Licensed clinicians. Verifiable letters.
Keep your pet. Skip the pet rent.
A legitimate emotional support animal letter, reviewed and signed by a licensed clinician in your state, carrying an ID your housing provider can verify in one step.
$49 flat. Full refund if a clinician determines an ESA is not appropriate.
Housing providers can confirm any letter at
esaverified.com/verify
Renting with a pet adds up fast
Pet rent, deposits and one-time fees add up fast, and many listings are closed to pet owners entirely. An assistance animal is not a pet, so a granted accommodation is an exception to the pet policy those charges belong to.
- Monthly pet rent$25 to $100
- Pet deposit, often non-refundable$200 to $500
- One-time pet fee$100 to $400
- Listings that allow pets at allRoughly 1 in 3
With a qualifying ESA letter
- Access to units listed as no-pets
- Breed and weight limits set aside for the assistance animal
- Pet fees waived by most providers, and required to be by law in some states
- The Fair Housing Act, plus whatever your own state adds
How it works
Three steps, one clinician, no runaround
Complete the assessment
A structured clinical questionnaire about your situation and how an animal supports you. About ten minutes.
A licensed clinician reviews it
After you pay, a licensed therapist contacts you to begin your evaluation and decides whether a letter is clinically appropriate.
Your signed letter is issued
If you qualify, you receive a signed PDF and an ID that housing providers can verify online. Valid for 12 months. Some states require a waiting period first.
You complete a clinical assessment, a licensed mental health professional in your state reviews it, and if an emotional support animal is clinically appropriate they issue a signed letter. If it is not appropriate, you are refunded in full.
Two different letters
Emotional support animal or psychiatric service dog?
They are different documents with different rules. Pick the one that matches your animal, not the one that sounds faster.
Emotional support animal (ESA) letter
Dogs, cats and other qualifying animals.
- Who it is for
- An emotional support animal that is part of your treatment, such as a dog or a cat. No special training is needed.
- What it needs
- A qualifying evaluation by a licensed clinician. Some states also require an established relationship with the clinician for a set time before a letter can be issued.
- How soon it can start
- Depends on your state's law and on the clinician's decision. Five states require a 30-day wait. Everywhere else the timing is up to the clinical review.
- What it is not
- An ESA letter supports a housing accommodation request. It is not a service animal certification and gives no public access rights.
Psychiatric service dog (PSD) letter
Dogs only. Your evaluation starts as soon as you pay.
- Who it is for
- A dog that is individually trained to perform tasks related to a psychiatric disability. Dogs only: not cats, and not other animals.
- What it needs
- A qualifying evaluation by a licensed clinician, and a dog that is trained, or being trained, to do specific tasks for you.
- How soon it can start
- No state waiting period applies, so your evaluation can begin right away. Where an ESA letter has to wait, this one does not.
- What it is not
- A letter does not make a dog a service animal. The dog's individual training does. Airlines ask for the Department of Transportation form, which you complete and sign yourself.
Payment does not guarantee approval. A letter is issued only after a qualifying professional evaluation by a clinician licensed in your state.
What an ESA letter actually does
It documents that you have a disability-related need for an assistance animal, so you can request a reasonable accommodation. It is not a service-animal credential and does not grant public-access rights.
Housing. Covered under the Fair Housing Act. Landlords, HOAs, and most rentals must consider the request.
Air travel. Airline policies vary. Some carriers still accommodate ESAs; check before you book.
Not public access. Restaurants, shops, and offices are not required to admit an ESA.
Every letter includes
- The clinician's name, license type, number, and state
- A statement of your accommodation need, without your diagnosis
- Your assistance animal's name and species
- Issue and expiration dates
- A unique ESA ID and a link to verify it
For housing providers
Confirm a letter in seconds
Every letter carries a six-digit ID. Enter it here to see whether it is current, who it covers, and when it expires. No account needed.
- 1. The tenant gives you the ESA ID printed on their letter.
- 2. You check it against our register.
- 3. A valid result shows the animal, issue date, and expiry.
Enter an ESA ID above to see the letter it belongs to.
ESA-••••••Try the sample ID ESA-123456.
One letter, one price
$49
Clinical review, the signed letter, a verifiable ID, and 12 months of validity if you qualify. The same price for an ESA letter or a psychiatric service dog letter.
Start your assessmentIf a clinician determines a letter is not clinically appropriate, you are refunded in full.
What happens after you pay
- A licensed therapist contacts you to begin your evaluation.
- You complete the evaluation with them.
- If you qualify, the therapist issues your letter. If you do not, you are told, and the refund policy applies.
Payment does not guarantee approval. A letter is issued only after a qualifying professional evaluation by a clinician licensed in your state.
What clients tell us
Illustrative“My building charged $60 a month for my cat. After I sent the letter, that line came off the lease.”
“Every place I applied to said no dogs. The letter got me into a unit I would have been screened out of.”
“The clinician actually asked real questions. It did not feel like a form mill.”
Common questions
Is this legal?+
Yes. A licensed clinician assessing a client and, where clinically appropriate, writing an accommodation letter is a normal part of practice. What is not legal is a landlord ignoring a valid request without cause.
Will my landlord accept it?+
Covered housing must consider a reasonable-accommodation request backed by reliable documentation, and they can verify the letter through our register in one step. On fees, be wary of anyone who promises certainty: HUD rescinded the guidance that barred pet rent for assistance animals in May 2026, so that now turns on your state law. Your state page says which.
What if the clinician does not approve me?+
You are refunded in full. We do not issue a letter unless a licensed professional determines an emotional support animal is clinically appropriate for you.
Is my ESA the same as a service animal?+
No. Service animals are individually trained to perform tasks and have broad public-access rights. An ESA provides support through its presence and is covered for housing, not for stores, restaurants, or offices.
How long does it take?+
It depends on your state and on the clinician's decision, so we do not promise a delivery date. Arkansas, California, Iowa, Louisiana and Montana require a client-provider relationship of at least thirty days before an ESA letter can be issued. In those states your evaluation starts that clock, and a letter cannot be issued sooner than thirty days after you pay. Other states set no waiting period, and timing there depends on the evaluation. A psychiatric service dog evaluation is not subject to those ESA waiting periods and can begin as soon as you pay. Your state page says which rule applies to you.
What is the difference between an ESA letter and a PSD letter?+
An ESA letter supports a housing accommodation for an emotional support animal, such as a dog or a cat, and needs no special training. A psychiatric service dog (PSD) letter is only for dogs, and only for a dog that is individually trained to perform tasks related to your disability. A PSD evaluation is not held up by the state waiting periods that apply to ESA letters, so it can begin right away. A letter does not make a dog a service animal. The dog's training does.
Can I get a PSD letter for my cat?+
No. Psychiatric service dog letters are for dogs only. If you have a cat or another animal, an ESA letter is the document that applies.
What happens after I pay?+
A licensed therapist contacts you to begin your evaluation. Payment does not guarantee approval: a letter is issued only after a qualifying professional evaluation by a clinician licensed in your state. We email you the next steps as soon as you pay.
Stop paying to keep your own pet
Take the assessment today. If an ESA is right for you, your letter is usually ready within two days.
Start your assessmentAn ESA letter supports reasonable-accommodation requests for housing. It is not a service-animal certification, it does not grant public-access rights, and since the Department of Transportation rule of 11 January 2021 it does not apply to air travel. Federal enforcement narrowed further in May 2026, so protection now depends substantially on your state. Approval is at the discretion of the licensed professional who reviews your assessment. ESA Verified is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice.