diff --git a/.golangci.yml b/.golangci.yml
index b0d9e59c04..b96a12221f 100644
--- a/.golangci.yml
+++ b/.golangci.yml
@@ -3,37 +3,37 @@ issues:
   max-issues-per-linter: 0
   new-from-rev: origin/master
 linters:
-  presets: 
-  - bugs
-  - error
-  - format
-  - performance
-  - unused
+  presets:
+    - bugs
+    - error
+    - format
+    - performance
+    - unused
   disable:
-  - maligned
-  - scopelint
+    - maligned
+    - scopelint
+    - gomnd
   enable:
-  - exportloopref
-  - goconst
-  - gocritic
-  - gocyclo
-  - gofmt
-  - gomnd
-  - goprintffuncname
-  - gosimple
-  - lll
-  - misspell
-  - nakedret
-  - promlinter
-  - revive
+    - exportloopref
+    - goconst
+    - gocritic
+    - gocyclo
+    - gofmt
+    - goprintffuncname
+    - gosimple
+    - lll
+    - misspell
+    - nakedret
+    - promlinter
+    - revive
 linters-settings:
   gocritic:
     enabled-tags:
-    - "diagnostic"
-    - "style"
-    - "performance"
+      - "diagnostic"
+      - "style"
+      - "performance"
     disabled-checks:
-    - "hugeParam"
+      - "hugeParam"
   govet:
     check-shadowing: true
   lll:
diff --git a/.pipelines/mdnc/azure-cns-cni-1.4.39.1.yaml b/.pipelines/mdnc/azure-cns-cni-1.4.39.1.yaml
index 47ae2f3557..c18a5d219c 100644
--- a/.pipelines/mdnc/azure-cns-cni-1.4.39.1.yaml
+++ b/.pipelines/mdnc/azure-cns-cni-1.4.39.1.yaml
@@ -12,7 +12,7 @@ metadata:
 rules:
 - apiGroups: ["acn.azure.com"]
   resources: ["nodenetworkconfigs"]
-  verbs: ["get", "list", "watch", "patch", "update"]
+  verbs: ["create", "delete", "get", "list", "watch", "patch", "update"]
 ---
 apiVersion: rbac.authorization.k8s.io/v1
 kind: ClusterRole
diff --git a/.pipelines/mdnc/azure-cns-cni-1.5.28.yaml b/.pipelines/mdnc/azure-cns-cni-1.5.28.yaml
index 3db8a46a3c..18f0eaee44 100644
--- a/.pipelines/mdnc/azure-cns-cni-1.5.28.yaml
+++ b/.pipelines/mdnc/azure-cns-cni-1.5.28.yaml
@@ -12,7 +12,7 @@ metadata:
 rules:
 - apiGroups: ["acn.azure.com"]
   resources: ["nodenetworkconfigs"]
-  verbs: ["get", "list", "watch", "patch", "update"]
+  verbs: ["create", "delete", "get", "list", "watch", "patch", "update"]
 ---
 apiVersion: rbac.authorization.k8s.io/v1
 kind: ClusterRole
diff --git a/.pipelines/mdnc/azure-cns-cni-1.5.4.yaml b/.pipelines/mdnc/azure-cns-cni-1.5.4.yaml
index f33fbba69d..40a3ec4bc2 100644
--- a/.pipelines/mdnc/azure-cns-cni-1.5.4.yaml
+++ b/.pipelines/mdnc/azure-cns-cni-1.5.4.yaml
@@ -12,7 +12,7 @@ metadata:
 rules:
 - apiGroups: ["acn.azure.com"]
   resources: ["nodenetworkconfigs"]
-  verbs: ["get", "list", "watch", "patch", "update"]
+  verbs: ["create", "delete", "get", "list", "watch", "patch", "update"]
 ---
 apiVersion: rbac.authorization.k8s.io/v1
 kind: ClusterRole
diff --git a/.pipelines/mdnc/azure-cns-cni.yaml b/.pipelines/mdnc/azure-cns-cni.yaml
index 469f25c669..a1e2ea5d42 100644
--- a/.pipelines/mdnc/azure-cns-cni.yaml
+++ b/.pipelines/mdnc/azure-cns-cni.yaml
@@ -12,7 +12,7 @@ metadata:
 rules:
 - apiGroups: ["acn.azure.com"]
   resources: ["nodenetworkconfigs"]
-  verbs: ["get", "list", "watch", "patch", "update"]
+  verbs: ["create", "delete", "get", "list", "watch", "patch", "update"]
 ---
 apiVersion: rbac.authorization.k8s.io/v1
 kind: ClusterRole
diff --git a/cns/azure-cns.yaml b/cns/azure-cns.yaml
index 260bb775c1..fefafb14de 100644
--- a/cns/azure-cns.yaml
+++ b/cns/azure-cns.yaml
@@ -12,7 +12,7 @@ metadata:
 rules:
 - apiGroups: ["acn.azure.com"]
   resources: ["nodenetworkconfigs"]
-  verbs: ["get", "list", "watch", "patch", "update"]
+  verbs: ["create", "delete", "get", "list", "watch", "patch", "update"]
 ---
 apiVersion: rbac.authorization.k8s.io/v1
 kind: ClusterRole
diff --git a/cns/configuration/configuration.go b/cns/configuration/configuration.go
index c183c9f0e2..ac3625bf73 100644
--- a/cns/configuration/configuration.go
+++ b/cns/configuration/configuration.go
@@ -35,6 +35,7 @@ type CNSConfig struct {
 	EnableSubnetScarcity        bool
 	EnableSwiftV2               bool
 	InitializeFromCNI           bool
+	EnableHomeAZ                bool
 	KeyVaultSettings            KeyVaultSettings
 	MSISettings                 MSISettings
 	ManageEndpointState         bool
diff --git a/cns/restserver/homeazmonitor.go b/cns/restserver/homeazmonitor.go
index f73c6e35af..1277214fd3 100644
--- a/cns/restserver/homeazmonitor.go
+++ b/cns/restserver/homeazmonitor.go
@@ -135,7 +135,7 @@ func (h *HomeAzMonitor) Populate(ctx context.Context) {
 				return
 
