Texas ESA Letter FAQ

An ESA is a companion animal whose support may help with the effects of a disability. Unlike a service dog, an ESA does not need individual task training. In covered housing, an ESA may qualify as an assistance animal rather than a pet when there is a disability-related need.

A legitimate ESA letter follows an individualized evaluation and is signed by an appropriately licensed professional authorized to serve the client. It should explain the disability-related need without unnecessary medical details. A purchased registry, vest, ID card or certificate alone does not replace provider documentation.

Reliable documentation commonly comes from a licensed healthcare or mental-health professional who can serve Texas residents, works within the scope of the license and has personal knowledge relevant to the request. Texas Service Animals connects eligible clients with Texas-licensed mental-health providers for individualized evaluations.

Start with our secure free application. If the service fits your needs, complete an individualized evaluation with a Texas-licensed mental-health provider. The provider, not Texas Service Animals administration, makes the independent clinical decision about whether an ESA letter or PSD letter is appropriate.

In many housing situations covered by the Fair Housing Act, a landlord must consider a reasonable-accommodation request for an assistance animal, including when the property has a no-pet policy. Approval depends on the housing, reliable disability-related information and the individual facts. See HUD’s assistance-animal guidance.

When an assistance-animal accommodation is approved in covered housing, the animal generally is not treated as a pet. HUD identifies waiving a pet deposit or fee as a possible reasonable accommodation. However, a resident may still be responsible for actual damage caused by the animal.

A housing provider must consider a covered request but may deny it in limited circumstances, including an undue burden, a fundamental alteration, or a specific animal presenting a direct threat or significant property-damage risk that cannot be reduced. These decisions should use an individualized assessment, not assumptions about a breed.

Federal HUD guidance does not create a universal one-year expiration date. Still, a housing provider may request current, reliable information when the disability or disability-related need is not apparent. Whether updated documentation is appropriate depends on the circumstances and the provider’s professional judgment.

An emotional support animal provides support through its presence and is mainly relevant to housing accommodations. A Psychiatric Service Dog (PSD) is individually trained to perform disability-related tasks. A trained service dog that meets the ADA definition generally has public-access rights; an emotional support animal does not. Read the ADA service-animal FAQ.

Airlines may treat emotional support animals as pets and are not required to recognize them as service animals. Check the airline’s current pet rules, fees and carrier limits before traveling. Different requirements may apply to trained service dogs under the U.S. Department of Transportation rules.

No. We provide evaluation and documentation services; we do not sell, place or train animals. A PSD letter documents the person’s clinical need when appropriate, but it does not train or certify a dog and does not by itself establish service-dog status or public-access rights.

After an ESA letter or PSD letter is issued, a client may request this optional convenience summary. It is not government registration, is not legally required and does not create Emotional Support Animal or service-dog status. It also does not replace the signed provider letter or required service-dog task training.