HUD HCV Guidebook § 5.4

PHAs must comply with fair housing and civil rights laws when screening tenants for admission or continued
occupancy. Screening policies and criteria, including those related to criminal, credit, and eviction history,
must be nondiscriminatory on their face and must be applied in a nondiscriminatory manner and consistent
with public housing program requirements. PHAs also must ensure that none of their screening criteria result
(or predictably will result) in an unjustified discriminatory effect. For example, an overbroad criminal records
policy that screens out, evicts, or terminates assistance to individuals who pose no actual threat to the health,
safety, or right to peaceful enjoyment of the premises of their neighbors may have an unjustified
discriminatory effect in violation of the Fair Housing Act and other civil rights laws.137 Screening policies for
credit history and eviction records may also have an unjustified discriminatory effect on protected class
groups, so carefully reviewing these policies can help ensure compliance with the law.138 Additional guidance
on nondiscriminatory tenant screening policies and practices can be found in HUD’s Guidance on Application
of the Fair Housing Act to the Screening of Applicants for Rental Housing.139

HUD encourages PHAs to adopt screening policies that reduce barriers to participation for justice involved
individuals and their families. PHAs are reminded that criminal history background checks are required by
HUD only to determine whether any household member is convicted of methamphetamine production or
subject to a lifetime sex offender registration requirement in the State where the housing is located and in
other States where the household members are known to have resided.140 If a PHA decides to perform
additional screening, to ensure compliance with fair housing and civil rights laws the PHA can adopt and
implement a policy of considering individual circumstances before a denial or termination. This individualized
assessment can consider the nature and severity of the offense, the length of time since the offense,
evidence of rehabilitation, and any other evidence or circumstances that may be helpful during the
assessment. Evidence of rehabilitation may include, but is not limited to, evidence of employment, enrollment
in or completion of an educational program, a positive rental history, participation in mental health or other
counseling, involvement with community organizations or religious groups, or references from social service
providers. Criminal records unrelated to any drug-related or violent criminal activity or other criminal activity
which would adversely affect the resident health, safety, or right to peaceful enjoyment of the premises by

136 See 24 CFR part 110.  The fair housing poster and FHEO outreach tools are available at
https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/fair_housing_equal_opp/marketing.
137 Guidance on Application of Fair Housing Act Standards to the Use of Criminal Records by Providers of Housing and Real Estate-

Related Transactions, HUD Office of General Counsel (April 4, 2016).
138 See FHEO General FAQ – Housing Providers and Fair Housing, Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) On Fair Housing Issues

Regarding Exceptions to Credit Check Policies and Occupancy Limits, Affirmative Marketing, and Language Access.
150 See Guidance on Application of the Fair Housing Act to the Screening of Applicants for Rental Housing (April 29, 2024).
140 24 CFR 960.204(a)(3) - (4).

Fair Housing and Nondiscrimination Requirements                                                                          38
US Department of Housing and Urban Development                                                                   April 2025

other residents should not be considered.141 Note that an arrest is not evidence of criminal activity that can
support an adverse admission, termination, or eviction decision.142

Reasonable accommodations to screening policies must be made for individuals with disabilities (see Section
3.2). For example, when considering the criminal record eviction record, or credit history of an individual with a
disability, a reasonable accommodation may be required depending on the circumstances (see section 3.2 for
more information on how to determine if a reasonable accommodation is required). Such an accommodation
may be required, for example, if the criminal activity related to a mental health disability that is now well-
managed by treatment. In addition, reasonable accommodations may be required if the applicant’s poor
rental history or poor credit history is related to their disability (e.g., a gap between a loss of employment
income and receipt of disability benefits).143 In these situations, admitting the applicant by making an
exception to the screening policy could be an appropriate accommodation depending on the circumstances.

Additionally, PHAs must not consider any adverse factor – including criminal records, eviction records, or
credit history – that is the direct result of the applicant or tenant’s status as a survivor of domestic violence,
dating violence, sexual assault or stalking, even if on the surface such adverse factor does not appear related
to the tenant’s status as a survivor (see Section 2.9).144

If a state or local law requires screening in a way that would violate Federal law, including the Fair Housing Act
or other Federal civil rights laws, the Federal law prevails. State and local laws that provide additional rights
or protections to tenants or applicants must be followed, except to the extent they require an admission or
continued occupancy prohibited by Federal law.145