Utah ESA Housing Letter
Online evaluation reviewed by a Utah-licensed mental health professional, under Utah's own support animal law
Laws checked November 2026. Utah ESA laws in full
$129 evaluation and letter
- Reviewed by a Utah-licensed professional
- Most evaluations reviewed within 48 hours
- If you don't qualify, you won't be charged
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Licensed in Utah
Your evaluation is reviewed by a mental health professional licensed in Utah. Anyone can look up their license on the DOPL Licensee Lookup and Verification.
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A letter your landlord can check
Each letter has an MPC ID your landlord can confirm with our Free Letter Verification for Landlords.
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People you can ask
Questions before you start? Contact our support team.
18,000+ ESA letters issued since 2016.
Utah at a glance
- Utah has a support animal law: a private landlord may not discriminate against you for having one, including by charging an extra fee or deposit (Utah Code §26B-6-803).
- Lying about an animal, or to a health care provider to get documentation, is a class C misdemeanor (Utah Code §26B-6-805).
- No Utah statute requires a 30-day relationship before an ESA letter.
- Complaints go to the Utah Antidiscrimination and Labor Division, which investigates those filed within 180 days.
How it works
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Complete your online evaluation
Tell us about your symptoms, how they affect daily life, and your animal. Choose Utah as your state.
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A Utah-licensed professional reviews it
Most evaluations are reviewed within 48 hours. If they need more information, they'll ask.
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Download your letter as soon as you're approved
It's in your free dashboard, ready to print or send to your landlord.
What Utah law says about emotional support animals
Utah is one of the few states with its own support animal law. It sits alongside the Utah Fair Housing Act and the federal Fair Housing Act.
Utah defines a support animal as an animal, other than a service animal, that qualifies as a reasonable accommodation under federal law for a person with a disability. Utah added support animals to this law with HB 43 in 2019, and it was renumbered in 2023. (Utah Code §26B-6-801)
An owner or landlord of private housing may not, in any manner, discriminate against a person with a disability for having a service or support animal, including by charging an extra fee or deposit. The landlord may recover a reasonable cost to repair damage the animal causes. (Utah Code §26B-6-803)
Because Utah's definition points to what qualifies as an accommodation under federal law, HUD's 2026 change on untrained animals may matter here too. We found no Utah court decision or agency guidance on how, so if a landlord cites the HUD memo, ask for the decision in writing. The Labor Commission's own rule (R608-1-17) still lists emotional support animals as assistance animals. (Utah Code §26B-6-801(6); Utah Admin. Code R608-1-17)
Knowingly and intentionally misrepresenting an animal as a service or support animal is a class C misdemeanor, and so is knowingly misrepresenting a material fact to a health care provider to get documentation. Answer your evaluation honestly. (Utah Code §26B-6-805(2))
The Utah Fair Housing Act makes refusing a reasonable accommodation in a rule, policy, practice or service discrimination. The Labor Commission's rule says a housing provider may ask for documentation from a qualified health care professional when your disability or need for the animal isn't readily apparent. (Utah Code §57-21-5(4)(b); Utah Admin. Code R608-1-17)
Some homes are exempt from the Utah Fair Housing Act: a single-family home rented without a broker by an owner of fewer than four such homes, and a room in an owner-occupied home built for four or fewer families. Utah's support animal law (§26B-6-803) has no such exemption on its face. (Utah Code §57-21-3)
Does Utah have a 30-day rule for ESA letters?
We found no Utah statute that requires a 30-day relationship, or any set number of sessions, before an ESA letter. Utah's support animal law doesn't say who may write one, and no 2025 or 2026 bill proposed it. (Utah Code Title 26B, ch. 6, part 8)
Checked November 2026 at the sources listed at the end of this page. More on Utah ESA laws.
What an ESA letter can and can't do in Utah (2026)
What an ESA letter is. It's a written statement from a mental health professional licensed in Utah that you have a disability and that an animal helps with it. You can give it to a landlord when you ask, in writing, for an exception to a no-pets rule. It is not a permit, and it doesn't make a landlord say yes.
What changed in 2025–2026. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) withdrew its 2013 and 2020 guidance on assistance animals, effective September 17, 2025 (Federal Register, April 6, 2026, Doc. 2026-06624). In a May 22, 2026 memo, HUD's fair housing office said it will find a violation in animal-accommodation complaints only in cases involving animals trained to provide disability-related assistance. The memo says requests to waive pet policies for animals trained to perform specific disability-related services are presumptively reasonable, and requests for untrained emotional support animals are not. What the 2026 HUD change means.
What didn't change. The federal Fair Housing Act still requires reasonable accommodations for people with disabilities (42 U.S.C. §3604(f)(3)(B)), and so does HUD's regulation (24 CFR 100.204). HUD's memo says it doesn't affect your right to bring a private lawsuit. Utah's own rules are above.
What a letter can do: document your disability-related need when you request an accommodation, from a professional whose Utah license your landlord can look up. What it can't do: force approval, waive pet fees on its own, or give your animal public-access or airline rights.
