The length of stay of migrants in New York shelters has been limited: after 30 days they will be evicted

New York has limited the length of stay of adult migrants in shelters to 30 days. The city entered into an additional temporary agreement with homeless advocates on March 15. According to The City, an extension of the period is possible, but only under “extenuating circumstances.”

Agreement between the mayor's office and the Coalition for the Defense of the Homeless (Coalition for the Homeless) gives the city greater freedom of action. It would allow the city to deny shelter to “newly arrived” adults without children if they have the means to live elsewhere, as well as to migrants who the city determines have not made sufficient efforts to find housing before their 30-day shelter stay.

“The status quo could not work in this situation,” said Deputy Health and Social Services Commissioner Anne Williams-Isom. After 30 days, she said, “people will not be able to reapply unless there are extenuating circumstances. We will make individual decisions.”

The agreement applies to single adults and adult families who are considered “new arrivals,” meaning those who entered the United States after March 2022.

Some migrant families are subject to 60-day shelter limits and may re-enter the Roosevelt Hotel on East 45th Street in Manhattan. Other homeless New Yorkers have no formal restrictions on staying in shelters, thanks to a 1981 ordinance that established a “city right to shelter.”

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However, homeless advocates have expressed concern that depending on how the new rules are enforced, the number of homeless people could rise sharply. “I fear the worst,” says Jamie Paulovich, executive director Homeless Youth Coalitions. “With the way services are provided in the new shelters, this will definitely result in many people ending up on the street.”

“This is not defending the right to asylum,” the SafetyNet Project tweeted. “This is a xenophobic rollback.”

Extenuating circumstances

The Homeless Coalition and city and state officials accepted the terms of the new agreement. They argue that it preserves the main provisions of the 1981 decree. At the same time, the agreement allows the city more flexibility to respond to the unprecedented surge in new arrivals from the southern border. The provisions applicable to new arrivals are temporary until the current crisis subsides.

Under previous rules, adult migrants could only stay in a settlement for 30 days, but then they had to leave their shelter and apply for re-entry. This could drag on for several days or even weeks. Migrants waiting for a seat were sent to waiting rooms overnight, where they slept on the floor or on chairs, or ended up on the subway and on the streets.

Interim measures

This system will be phased out by April 8, and migrants will again be able to apply for an extension of their stay in the shelter. The agreement lists a variety of “extenuating circumstances” that may qualify for an extension.

• If a migrant can prove that he has somewhere to move, but not immediately, but after a few days or weeks
• His immigration hearing is scheduled for next month;
• He is undergoing a major medical procedure and is recovering from it.

The city may consider extending a shelter stay if it appears that a newcomer has made “significant efforts” to find somewhere else to stay but has been unable to do so. Such efforts may include reaching out to friends and family, applying for resettlement programs, finding a job, obtaining a driver's license, or taking employment or English courses.

The City will consider each person's request for an extension on a case-by-case basis. However, questions remain about how the new rules will be applied and what happens if people find themselves locked out of the system with nowhere to go.

“We've already seen that the 30-day limit has led to more homeless people on the streets,” said Deb Berkman, an attorney who works with newly arrived migrants. – How will this look in the future? What does this significant effort mean? People are already trying to find other housing.”