Step-by-step guide

How to apply for a Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher

The short answer

You apply through a local public housing agency (PHA), not through HUD. Most agencies keep a waiting list, often opened only for short periods, and you can apply to more than one, even outside the area where you live now.1 2

Once you have a voucher, you usually pay about 30% of your adjusted monthly income for rent and the agency pays the rest to the landlord, up to its limit. Most new vouchers must go to households with extremely low incomes.1 3

Updated October 2026. Rules differ by state, so call your office before you go. Questions? We're here: call or text 888-860-RISE.

Your steps, in order

1
Find housing agencies and check which lists are open
Use HUD's Resource Locator to find the public housing agencies near you, then check each agency's website for open waiting lists. You don't have to live in an agency's area to apply there.2 1
When an agency opens its list, it must give public notice, including in a local newspaper. Some open rarely: the Los Angeles city housing authority's 2022 opening lasted two weeks and came five years after the one before. Seattle's housing authority, by contrast, takes applications all the time.3 14 12
Emergency Housing Vouchers are not a way in anymore. Agencies can't reissue them after September 30, 2023, and HUD has told housing authorities the program is ending, with the money expected to run out in 2026.8 9
If you apply somewhere you didn't live when you applied, you'll usually have to rent in that agency's area for the first 12 months. Survivors who must move for safety are an exception.1 7
Tip:
Sign up for email alerts from agencies near you, and ask your shelter or case manager to tell you when a list opens. The Los Angeles city housing authority, for one, charges nothing to apply. Be wary of any website that asks you to pay to join a list.14
2
Check whether you're eligible
Your household's income must generally be very low: at or below 50% of the area's median income. At least 75% of the families an agency admits each year must be extremely low income, at or below 30% of the median or the federal poverty line, whichever is higher.3 4
Limits differ by area and household size. Housing Connect in Salt Lake County, for example, listed 2025 limits of $49,200 for two people and $61,350 for four.10
Applicants must be U.S. citizens or eligible non-citizens, and the head of household needs a valid Social Security number.1
A record doesn't automatically disqualify you. Federal rules require denial only in a few cases, such as lifetime sex offender registration or a conviction for making meth in federally assisted housing. Agencies may deny for some other recent criminal activity. If you're denied, you have the right to an informal review.5
3
Ask about preferences, including homelessness
Agencies decide their own preferences and list them in a public Administrative Plan. Ties are broken by application date and time or by a random drawing. Ask, "Do you have a preference for people who are homeless, or for coordinated entry referrals?"3
Some agencies set aside vouchers for people referred through coordinated entry, so getting assessed there can open a second door. See our guide on getting on the housing list.11
Some agencies, like Housing Connect, also have a preference for survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking or human trafficking.11
4
Apply, and gather your papers
The first application is often short and online. The full paperwork usually comes when your name is pulled from the list. Then the agency checks income, bank information, citizenship and Social Security numbers.1 10
Bring
- Photo ID for adults in the household
- Social Security cards or numbers for everyone
- Birth certificates or proof of citizenship or eligible immigration status
- Income papers: pay stubs, benefit letters (SSI, SSDI, TANF, unemployment)
- Bank statements
- A letter from your shelter or caseworker if you're claiming a homeless preference
5
Keep your place on the list
Agencies can remove you if you don't answer their letters. Housing Connect removes names when mail comes back, and Seattle requires a monthly check-in online. Keep a mailing address you check often, and send every change in writing or online.3 10 12
If a disability kept you from responding, the agency must put you back in your old spot.3
Tip:
Write down every agency you applied to, the date, and your confirmation number. Check your status at each one every few months.
6
Use the voucher before it runs out
A new voucher gives you at least 60 days to find a place. The agency may grant extensions, and it must extend the time when a person with a disability needs more time as a reasonable accommodation. The clock stops while the agency reviews a unit you've picked.6
The unit is inspected before you move in. Once you've met any first-year rule, you can generally move with your voucher anywhere in the U.S. served by an agency with a voucher program.1 7

What it costs

Item	Cost
Applying	Free (for example, at the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles)
Your rent share	Usually 30% of adjusted monthly income; it can be up to 40%

How some housing agencies run their lists

Every agency sets its own list rules and preferences. These are examples from each agency's own pages.

Utah (Salt Lake County)

Housing Connect's voucher list was last open June to September 2023 and is closed now. It's shared with the Housing Authority of Salt Lake City and had 6,318 households waiting in June 2025. Up to 25 vouchers a year go to homeless people referred through coordinated entry. Call (801) 284-4400.11 10

Washington (Seattle)

You can apply anytime. Names are drawn at random when vouchers are available, with preference for households at or below 30% of area median income and people who are or recently were homeless. You must check in monthly.12

Oregon (Portland)

Home Forward's voucher list last opened in April 2025 and is closed. You can check your status online, sign up for alerts on openings, or call 503-802-8333.13

California (Los Angeles)

At its 2022 opening, the city housing authority got 223,375 applications for up to 30,000 spots, picked by computer lottery, with preference for people who live or work in the city and for veterans.14

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Questions people ask

How long is the Section 8 waiting list?

It depends on the agency. Many lists are closed most of the time and have thousands of households waiting. Apply to every open list you'd be willing to live in, and ask about a homeless preference.

Do homeless people get priority for Section 8?

Only if the agency chose a homeless preference. Some have one, sometimes only for people referred through coordinated entry. Ask the agency and read its Administrative Plan.

Can I apply for Section 8 in a different city or state?

Yes. You don't have to live in an agency's area to apply. If you didn't live there when you applied, you may have to rent there for the first 12 months before you can move with the voucher.

Can I get Section 8 with a criminal record?

Often, yes. Federal rules require denial only for a few things, like lifetime sex offender registration. Agencies can deny for some other recent criminal activity, and you have the right to an informal review if you're denied.

Are Emergency Housing Vouchers still available?

Almost certainly not. HUD bars agencies from reissuing them after September 30, 2023, and HUD has told housing authorities the program is ending, with funds expected to run out during 2026. If you have one, ask your agency about moving to a regular voucher.

Keep going: more first-step guides

Sources

Official pages, read in October 2026. Rules change. If something here looks out of date, please let us know at hello@riseaid.org and we'll fix it.

1.U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Housing Choice Voucher tenants
2.U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. HUD Resource Locator
3.Code of Federal Regulations, 24 CFR Part 982 Subpart E. Admission to tenant-based program (eligibility, waiting lists, preferences)
4.HUD Office of Policy Development and Research. Methodology for determining FY 2026 Section 8 income limits
5.Code of Federal Regulations, 24 CFR Part 982 Subpart L. Denial of admission and informal review for applicants (982.553, 982.554)
6.Code of Federal Regulations, 24 CFR 982.303. Term of voucher
7.Code of Federal Regulations, 24 CFR 982.353. Where a family can lease a unit (portability)
8.U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Emergency Housing Vouchers
9.Housing Authority of the City of Long Beach. Emergency Housing Voucher program
10.Housing Connect (Salt Lake County housing authority). Connect to housing
11.Housing Connect (Salt Lake County housing authority). 2026 Annual PHA Plan with Moving to Work Supplement
12.Seattle Housing Authority. How to apply for a Housing Choice Voucher
13.Home Forward (Portland, Oregon). Housing Choice Voucher
14.Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles (2022). Section 8 waiting list lottery application period now closed