ESA and PSD glossary
Every term you are likely to meet, defined in plain English. Where a term has a legal meaning, we give the legal meaning.
Emotional Support Animal (ESA)
An animal that provides comfort to a person with a mental or emotional disability through its presence. ESAs require no training, are covered for housing under the Fair Housing Act, and have no public access or air travel rights.
ESA letter
A signed document from a licensed mental health professional stating that a person has a disability and that an animal provides disability-related support. It is the only documentation with legal weight for an ESA housing accommodation.
Psychiatric Service Dog (PSD)
A dog individually trained to perform specific tasks that mitigate a psychiatric disability, such as interrupting a panic episode or waking a handler from nightmares. PSDs have public access rights under the ADA and air travel rights under DOT rules.
PSD letter
Documentation from a licensed professional confirming a psychiatric disability and the disability-related need for a task-trained dog. It supports housing accommodation and the DOT air travel form; public access itself comes from the dog's training.
Fair Housing Act (FHA)
The 1968 federal law, amended in 1988, that prohibits housing discrimination on the basis of disability and requires housing providers to make reasonable accommodations, including for assistance animals.
Reasonable accommodation
A change to a rule, policy or practice that allows a person with a disability equal use of housing. Waiving a no-pet rule or pet fees for an assistance animal is a reasonable accommodation.
Assistance animal
HUD's umbrella term covering both service animals and emotional support animals in the housing context.
Pet rent
A recurring monthly charge for keeping a pet in a rental. It does not apply to an approved assistance animal.
Pet deposit
A refundable or non-refundable lump sum charged when a pet moves in. It does not apply to an approved assistance animal, though a tenant remains liable for actual damage.
Pet fee
A one-time non-refundable charge for keeping a pet. It does not apply to an approved assistance animal.
Verification
The process by which a landlord confirms that an ESA letter is genuine, usually by contacting the issuing professional or using a verification ID. Landlords may verify a letter but may not demand a diagnosis.
Verification ID
A unique identifier printed on a SignMyESA letter that a landlord can use to confirm the letter's authenticity.
Licensed mental health professional (LMHP)
A clinician licensed by a state to diagnose and treat mental health conditions, such as a licensed professional counsellor, licensed clinical social worker, psychologist or psychiatrist.
Telehealth
Delivery of clinical services remotely, usually by video or phone. ESA evaluations are commonly conducted by telehealth by a provider licensed in the client's state.
HUD
The US Department of Housing and Urban Development, which enforces the Fair Housing Act and published the 2020 guidance on assistance animals.
HUD FHEO Notice 2020-01
HUD's January 2020 guidance explaining how housing providers should assess requests for assistance animals, including what documentation is reasonable to request.
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
The federal law that guarantees public access for task-trained service animals. It does not cover emotional support animals.
Department of Transportation (DOT)
The federal agency whose 2020 rule removed the requirement for airlines to carry ESAs in the cabin, effective January 2021, while keeping protections for trained service dogs.
AB 468
A 2021 California law requiring, among other things, a 30-day relationship between client and provider before an ESA letter can be issued, and specific disclosures from sellers of ESA products.
Direct threat
The legal standard under which a housing provider may refuse an assistance animal: the specific animal would pose a direct threat to the health or safety of others that cannot be reduced by another accommodation.
ESA registry
A commercial website that lists animals in a database for a fee. No registry has legal standing in the United States, and a registry listing is not a substitute for a letter from a licensed professional.
ESA certification
A term used by commercial sellers of certificates and ID cards. There is no official ESA certification in the United States and such documents carry no legal weight.
Task training
Teaching a dog to perform a specific, repeatable action that mitigates a disability. Task training is what distinguishes a service dog from an ESA under the ADA.
No-pet policy
A lease clause prohibiting animals. Under the Fair Housing Act it must be reconsidered for an approved assistance animal.
Renewal
Reissuing an ESA letter, usually annually. No federal law sets an expiry, but many housing providers request a letter dated within the last twelve months.
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