Section 8 for Veterans (HUD-VASH): Who Qualifies in 2026

If you are a veteran without a stable place to live, there is a version of Section 8 built just for you. It is called HUD-VASH — HUD-VA Supportive Housing — and it is a federal government program run jointly by HUD, local housing agencies and VA medical centers.

It gives you two things at once: a Section 8 rent voucher from HUD and a VA case manager who helps you find a place and keep it.

The rules are not the same as regular Section 8. In several ways they are easier — and one rule about VA disability pay works differently than many people expect.

The Short Answer

	HUD-VASH
Who it is for	Veterans who are homeless, and their families
Who decides you qualify	The VA (veteran status and need); the housing agency checks income
Income limit	Up to 80% of area median income — higher than regular Section 8
VA disability pay	Not counted when checking if you qualify
Housing agency waiting list	None — the VA refers you directly
Time to find a home	At least 120 days on your first voucher
Your share of rent	Usually about 30% of adjusted income, like regular Section 8
Where to start	VA: 877-424-3838, free, 24/7

Income rules differ from program to program. The limits on this page are for HUD-VASH only — not for regular Section 8, VA pension, or other veterans’ programs.

How Big Is the Program?

The VA says that as of March 2026, more than 95,000 formerly homeless veterans were living in homes through HUD-VASH, and that HUD has awarded more than 116,000 HUD-VASH vouchers since 2008. It runs in all 50 states, Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands (VA HUD-VASH page). There is also a Tribal HUD-VASH program for American Indian and Alaska Native veterans.

Who Qualifies

HUD’s operating rules say it simply: “HUD-VASH eligible families are homeless veterans and their families” (89 FR 65769, August 13, 2024).

There are three checks, done by two different offices:

1. The VA decides if you are a veteran for this program — and if you need it. The rules say “the determination of whether an individual qualifies as a veteran for the purposes of a HUD-VASH voucher is made by the VA medical facility.” The VA describes HUD-VASH as built for veterans experiencing homelessness “who have a need for ongoing, intensive case management.” Do not rule yourself out over your discharge paperwork — ask the VA.
2. The housing agency checks income — up to 80% of area median (more on this below).
3. The housing agency checks one thing in your background: whether anyone in the household is on a state sex offender registry for life.

That third point matters. For regular Section 8, a housing agency can deny you for drug or criminal activity or for owing money to a past program. For HUD-VASH, the rules say the agency gives up that power: it “will not have the authority to screen any potentially eligible family members or deny assistance” on those grounds. Lifetime sex offender registration is the only exception. If that person is a family member rather than the veteran, the rest of the family can still be housed if that person is removed from the household.

The Income Rule — and the VA Disability Surprise

Regular Section 8 generally requires a “very low income” household (24 CFR 982.201), which 24 CFR 5.603 defines as income at or below 50% of area median.

HUD-VASH goes higher. The 2024 rules say housing agencies “must serve all income eligible veterans, including low-income veterans (up to 80% AMI).” Low income means up to 80% of area median. HUD publishes the dollar limits for every county on HUD USER; the FY 2026 limits took effect May 1, 2026.

Now the part that is easy to miss. Normally, VA service-connected disability compensation counts as income for Section 8. For HUD-VASH, HUD set that aside: the agency “must determine the applicant’s annual income for purposes of income eligibility by excluding all VA service-connected benefits.”

But read the next sentence too. The rules say those benefits “are excluded for purposes of determining income eligibility but included for purposes of calculating the total tenant payment.” In plain words:

• Your disability pay cannot keep you out of HUD-VASH.
• It still counts when the agency figures your rent share. A high disability rating can mean a bigger monthly payment from you.

There is one more catch in the same section. A voucher only works if it actually pays something. If your counted income is high enough that your share equals the whole rent, the voucher pays nothing — so you may need a unit with a higher rent, or an area with a higher payment standard. Ask your case manager to run the numbers with you.

No Waiting List, and More Time to Search

Two rules make HUD-VASH faster than ordinary Section 8:

• No housing-agency waiting list. The rules say housing agencies “are not authorized to maintain a waiting list or apply local preferences for the HUD-VASH program.” The VA refers eligible veterans straight to the agency. (The number of HUD-VASH vouchers in your area is still limited, so ask the VA how long the wait is locally.)
• At least 120 days to find a home. Regular Section 8 vouchers must give you at least 60 days. HUD-VASH vouchers “must have an initial search term of at least 120 days.”

The rules also allow a first lease shorter than 12 months with a HUD-VASH voucher, and even a unit on the grounds of a VA facility.

What You Pay

HUD-VASH uses the normal Section 8 rent formula. Under 24 CFR 5.628, your share is the highest of: 30% of your monthly adjusted income, 10% of your monthly income, any welfare payment set aside for housing, or the agency’s minimum rent. For most people that means about 30% of adjusted income. The voucher pays the landlord the rest, up to the local limit. Our Section 8 guide explains the payment standard and why renting above it costs you more.

