlord AND/OR the housing agency will terminate her vouchers. However, once she adds him (and that is assuming the landlord agrees to it) she will probably also still lose her vouchers. For one, section 8 is a Federal housing subsidy program - so a new immigrant cannot be a beneficiary of a such a program. And two, even if he could be a beneficiary, once he starts earning an income, it will probably make her ineligible....or minimally her subsidy would be substantially reduced.

Im not sure what I would do in her position...but I think that just having a spouse (immigrant or not) would affect her voucher. Most of the section 8 recipients that I am aware of do not have spouses but they do have minor children. I know 2 families that have spouses but those spouses are on disability and that's how they got the section 8 housing.

I think your friend should probably see her new husband as an opportunity to get out of government assistance and become completely self-sufficient.

Best of luck.