February 26, 2026
Lifeline Newsletter – February 2026
- SAM.gov UEI Requirement
- FCC Form 481 Filing Window Opens April 1
- Updated Lifeline Income Qualifications for 2026
- Lifeline Program Compliance Reminder: Non-Usage
- March 2026 Webinar: How to Apply for Lifeline
- March Maintenance Schedule
View the full newsletter.
February 25, 2026
Updated Lifeline Income Qualifications for 2026
USAC has updated its forms, systems, and resources to reflect the 2026 Federal Poverty Guidelines which were released by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) last month. These guidelines are used to determine if a consumer can qualify for Lifeline based on their income. Consumers qualify for the Lifeline benefit if their income is at or below 135 percent of the Federal Poverty Guidelines.
Service providers may review the following pages for more information:
Service providers should update their forms and systems as soon as possible to reflect the new income requirements. Providers operating in National Lifeline Accountability Database (NLAD) opt-out states (Oregon and Texas) should follow their state’s guidance.
February 23, 2026
Ad – Hoc System Maintenance
USAC will perform an ad-hoc system maintenance on Thursday, February 26, from 9 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET.
The production environments of the following systems are impacted:
- National Verifier Portal
- National Verifier Carrier API
NLAD functions that require the National Verifier will also be affected (e.g., enroll or transfer transactions).
We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
February 19, 2026
New NLAD De-Enrollment Codes
USAC is updating the National Lifeline Accountability Database (NLAD) de-enrollment codes, including adding new codes and removing two existing de-enrollment codes. These updates will be available in the staging environment on March 5 and will go live in the production environment on April 22Â for both the NLAD user interface (UI) and NLAD application programming interface (API).Â
When submitting a de-enrollment transaction, providers must include both the de-enrollment date and the appropriate de-enrollment code.
New NLAD De-Enrollment Codes
USAC will add the following new de-enrollment codes:
- deEnrollSubscriberInitiated – a Lifeline subscriber requested to be de-enrolled
- deEnrollMovedfromServiceArea – a Lifeline subscriber who moved out of the service provider’s service area
- deEnrollNotEligible -a Lifeline subscriber who is no longer eligible to receive the benefit
- deEnrollImproperEnrollment – a Lifeline subscriber who was enrolled improperly
- deEnrollPIIUpdate – a Lifeline subscriber is being de-enrolled to update or correct their Personally Identifiable Information (PII)
Note: The deEnrollDeceased (subscriber is deceased) and deEnrollNonUsage (subscriber has not used their benefit for 30 days) codes will still be available in NLAD.Â
NLAD De-Enrollment Codes Being Removed
On April 22, USAC will remove the following de-enrollment codes:
- deEnrollLeaving
- deEnrollFailedRecertification
If a service provider attempts to use either of these codes, they will receive an error message: INVALID_DEENROLL_TRANSACTION_TYPE.
Providers must select the appropriate reason for the de-enrollment and ensure it accurately reflects why the subscriber is being de-enrolled from Lifeline. For example, if a subscriber is de-enrolled for ineligibility, the provider must select the deEnrollNotEligible code when performing the de-enroll transaction in NLAD.
February 18, 2026
February Monthly System Maintenance
USAC will perform scheduled monthly system maintenance on Friday, February 20, from 10 p.m. to 3 a.m. ET on Saturday, February 21.
The production environments of the following systems are impacted:
- National Verifier Portal
- National Verifier Carrier API
- National Lifeline Accountability Database (NLAD)Â
- Lifeline Claims System (LCS)
- Representative Accountability Database (RAD)
We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
Note: All scheduled maintenance dates for NV and NLAD are available on the USAC website.
