Expert: Michael Troy - 11/11/2009

Question
I saw a question you answered in May pertaining to renting to illegal aliens.  How does this differ if your potential tenant is married to a US citizen and is in the process of acquiring citizenship?
Thanks

Answer
There is no US law that requires landlords to determine the status of possible illegal alien.  In fact, landlords may be found to be discriminating if they refuse to rent.  I think I mentioned in an earlier post that one could conceivably be found guilty of aiding and abetting illegal aliens if one knew for a fact that a person was here illegally and provided property.  But I have never heard of any prosecutions in such a situation unless the landlord was abusing the tenant in some way and taking advantage of the status, or if they actively took steps to obstruct immigration enforcement.  If a person is on the way to acquiring legal status, and has applied for such, then the authorities already know about the status and the landlord has even less worries.

Of course, if this is an actual situation, you would be advised to speak with an experienced attorney in your area.  I cannot provide any legal guarantees in this forum.

- Mike