top of page

Undocumented Tenants

Some landlords might act otherwise, but you have a right to housing regardless of what documents you have. Under the Federal Fair Housing Act and confirmed by Arizona Title 41 Article 7, it is illegal for landlords to ask for additional documentation or charge a different price because of a person's national origin. If your landlord asks you for documentation or threatens to contact ICE, immediately report this discrimination to:


You should get try to get records of any incidents you feel you've been discriminated against. If you can, write notes of specific details, like dates, times, witnesses, and companies, as well as contact information, like names, phone numbers, and addresses. They may be gathering information against you, so be as thorough as you can.

Collect any other related evidence; for example, if they're charging you a different price than advertised to others, you could make a copy of the advertisements and any letters about rent you've received. If you know someone that can show they received different treatment, note their name and address. This is another reason why talking with your community and ORGANIZING is so important, as you can clearly prove they're lying with the other tenants by your side.

Just because you're formally protected doesn't mean predatory landlords and a government that caters to their interests won't try to get around them. You may have heard of awful stories like this, but legislation like the Immigrant Tenant Protection Act in California and Illinois only became possible because tenants showed their strength in numbers.

The Los Angeles Tenants Union put together a great handbook with Tips for Tenants on Police and ICE. Despite coming from out of state, the strategies can be applied in your neighborhood to keep you and any other undocumented tenants safe. Here are some Arizona specific resources to match those from LA:

If you see homeless members of the community at risk for a sweep, contact

Downtown Phoenix, Inc:


or Unsheltered Phoenix:


If you find drug paraphernalia, please contact

Sonoran Prevention Works


If you need immediate assistance dealing with ICE, contact

The Florence Project:


or Poder in Action:


or Tucson Rapid Response:


The more we come together, the more we can't be ignored when demanding rent control, exceptional affordable housing, and beyond. Everyone deserves to sleep with a roof over their head, especially when the alternative is being thrown into unsanitary conditions and left to die, and when the official response to the unsheltered is either callousness or outright brutality.

bottom of page