I would like change the Head of Household for my voucher - MTW/Section 8

As a voucher holder, you may have changes in the household composition including changing who the head of household is. Any changes to the household must first be approved by our agency and we must have all required documents before determining if the head of household can be transferred to another member. Any missing documentation will result in a denial of the transfer and you will not be allowed to have this member to be the new head of household.

Important: The current head of household must first make the request. Any requests from members in the household will not be followed up on.

STEP 1: Determine if someone is eligible in your household

If you have identified a member part of your household to transfer your subsidy, they must meet the following requirements:

• The member must be 18 years of age or older.
• The member must have been an approved family member for at least 6 months immediately prior to the request for transfer.
  • In the event of the death of the head of household and you are an adult member in the household or there are minors in the household, please contact us and continue with the request.
• The member is not a live-in-aid as they cannot be the head of household.

***Please note, any debts owed to the agency/repayment agreement will be absorbed by the new head of household. ***

If the member does not meet the above requirements, the request cannot be approved.

STEP 2: Report the change and submit the required documentation

You can report the change to us via mail, email or by phone. Please note, we will not process the action until we have obtained the requested documents. The change of income document(s) can be emailed to [e-mail], mailed to Metro Housing|Boston, 1411 Tremont Street, Boston, MA 02120, faxed to 617-532-7670, or dropped off at our office.

If the member meets the above requirements, you need to do the following:

• The head of household and new head of household will sign the Request to Transfer Subsidy form and supply this to Metro Housing.
• Metro Housing will review the documents and may request a case conference with the new head of household.
• Following approval, the new head of household will fill out the following documents (you can sign these all beforehand, however doing so does not mean automatic approval of the transfer).
  • Family Certification form
  • Family Responsibilities form
  • Drug and/or Violent Criminal Activity Consent form
  • Fair Information Practices Act form

Verification, document review and transfer requirements will occur internally.

If we are missing documents, the forms or documents are incomplete, blurry, damaged or does not have identifiable information on it, you should expect a document request in the mail. When submitting documents, please combine the documents and upload as one document/PDF.

Example of Documents

STEP 4: Allow Time for Processing

Upon submitting ALL required documentation, it will take up to three to four weeks from the date of confirmed receipt of the documents for review and process the action/and provide approval or denial of the head of household transfer. You will be notified by mail only of the approval and new rent share letter. We will make two attempts to obtain documentation. If you fail to provide the required documents, a denial letter will be mailed to you.

What if I don't supply the required documents? If the missing items are not supplied, a denial letter will be mailed to you.

How will I know If the request is approved? You will receive an approval letter in the mail.