Emergency Housing Vouchers (EHV): Eligibility, Referral, and 2026 Funding Status

The Emergency Housing Voucher (EHV) program was created by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. HUD allocated 70,000 vouchers nationwide — worth roughly $5 billion — to Public Housing Authorities (PHAs) to help people move out of homelessness or escape unsafe housing situations. Once issued, an EHV functions like a standard Housing Choice Voucher: you find a qualifying unit, the landlord agrees to participate, and you generally pay about 30% of your adjusted household income toward rent while the voucher covers the rest, up to your area's payment standard. The difference is in who qualifies and how you get one — not in how it works once you have it.

Per HUD.gov's EHV program page, EHVs are limited to individuals and families who are:

• Homeless or at risk of homelessness — currently experiencing homelessness (including an imminent loss of housing with no other housing identified), or meeting HUD's separate, broader "at risk of homelessness" test (see FAQ below).
• Fleeing or attempting to flee domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, stalking, or human trafficking — regardless of whether the situation has been reported to police.
• Recently homeless, with a high risk of housing instability — recently exited homelessness and would otherwise be at high risk of returning to it, or of continued housing instability, without this assistance.

Because EHV eligibility as a tenant-based Section 8(o) voucher follows the same underlying citizenship and Social Security documentation rules as the regular Housing Choice Voucher program, the same citizenship/eligible-noncitizen-status requirements apply.

There is no public EHV waiting list or open application. You cannot sign up for an EHV directly. Referrals come through your community's Continuum of Care (CoC) — the local coordinated network of homeless-services providers, shelters, and outreach teams — which verifies eligibility and refers households to the PHA administering EHVs in that area. In domestic-violence, sexual-assault, or trafficking situations, victim-services organizations working with the CoC can often make the same referral.

To pursue an EHV referral:

1. Contact your local Continuum of Care or a homeless-services/shelter provider in your area (HUD's CoC locator on HUD Exchange can help identify who covers your community).
2. If fleeing domestic or sexual violence, a domestic-violence hotline or victim-services agency can also connect you to a CoC referral.
3. The CoC verifies your eligibility category and, if a referral slot is available, refers your household to the PHA administering EHVs.
4. The PHA processes the referral like a standard voucher issuance — briefing, unit search, inspection, and lease-up.

EHV is one-time, American Rescue Plan money — not part of HUD's annually renewed Housing Choice Voucher appropriation — and that funding is running out faster than originally planned:

• HUD's own EHV guidance already prohibited PHAs from reissuing a "turnover" EHV — one vacated by a departing household — to a new household after September 30, 2023. Most PHAs have had little to no new EHV leasing authority since then.
• The American Rescue Plan originally funded EHVs through September 30, 2030, but HUD signaled in 2025 that it is accelerating the wind-down given rising per-voucher costs; industry trackers now put the realistic funding-exhaustion point around late 2026, not 2030.
• In June 2025, HUD's Office of Public and Indian Housing issued Notice PIH 2025-19, giving PHAs formal guidance on transitioning existing EHV households onto the regular Housing Choice Voucher program so they keep their rental assistance once EHV-specific funding ends.
• The 2026 Consolidated Appropriations Act included $600.6 million in Tenant Protection Vouchers specifically earmarked to help PHAs that would otherwise have to terminate emergency-voucher assistance during 2026 — a backstop, though not a guarantee for every household or every PHA.

Sources: HUD.gov — Emergency Housing Vouchers, HUD EHV FAQ (updated Jan. 29, 2025), NLIHC coverage of Notice PIH 2025-19, and Council of Large Public Housing Authorities — EHV program termination.

Given how limited new EHV referrals already are, most people looking for emergency housing help in 2026 will need other options. Depending on your situation, your local CoC or homeless-services provider can also connect you to:

• Rapid Re-Housing — short-term rental assistance and services to help exit homelessness quickly.
• HUD-VASH — a similar voucher specifically for homeless veterans, run jointly with the VA.
• The regular Housing Choice Voucher waiting list — many PHAs offer a homelessness or domestic-violence preference that moves eligible applicants up the list.
• State and local emergency rental assistance programs, which vary by state and county.

