NYC begins evicting some migrants from shelter system after 30 days

New York City began a new policy Wednesday to evict some migrants from shelters within 30 days, or 60 days for younger adults. About 250 new arrivals face eviction this week if they cannot meet the city’s list of requirements for extensions.

Advocates have criticized the shift in policy as inhumane and unrealistic for migrants to meet the extenuating circumstances to qualify for extensions amid fears people will end up homeless. The city has said the policy is needed to manage the strain on its shelter system as nearly 200,000 migrants have arrived since 2022.

“With more than 65,800 migrants still in our care, and as we continue to manage the arrival of hundreds of new migrants requesting shelter in New York City every day, we have begun implementing the next phase of our settlement. Designated teams are reviewing information provided by guests nearing the end of their 30- or 60-day notices, indicating why they may need to remain in shelter longer, and assisting them with exit planning,” Mayor Eric Adams’ chief of staff, Camille Joseph-Varlack, said in a statement Wednesday.

“While these changes will require some adaptation, they will help migrants take the next steps in their journeys, reduce the significant strain on our shelter system, and enable us to continue providing essential services to all New Yorkers,” Joseph-Varlack said.

The new policy is the result of a settlement in March between the city and advocacy groups concerning the city’s “right to shelter,” which requires the city to provide shelter to anyone who arrives there, regardless of immigration status. The Adams administration sought a way to limit that right given the recent massive influx of migrants. The new limits do not apply to migrant families with children, who can reapply for shelter placement after 60 days.

New York City and others around the country have struggled to manage and care for the increased number of migrants since Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, began busing them to Democratic cities in 2022. 

Single adults and adult families without children will now have to leave the shelter system in 30 days under the policy, while young adults ages 18 to 23 will have 60 days, unless they meet the exceptions to the policy that would allow them to apply for extensions.

Extenuating circumstances include proof of access to alternative housing options within 30 days, immigration hearings scheduled within 30 days, serious medical procedures or recovery from serious medical procedures, being enrolled full-time in high school and working toward graduation, and demonstrating “significant efforts to resettle,” according to the mayor’s office.

Advocates for migrants and the homeless have expressed concern about how the city will interpret that last extenuating circumstance and whether migrants will be forced to move despite making genuine efforts to resettle.

“This is where we have our biggest concerns,” said Kathryn Kliff, a staff attorney at the Legal Aid Society. “The settlement says that if you’re making significant efforts to move out of shelter you’re entitled to an extension, but that has to be significant efforts within the context of what someone can reasonably do.

“They say they don’t want to see people on the streets, and obviously we don’t want to see our clients on the streets. So, in theory, that is a shared interest,” she said.

Kliff said that if the city is not applying that exception properly, “it could mean people on the streets, so that’s why we’re monitoring so closely.”

The mayor’s office said in its statement that about 250 migrants’ notices will expire between Wednesday and Sunday and that they will not be able to reapply for shelter if they do not get reasonable accommodations or demonstrate extenuating circumstances.

The city said that going forward, adult migrants entering the shelter system will receive initial placements, their 30- or 60-day notices and a resource guide about qualifying for extensions.

The city said new arrivals will be offered exit planning during their stays in the shelter system and that after the first 15 days of their stays, they will be given additional notices reminding them of their exit days, as well as the ability to schedule appointments if they believe they qualify for potential extensions.