If your Utah landlord says no
- Ask in writing and keep your own copy of the request, your letter and every reply.
- Ask for the reason in writing, and send any information your landlord didn't consider.
- Describe your animal accurately, as an emotional support animal, not a service animal.
File with the Utah Antidiscrimination and Labor Division (UALD) of the Labor Commission. The law gives 180 days from the discriminatory act; UALD says it investigates complaints filed within 180 days and sends those filed between 181 and 365 days to HUD. (Utah Code §57-21-9(1))
UALD's fair housing page says you can also go to court within two years. Talk to a lawyer or legal aid first. (UALD, Fair Housing)
You can also file with HUD within one year (42 U.S.C. §3610). Under its May 2026 memo, HUD finds a violation only where the animal is trained to provide disability-related assistance.
If your landlord denies your request in writing, you may also be eligible for a refund: see our refund policy.
Your Utah reviewer
Your evaluation is reviewed by a mental health professional licensed in Utah (Clinical Mental Health Counselor). Their name, license type and license number are printed on your letter.
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Utah Division of Professional Licensing (DOPL)
Check a license and its status on the DOPL Licensee Lookup and Verification (opens in a new tab).
Renting in Utah
- 29.8% of occupied homes in Utah are rented US: 34.8%
- 334,678 renter households
- $1,496 median gross rent a month US: $1,413
Fewer Utahns rent than Americans overall: 29.8% of the state's occupied homes are rented, against 34.8% nationally. But rent costs more: a median of $1,496 a month, $83 above the US median. Among Utah's 334,678 renter households, a tenant with a disability who has a service or support animal is protected by Utah's support animal law from extra fees and deposits (§26B-6-803).
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table DP04, 2020–2024: Utah, United States.
Where Utah renters can get help
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State agency
Utah Antidiscrimination and Labor Division (UALD), Fair Housing
The Labor Commission division that enforces the Utah Fair Housing Act. You start a complaint with its online intake questionnaire, and it's on HUD's list of state Fair Housing Assistance Program agencies.
(801) 530-6801, toll-free (800) 530-5090, the Labor Commission Website: Utah Antidiscrimination and Labor Division (UALD), Fair Housing (opens in a new tab)
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Federal agency
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)
Takes federal fair housing complaints, filed online on HUD's website, or by phone at (800) 669-9777 if you need a disability accommodation.
Website: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) (opens in a new tab)
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Fair housing nonprofit
Disability Law Center, Fair Housing Program
Utah's designated protection and advocacy agency. Its Fair Housing Program serves people with disabilities facing housing discrimination from a landlord or other housing provider, at no cost.
800-662-9080 Website: Disability Law Center, Fair Housing Program (opens in a new tab)
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Free legal aid
Utah Legal Services
Free civil legal aid, including housing, for Utahns who can't afford a lawyer. You can apply online or by phone.
(801) 328-8891 Website: Utah Legal Services (opens in a new tab)
We're not affiliated with these organizations. Details are from their own websites (checked November 2026).
Utah ESA letter questions
Can a Utah landlord charge an extra fee or deposit for my support animal?
Utah law says a private landlord may not discriminate against a person with a disability for having a support animal, including by charging an extra fee or deposit, though the landlord can recover a reasonable cost to repair damage (Utah Code §26B-6-803). Utah ties a support animal to what qualifies as an accommodation under federal law, and HUD changed its approach to untrained animals in 2026, so this may be tested. If you're asked to pay, ask for the policy in writing.
Is it a crime in Utah to misrepresent an ESA?
Yes. Knowingly and intentionally misrepresenting an animal as a service or support animal is a class C misdemeanor in Utah, and so is knowingly misrepresenting a material fact to a health care provider to get documentation (Utah Code §26B-6-805). Answer your evaluation honestly, and call your animal an emotional support animal, not a service animal.
How long do I have to file a housing complaint in Utah?
The Utah Fair Housing Act gives 180 days from the discriminatory act to file with the Utah Antidiscrimination and Labor Division (Utah Code §57-21-9). UALD says it sends complaints filed between 181 and 365 days to HUD, which takes complaints within one year. Don't wait: the 180 days run from the denial.
Is there a waiting period before an ESA letter in Utah?
No. We found no Utah statute that requires a 30-day relationship or a set number of sessions before an ESA letter, and no 2025 or 2026 Utah bill proposed one. Utah's Labor Commission rule says a housing provider may ask for documentation from a qualified health care professional when your need isn't readily apparent (R608-1-17).
Who can help me with an ESA housing problem in Utah?
The Utah Antidiscrimination and Labor Division takes fair housing complaints. The Disability Law Center's Fair Housing Program helps people with disabilities facing housing discrimination at no cost, and Utah Legal Services gives free civil legal aid to Utahns who qualify.
How long is an ESA letter good for?
We found no Utah or federal law that sets an expiration date for an ESA letter. Many landlords ask for recent documentation. Your MyPetCerts letter is dated, and our Free Letter Verification for Landlords shows it as current for one year from its issue date.
