If you are a New Arrival and need shelter, you should go to the Arrival Center located at the Roosevelt Hotel, 45 E 45th Street, New York, NY, 10017, next to Grand Central Station. The Arrival Center is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and can help you find shelter in New York City or help you travel somewhere else.

The Arrival Center can also help with health insurance enrollment, medical assistance, school enrollment, and mental health services.

The staff at the Arrival Center will ask you about any contacts you have in the United States, including family members, friends, or people listed on your immigration documents. They will ask you if you can stay with any of those people. If you don’t have anyone you can stay with, the staff might call your contacts anyway to ask if you can stay with them. They will also ask you if you can pay for your own housing. You must answer the staff’s questions honestly and cooperate with the interview about your personal circumstances. If you do not, you may be denied a shelter placement and found ineligible for shelter.

The City must give you a written notice (in your preferred language) if they find you ineligible for shelter. The City can find you ineligible for shelter if you have another place you can live,other than shelter, if you can pay for your own permanent housing, or if you do not cooperate with the City’s application process. If you are found ineligible, it means that the City will not provide you with a shelter placement.

If you disagree with the decision finding you ineligible for shelter, the notice will tell you how you can request that your case be reviewed by a supervisor. You can ask the City to reconsider your case if the housing other than shelter the City identified for you: 1) is not safe; 2) does not accommodate your (or your family member’s) disability; or 3) the person who lives at that address (the tenant or owner) will not let you sleep in that location. The City may ask you to give them evidence about why the housing option is not available or appropriate.

If the City identifies a housing option that you can go to instead of shelter, then they must offer you transportation to get to that location.

No, the City does not allow you to choose your shelter. If you do not accept the shelter placement the City offers you, the City will consider you to have rejected shelter and you will not be offered a different placement. If you reject the placement, you will have to find your own place to stay outside of the City’s shelter system

However, if the shelter placement the City offers you is not safe for you or you can’t stay there because of a disability, they must find you another one. 

For more information on disability accommodations in shelter and accommodations for clients who identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, trans, or queer (“LGBTQ+”), click here.

The first time you are placed in a shelter by the City, you have a right to remain in that shelter for 30 days. If you are a young adult (under age 23), you will get at least a 60-day shelter placement.

Yes. The shelter staff will give you a “Notice of Approval for Temporary Shelter.” This notice will state that you can stay in your current shelter for 30 days (or 60 days if you are under the age of 23) and will provide the date on which the 30 or 60 days will end. 

The notice will inform you that your current shelter placement will end in 30 or 60 days, unless you request and qualify for an extension. All single adult and adult family New Arrivals will receive a 30-day (or 60-day) notice if they reside in a Humanitarian Emergency Response and Relief Center (“HERRC”), respite center, or Department of Homeless Services (“DHS”) shelter. For a description of the different kinds of shelter placements, click here.

It is very important that you read this notice carefully. It explains all the different ways you can qualify for an extension if you need shelter after your first 30-day or 60-day placement.

At least one week before the end of your 30-day or 60-day placement, you will receive another notice, “Reminder of Your Temporary Shelter Exit Date.” This notice explains how to request an extension or how to get a ticket to leave New York City, if you wish to do so.

During your 30-day or 60-day stay, you should immediately make efforts to try to find other housing. Go to all the appointments you get with your case manager, who can help find housing and other resources. The shelter staff must offer you a Resource Guide (in your preferred language) that explains different resources available to help you move out of shelter. You can also ask shelter staff for a list of non-profit organizations that assist New Arrivals and other New Yorkers to find housing. 

Important Tip: To help you remember your efforts, take a photo of documents you receive and any place you go as you try to move out of shelter (job interview, apartment tour, ID office, etc). Keep the pictures in a folder on your phone so you have everything in one place to show the City.

*If you have applied for asylum or temporary protected status, your time will be extended. Bring a copy of your asylum application receipt or proof of TPS to the Reticketing Center and they will give you another 30 or 60 days. You may also be eligible for an extension if you have another eligible immigration status.

You may also be eligible for an extension if you have “extenuating circumstances.” Some of these circumstances include:

• You have found a place to live, and you will be able to move there within 30 days
• You will be leaving New York City within 30 days
• You have a hearing or other immigration proceeding within the next 30 days
• You are recovering from a serious medical procedure
• You have a serious medical procedure or appointment for a serious medical condition within the next 30 days
• You are making significant efforts to move out of shelter, but you still do not have anywhere else to go
• You are currently enrolled in high school

If you cannot show that you are doing your best to find other housing or move out of shelter, you may not be allowed to stay in the shelter beyond your first 30 or 60 days.

If you receive the “Reminder of Your Temporary Shelter Exit Date” notice” and need to apply for an extension, you should make an appointment to go to the Reticketing Center (185 E 7th Street, New York, NY 10009). You can make the appointment by speaking to your case worker at your shelter. We highly recommend making the appointment a few days before the last day in your shelter placement.

When you arrive at the Reticketing Center for your appointment or to request an extension without an appointment, tell the staff you want to “request an extension.” If you don’t have an appointment scheduled, the staff will provide you with a time for a future appointment. At your appointment, the staff will ask you many questions, including if you have a disability and what steps you have taken to try to move out of shelter. It is VERY important to tell the staff about all of the different steps you have taken to try to move out of shelter (please see the “How do I prove I have taken all the steps I can to exit shelter?” section below for more information about this). 

