HUD PIH Notice § 2017-02

                                 U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
                                                WASHINGTON, DC 20410-5000


OFFICE OF PUBLIC AND INDIAN HOUSING




SPECIAL ATTENTION OF:                                             NOTICE PIH 2017-02 (HA)
Regional Directors; State and Area Coordinators;                  Issued: January 19, 2017
Public Housing Hub Directors; Program Center
Coordinators; Troubled Agency Recovery Center                     This notice remains in effect until
Directors; Special Applications Center Director;                  amended, superseded or rescinded
Administrators; Resident Management
Corporations; Public Housing Agencies


Subject: Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) Self-Petitioner Verification Procedures

1) Purpose. This notice explains the procedures that public housing agencies (PHAs) must
   follow when an applicant or resident/tenant requests admission or continued residency as a
   result of being a VAWA self-petitioner. VAWA self-petitioners are those who claim to be
   victims of “battery or extreme cruelty.” VAWA covers the following types of battery or
   extreme cruelty: domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking.

2) Applicability. This notice applies to public housing, housing choice voucher assistance
   (including project-based vouchers), and Section 8 Mod Rehab.

3) Background. VAWA was originally signed into law in 1994, and was most recently
   reauthorized in 2013. HUD issued implementing regulations for the most recent
   reauthorization in late 2016 (81 FR 87812). Prior to VAWA, non-citizen victims of covered
   crimes were dependent on the good will of their abusers to obtain the authorized immigration
   status necessary to receive assisted housing. Section 214 of the Housing and Community
   Development Act of 1980 states that HUD may not allow financial assistance to ineligible
   non-citizens, but assistance must not be denied while verifying immigration status.

    HUD has determined that self-petitioners can indicate that they are in “satisfactory
    immigration status” when applying for assistance or continued assistance from Section 214-
    covered housing providers.1 “Satisfactory immigration status” means an immigration status
    which does not make the individual ineligible for financial assistance. After verifying such
    immigration status in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Systematic Alien
    Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) System, PHAs will make a final determination as to
    the self-petitioner’s eligibility for assistance.




1
 See HUD memorandum “Eligibility of Battered Noncitizen Self-Petitioners for Financial
Assistance Under Section 214 of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1980,” dated
December 15, 2016 (available at http://library.niwap.org/wp-content/uploads/Eligibility-of-
VAWA-Self-Petitioners-2016-12-14.pdf)


                                      www.hud.gov        espanol.hud.gov
4) Applicability to other VAWA Housing Protections. Not every noncitizen victim who has
   been subjected to battery or extreme cruelty will qualify under these procedures. In order to
   qualify, the noncitizen victim must have been battered or subjected to extreme cruelty by
   their spouse or parent, who is a U.S. citizen or LPR. PHAs may receive a petition at any
   time, but submissions will most likely be related to a request for VAWA protections pursuant
   to 24 CFR Part 5 Subpart L (e.g. with a request for an emergency transfer or family breakup
   resulting from domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking). See PIH
   2016-09. Once a PHA receives a self-petition (INS Form I-360 or I-130) or INS Form 797, it
   is prohibited from requesting any additional information from the VAWA self-petitioner,
   other than what is required below to complete the verification.

5) Procedure. When a PHA receives a self-petition or INS Form 797 Notice of Action, the
   PHA must initiate verification in the SAVE System:

      1. Enter self-petitioner name, alien ID number, and date of birth in the SAVE System.
         The system will provide one of the following responses:

                      If the SAVE system responds with a match, no further action is necessary
                       at this time. Skip to step 3.
                      If the SAVE system responds “no match,” the PHA must complete the
                       following additional steps. Continue to step 2.

      2. Push the button for “Institute Additional Verification.” In the next screen, in the
         memo field, type “verify VAWA self-petition.” If the documentation provided by the
         applicant is a form I-130, type in the memo field “verify I-130.” Upload one of the
         following documents from applicant:

                      I-360 VAWA Self-Petition

                      I-130 Family-Based Visa Petition

                      I-797 Notice of Action

                      Steps undertaken by DHS:
                       o receipt of I-130 or I-360
                       o prima facie determination
                       o approval of self-petition

      3. Wait for a final determination from the SAVE System. You will receive one of two
         confirmations: (1) the VAWA self-petition is verified, in which case the applicant is
         immediately eligible for housing and no evidence of battery or extreme cruelty shall be
         requested or collected; (2) the I-130 is verified, in which case the petitioner submitting
         a family-based visa petition must provide to the PHA any evidence of “battery or
         extreme cruelty.” See 8 USC 1154(a)(1)(J). Housing assistance and all other VAWA
         protections will be granted to the self-petitioner throughout the verification process
         until a final determination of LPR status is made. If the final determination is to deny
          the VAWA self-petition or LPR petition, the PHA must alert the petitioner and take
          actions to terminate voucher assistance or evict the petitioner from public housing in
          accordance with the existing public housing requirements.




6) Further Information. For additional information related to this notice, please contact Eric
   Christensen, Program Analyst, Office of Policy, Program and Legislative Initiatives at 202-
   402-3475.


                                                    _______/s/_______________
                                                    Lourdes Castro Ramírez
                                                    Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary
                                                      for Public and Indian Housing
Internal HUD Distribution:




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Correspondence      Originator          Concurrence      Concurrence       Concurrence   Concurrence     Concurrence
Code
Name
Date
  Official Record Copy           U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development           form HUD-713.1 (02/03)
                                             Previous edition is obsolete.