What is an Emergency Housing Voucher (EHV)?

An EHV is a tenant-based rental voucher created by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. HUD allocated 70,000 EHVs nationwide to help people who are homeless, at risk of homelessness, fleeing or attempting to flee domestic violence, or who were recently homeless and have a high risk of housing instability. It works like a standard Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8) once issued — you find a unit, the voucher travels with you, and you pay roughly 30% of your adjusted income toward rent.

How is an EHV different from a regular Section 8 voucher?

The eligibility categories and referral process are different, and the funding source is different (one-time American Rescue Plan money, not the annually renewed Housing Choice Voucher appropriation). Day-to-day, an EHV functions like a Housing Choice Voucher: same 30%-of-income tenant share and the same landlord-approval and inspection process. Portability is actually more permissive for EHV: HUD's PIH Notice 2021-15 waived the standard rule (24 CFR § 982.353(c)) that normally blocks a family from porting during their first 12 months if they didn't live in the issuing PHA's jurisdiction when they applied — an EHV family can port to another PHA's jurisdiction immediately. Some PHAs can also use EHV funds to help cover security deposits and moving costs, which the standard voucher generally does not.

Can I apply for an EHV directly, like a regular Section 8 waiting list?

No. There is no general public application or waiting list for EHVs. You have to be referred by your community's Continuum of Care (CoC) — the local network of homeless-services agencies, shelters, and outreach programs that coordinate housing assistance — or in domestic-violence cases, sometimes through a victim-services provider working with the CoC. The CoC verifies you meet an eligible category and refers you to the PHA administering EHVs in your area. The referral process varies by community, so ask your local CoC.

Is the EHV program still accepting new referrals in 2026?

Very limited, and shrinking. HUD's own EHV guidance already barred PHAs from reissuing a "turnover" EHV — one vacated by a departing household — to a new family after September 30, 2023, so most of the 70,000 vouchers were already committed to their original households well before 2026. On top of that, HUD announced in 2025 that it is accelerating the program's wind-down: the American Rescue Plan funded EHVs through September 30, 2030, but HUD now projects the dedicated EHV funding will be exhausted around the end of 2026. Whether your local PHA has any remaining EHV leasing authority at all is something only that PHA can confirm — contact your CoC or PHA directly rather than assuming availability either way.

I already have an EHV — will I lose my housing assistance when the funding runs out?

HUD's stated goal is no — but it takes action by your PHA, not something automatic. In June 2025, HUD's Office of Public and Indian Housing issued Notice PIH 2025-19, directing PHAs to transition EHV households onto the regular Housing Choice Voucher program before EHV-specific funding is exhausted, so families don't experience a gap in assistance. Congress also included $600.6 million in Tenant Protection Vouchers in the 2026 appropriations specifically to help PHAs avoid terminating emergency-voucher assistance. Execution depends on each PHA's funding and how far along its transition is — if you currently hold an EHV, ask your PHA directly where your household stands in that process. This is changing quickly and varies by agency, so ask your PHA where your household stands.

What counts as "at risk of homelessness" for EHV eligibility?

HUD's "at risk of homelessness" definition (24 CFR § 91.5) is broader than just an imminent eviction — that narrower imminent-loss test (housing ends within 14 days, no subsequent residence identified) is actually part of the separate "homeless" category. To meet the "at risk" test, a household generally needs: (1) household income below 30% of the area median income, (2) insufficient resources or support networks to prevent them from ending up in shelter or on the street, and (3) at least one specific instability condition — such as written notice that their occupancy will end within 21 days, having moved multiple times for economic reasons in the last 60 days, or living in someone else's home due to economic hardship ("doubling up"). Because HUD's homeless-assistance programs use several overlapping definitions, the CoC or referring agency — not a self-assessment — makes the final determination for your household.

What if there's no EHV available in my area — what else can I do?

Contact your local Continuum of Care or homeless-services hotline regardless — they can point you to Rapid Re-Housing, HUD-VASH (for veterans), state or local emergency rental assistance, and regular Housing Choice Voucher waiting lists, several of which offer a homelessness or domestic-violence preference that can move you up the list. See our guide to the regular Section 8 waiting list process and preference categories for how that works.