There is no limit on the number of shelter extensions you can request, but you will need to prove you have “extenuating circumstances” each time you request a new extension.

You can receive an extension of your shelter stay if you have taken significant steps to try to move out of shelter. During your interview at the Reticketing Center about your request for an extension, the staff will ask you about these steps. To be guaranteed an extension, you must receive 20 points (if there are other adults with you, add 5 points for each person). You get points for every step you take or try to take. You get more points for things you finish but you still receive points for trying to take a step. For example, you get five points if you apply for asylum. You get one point if you tried to make an appointment with an immigration lawyer and five points if you have such an appointment. The staff will ask you for proof of each step you took. You can show them documents, screenshots from your phone, or pictures on your phone to prove what you did. 

Below are some examples of steps you can take to find other housing and move out of shelter:

Effort / Proof

• Attend all meetings with your case worker at the shelter
  Write down the dates and times of these meetings.
• Try to get an appointment with an immigration legal services provider
  Note down all the times and dates of all the calls you made, whom you spoke to, and what you were told. If you have an appointment coming up, note the time and date.
• Apply for asylum, Temporary Protected Status, or any other immigration relief for which you are eligible.
  Note down all the times and dates of all the calls you made, who you spoke to, and what you were told. If you have an appointment coming up, note the time and date. If you have already applied for immigration relief, keep copies of the documents showing you applied.
• Search for Employment
  Keep a record of all the places you applied for any kind of work and all the efforts you made to connect to jobs (including speaking with friends who work).
• Resettlement Program
  If the City offers you the chance to apply to a program to “resettle” in another part of the State or US, apply for the program. Keep proof of the application.
• Contact friends about staying with them
  Keep a record of any calls, texts, emails, and in person conversations you had with friends, family, and other contacts about finding a place to stay.
• Get ID or a Driver’s License
  Keep notes on all efforts you made to get a photo ID, including ID NYC, and/or a driver’s license, including confirmation of any appointments to obtain them.
• Get an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (“ITIN”)
  Keep notes on efforts you made, including copies of documents filed or confirmation of appointments made to apply for an ITIN. An ITIN is needed to work and file taxes in the United States.
• Learn English
  Keep a record of any classes you took or are taking if you need help learning English. Learning English may help you get a job or locate housing.
• Apply for Public Assistance
  Keep record of any efforts you made to apply for Public Assistance if you are eligible.
• Job Training
  Enroll in a job training course or a course to receive employment certification (like OSHA). Keep record of the dates and times of the courses you attend.
• Follow all shelter rules
  If you do not follow the shelter rules, you may not get more time in shelter.

You only need to take the steps that are relevant to you and that are possible for you to do. If you cannot take certain steps, you should explain to your shelter case worker why you can’t.

If you or a member of your family have a disability or medical condition that would make it difficult to reapply for shelter or change shelters, you may receive an extension. These kinds of extensions are called “reasonable accommodations.” If the disability is obvious or apparent (such as using a wheelchair), you do not need to get proof of the disability. If the disability is not obvious or apparent, you should get a letter from a medical provider (or other professional with expertise about your disability) that explains why you need an extension of your time in your current shelter or an exception to any rules. The person writing the letter does not need to be a doctor, but could be a therapist, social worker, or other professional who understands your disability. If the reasonable accommodation is granted, you will receive an extension of your 30(or 60)-day shelter placement.

Note: having a disability is not enough for an extension; the letter from your doctor or other professional must explain the relationship (or connection) between your disability and your need for a reasonable accommodation or extension of your stay.

If your request is denied, you will receive a written notice (in your preferred language). If you think the City made a mistake, you can send them an email at ASOReview@oem.nyc.gov and ask them to change the decision. They will review your request and get back to you quickly. They will help you set up email if you don’t have it.

If you do not request an extension before your 30-day or 60-day notice expires, you will need to leave your shelter. While you can leave your belongings behind at your current shelter for up to 10 days, we do not recommend doing so. Some New Arrivals have reported lost or stolen belongings.

If you have no other place to go or your request for an extension was denied, you can go to a drop-in center. A drop-in center is a place where you can stay indoors at night, but it will not have beds – only chairs. The drop-in center will have bathrooms and meals. They will also provide you with access to showers either onsite or at another City location. Ask staff at the Reticketing Center for directions to a drop-in center. If there is a weather emergency, you can stay indoors at a City shelter or drop-in center.

This resource has been translated and can be downloaded in Fulani, Twi, and Wolof.

If you need assistance after being found ineligible for shelter, your extension request was denied, or if you need accommodations as a result of a disability, you can call The Legal Aid Society’s Homeless Rights Project at 212-298-3160.

You can also reach the Crisis Intervention Program at the Coalition for the Homeless by calling 1-888-358-2384 on business days from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.  Coalition for the Homeless staff can assist you by phone or may be able to offer in-person meetings by appointment only.  Appointments must be made by calling the hotline in advance.

The information in this document has been prepared by The Legal Aid Society for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. This information is not intended to create, and receipt of it does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship. You should not act upon any information without retaining professional legal counsel.