Emotional Support Dog Apartment Rules

The law refers to these types of pets as emotional support animals.

Emotional support dog apartment rules.

The letter can be signed by a doctor pa psychologist social worker peer support group non medical service agency or a reliable 3rd party that would be aware. Emotional support animals help aid with an emotional or mental disability. Allowing an individual with a disability to have a service animal or an emotional support animal accompany them to work may be considered an accommodation. For the emotional support animal to be legal tenants need documentation from a licenced medical professional stating that the animal is being used to manage a health condition.

Reasonable accommodation requests for assistance animals including emotional support animals cause concern for apartment owners and operators. This animal is not a pet but is there to give the needed therapy the person requires the emotional support. An emotional support animal is one type of assistance animal allowed as a reasonable accommodation to a residence with a no pets rule. What is the difference between a service animal and an emotional support animal.

They affect an owner s ability to assess pet deposits and fees and to apply rules and policies to a resident s animal. On january 28 th 2020 the u s. Emotional support animal letters for housing. 12 important facts esa owners need to know.

Under north carolina law and the federal americans with disabilities act ada people with disabilities may bring their service animals to all public accommodations such as restaurants museums hotels and stores. An esa is a medical tool and not a pet. Under federal fair housing laws emotional support animals must have access to apartments with a no pet policy and are exempt from pet related fees. Housing laws protecting your service animal or emotional support animal fall under one of three federal laws fair housing act ada act 1990 and rehab act.

Additionally they expose owners to possible fair housing complaints. You may or may not have encountered an emotional support animal letter these are validation letters from a licensed mental health professional telling you the renter has been prescribed the animal for mental health related purposes. An emotional support animal letter is a signed statement from the tenant s mental health practitioner proving that the animal companion is essential to their wellbeing and recovery. Laws prohibit employment discrimination because of a disability.

Emotional support animals are different from service animals which are governed by additional laws and defined under the americans with disabilities act as a dog. Service animals are defined as dogs that are individually trained to do work or perform tasks for people with disabilities.