The Case Manager Is Part of the Deal

HUD-VASH is not just a voucher. The VA pairs you with a case manager who can connect you to primary care, mental health care and substance use treatment, and help with budgeting, reading a lease and working with your landlord.

Taking part in case management, when the VA says you need it, is a condition of the voucher. HUD’s rules say that if the VA finds a veteran is not participating “without good cause,” the housing agency must end the HUD-VASH assistance — though it may offer a regular voucher instead.

The rules also protect you in the other direction:

• If the VA decides you no longer need case management, that “is never grounds for termination.” The agency may move you to a regular voucher, or you keep your HUD-VASH voucher until one is available.
• You cannot be terminated later for something that happened before you were admitted and was known to the agency at the time.

The 2026 Work-Requirement Proposal

In March 2026, HUD proposed a rule that would let housing agencies add work requirements and time limits for some voucher holders. The proposal names HUD-VASH as excluded: “A PHA must not establish work requirements or term limits for the HUD-Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH) program” (proposed rule, March 2, 2026).

There is a detail worth knowing. The same proposal says that if a HUD-VASH family is later moved to a regular voucher — which can happen once the VA says case management is no longer needed — the time limits “would prospectively apply.” The comment period closed May 1, 2026. As of October 3, 2026, this is still a proposal, not a final rule. If your agency offers to switch you to a regular voucher, ask whether any local work or time-limit policy would then cover you.

How to Apply, Step by Step

1. Contact the VA, not the housing agency. Call the National Call Center for Homeless Veterans at 877-424-3838 — the VA says the call is “free, confidential, and available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week” — or walk in to the homeless program at your nearest VA medical center.
2. VA screening. VA staff decide whether you meet the HUD-VASH criteria and whether case management fits your needs.
3. Paperwork help. The VA helps you with the housing agency application and documents. If you lack a usual ID, the rules require the agency to accept your VA photo ID card, and to accept a DD-214 or VA health benefits application (10-10EZ) to verify your Social Security number if you have them. If you have no income, the agency must accept your signed statement saying so.
4. Referral to the housing agency. The VA sends your referral to its partnering public housing agency, which checks income and the sex offender registry.
5. Voucher and search. You get at least 120 days to find a landlord who accepts the voucher. Your case manager helps with the search.
6. Move in, keep support. The agency inspects the unit, signs a contract with the landlord, and your case manager stays with you after you move.

If HUD-VASH Is Not the Right Fit

• At risk of losing your home, but not yet homeless? The VA’s Supportive Services for Veteran Families program and the military relief societies are covered in our guide to emergency rent help for military families and veterans.
• Behind on an electric, gas or water bill? See our comparison of VFW, American Legion and VA help with bills for veterans.
• Not a veteran household, or already over the VA’s criteria? Regular Section 8 vouchers and public housing are open to all eligible families.
• Facing eviction right now? See our guide to free legal help with eviction.
• Older veteran who needs daily help at home? VA pension add-ons are explained in Aid and Attendance vs. Housebound.

How We Checked This

We read every source below on October 3, 2026.

• The program rules — who qualifies, the 80% income line, the VA disability exclusion, no waiting list, the 120-day search, screening limits and termination rules — come from HUD’s HUD-VASH operating requirements, published in the Federal Register as 89 FR 65769 on August 13, 2024. We read the full text, not a summary. We searched the Federal Register for later HUD-VASH notices and found none that replace it.
• Program size, the case manager’s role and the phone number come from the VA’s HUD-VASH page.
• The work-requirement proposal comes from the full text of HUD’s March 2, 2026 proposed rule. We searched the Federal Register and found no final rule as of October 3, 2026.
• Income definitions and the rent formula come from the federal regulations 24 CFR 5.603, 24 CFR 982.201 and 24 CFR 5.628, read through the eCFR’s official data service.

What only the primary source shows. It is easy to shorten this rule to “VA disability doesn’t count.” The rule itself is narrower: VA service-connected benefits are excluded only to decide whether you qualify, and are counted again to set your rent share. The same section warns that a voucher must pay at least something each month, which can limit where a higher-income HUD-VASH family can rent.

What we could not verify. HUD’s own HUD-VASH web page blocked our request, so we relied on HUD’s official Federal Register notice instead. We did not confirm how many HUD-VASH vouchers are open in any city, or how long local waits are — ask your VA medical center. We did not print dollar income limits because they differ by county; look yours up on HUD USER.

HUD-VASH is a federal program. These rules apply nationwide; your local housing agency’s other policies apply where they do not conflict with the HUD-VASH rules. All sources were verified on October 3, 2026.

This is general information, not legal or financial advice.