education, resources, and advocacy
Emergency Housing Vouchers
The Emergency Housing Voucher referral portal is closed and no longer accepting submissions.
The Emergency Housing Voucher (EHV) program is a tenant-based voucher program funded through the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA). ARPA was signed into law on March 11, 2021, and included funding for approximately 70,000 EHVs. Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA) was allocated 380 vouchers to be administered throughout regions of the Texas Balance of State Continuum of Care (TX Bos CoC).
In order to be eligible for an EHV, an individual or family must meet one of the four eligibility categories:
- Homeless
- At-risk of homelessness
- Fleeing, or attempting to flee, domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, stalking, or human trafficking
- Recently homeless and for whom providing rental assistance will prevent the family’s homelessness or having high risk of housing instability
Texas Homeless Network accepts referrals from the public and participating service providers. If an EHV application is coming from a participating service provider, the application will be accepted based on a direct referral process between direct service providers and THN, using the TX BoS CoC Coordinated Entry (CE) System, and must be enrolled in Permanent Supportive Housing or Rapid Rehousing programs reflected on the 2021 Housing Inventory Count. If you are experiencing a housing crisis please click here to find help.
Eligibility for EHV is limited by statute to 50% Area Median Income. To determine Area Median Income for a geographic area please visit this link. https://www.huduser.gov/portal/datasets/il.html#2021_query
Please Note: 24 CFR 982.553(a)(2)(i), prohibits admission to the program if any member of the household is subject to a lifetime registration requirement under a state sex offender registration program.
EHV Referral Instructions
Referral partners and individuals and families not working with a service partner, can refer eligible individuals and families to the EHV program by completing an online EHV Referral Form. Before submitting the form, please reference the map below to verify that your county is eligible for an Emergency Housing Voucher through Texas Homeless Network.
Supporting documents that will be requested once a referral has been reviewed and approved by THN, including the online EHV Referral Form link, can be found under the Application Materials section below. Application Instructions as well as a video tutorial for submitting documents to HMIS can be found in the EHV Resources section. All documents must be submitted in order for staff to complete a review of the voucher referral.
Referral Partners that do not use/have access to HMIS, can directly email the required documentation to txbosehvp@thn.org as a protected sheet with a shared password in the body of the email. If you are a individual and or family not connected to a service partner, please email txbosehvp@thn.org directly to inquire on how your application materials will be accepted.
Please note, application materials are NOT needed to submit your interest in receiving an Emergency Housing Voucher, when completing the EHV Referral form. A voucher is not guaranteed upon submission of a referral.
Please refer to the map to verify that your county is eligible for an Emergency Housing Voucher through Texas Homeless Network.
Application Materials
Direct Payments for Eligible EHV Costs
Households in the EHV program may be eligible for “Service Fees” and other community resources to assist in securing stable housing within their search term. Eligible expenses include security deposits, utility deposit/arrears, application fees, and move-in expenses. THN has partnered with TDHCA to act as a fiduciary agent for these Service Fees.
For more information, please email ehvservices@thn.org.
EHV Resources
For more information about EHV or the EHV referral process, contact us via email at txbosehvp@thn.org