In a November 12, 2026 final rule, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced changes to the process for verifying the eligible status of HUD-assisted residents, commonly referred to as the “mixed status” rule, which LeadingAge strongly opposes.

The rule change prohibits HUD from permanently prorating rental assistance for assisted households with mixed immigration statuses, which was previously allowed in instances where household members had differing eligibility; instead, the agency will now allow only short-term rent proration (60 days, plus an additional 60-day extension upon request), after which members of the household who cannot demonstrate eligible status would be prohibited from occupying in the HUD-assisted unit, whether or not they are receiving HUD rental assistance directly.

The new rule means that households with ineligible family members would need to either separate, stop receiving any rental assistance (even for eligible family members), or move out entirely of properties participating in certain HUD programs. LeadingAge expects the final rule to result in significant harm to households, including intergenerational families, for example where the children have documented eligible status, but the guardians or caregivers do not.

Section 202 PRAC properties are not subject to the immigration-related rules in question, but Section 202/8, Section 8, Section 236, and public housing are impacted, all of which serve significant proportions of older adult residents.

The rule also newly requires older adults, who were previously only required to provide a signed declaration of eligible immigration status and a proof of age document, to submit immigration documentation and prove that they have eligible immigration status, if they have not done so previously. This new policy threatens housing stability for older adults who lack access to paperwork, which many older adults face, especially individuals who have experienced homelessness or chronic housing instability. The change in eligibility requirements could also separate older adults from informal family caregivers who may be supporting them as they age in community.

The final rule mirrors an attempted rule from the first Trump administration, which received significant pushback and was never finalized; an analysis at the time showed that the rule would displace 55,000 children nationwide. Overall, HUD changed very little from the proposed rule for “mixed status” issued in February, 2026, despite the more than 16,000 public comments that were submitted and that HUD is legally obligated to respond to – including LeadingAge’s comments highlighting both the harm to older adults and the aging services workforce and the burden on providers to verify documentation and turn-over units, to which HUD responded with a generic response in the final rule: “A commenter representing affordable senior-housing providers stressed that mission-driven senior communities would have to collect documentation from HUD-assisted older adults who established eligibility years ago by declaration, diverting staff from tenant services. … HUD acknowledges that the rule would impose some administrative costs. … HUD believes such costs are justified.”

LeadingAge expects the 2026 final rule to be vulnerable to both litigation and the Congressional Review Act, but because the rule is effective 30 days after publication, harm may occur prior to any injunctive or congressional relief.