 			default:
-				returnMessage := fmt.Sprintf("[HomeAzMonitor] failed with StatusCode: %d", apiError.StatusCode())
+				returnMessage := fmt.Sprintf("[HomeAzMonitor] failed with StatusCode: %d and error %v", apiError.StatusCode(), err)
 				returnCode := types.UnexpectedError
 				h.update(returnCode, returnMessage, cns.HomeAzResponse{IsSupported: true})
 				return
diff --git a/cns/restserver/internalapi.go b/cns/restserver/internalapi.go
index fa41525030..4c2d80e258 100644
--- a/cns/restserver/internalapi.go
+++ b/cns/restserver/internalapi.go
@@ -633,3 +633,15 @@ func (service *HTTPRestService) CreateOrUpdateNetworkContainerInternal(req *cns.
 func (service *HTTPRestService) SetVFForAccelnetNICs() error {
 	return service.setVFForAccelnetNICs()
 }
+
+// GetHomeAz - Get the Home Az for the Node where CNS is running.
+func (service *HTTPRestService) GetHomeAz(ctx context.Context) (cns.GetHomeAzResponse, error) {
+	service.RLock()
+	defer service.RUnlock()
+	homeAzResponse := service.homeAzMonitor.GetHomeAz(ctx)
+	if homeAzResponse.Response.ReturnCode == types.NotFound {
+		return homeAzResponse, errors.New(homeAzResponse.Response.Message)
+	}
+
+	return homeAzResponse, nil
+}
diff --git a/cns/service/main.go b/cns/service/main.go
index 36f24dffa7..26ba92cb94 100644
--- a/cns/service/main.go
+++ b/cns/service/main.go
@@ -668,9 +668,9 @@ func main() {
 	}
 
 	homeAzMonitor := restserver.NewHomeAzMonitor(nmaClient, time.Duration(cnsconfig.AZRSettings.PopulateHomeAzCacheRetryIntervalSecs)*time.Second)
-	// homeAz monitor is only required when there is a direct channel between DNC and CNS.
-	// This will prevent the monitor from unnecessarily calling NMA APIs for other scenarios such as AKS-swift, swiftv2
-	if cnsconfig.ChannelMode == cns.Direct {
+	// homeAz monitor is required when there is a direct channel between DNC and CNS OR when homeAz feature is enabled in CNS for AKS-Swift
+	// This will prevent the monitor from unnecessarily calling NMA APIs for other scenarios such as AKS-swift, swiftv2 when disabled.
+	if cnsconfig.ChannelMode == cns.Direct || cnsconfig.EnableHomeAZ {
 		homeAzMonitor.Start()
 		defer homeAzMonitor.Stop()
 	}
@@ -1303,6 +1303,68 @@ func InitializeCRDState(ctx context.Context, httpRestService cns.HTTPService, cn
 	// TODO(rbtr): nodename and namespace should be in the cns config
 	directscopedcli := nncctrl.NewScopedClient(directnnccli, types.NamespacedName{Namespace: "kube-system", Name: nodeName})
 
+	// Create the base NNC CRD if HomeAz is enabled
+	if cnsconfig.EnableHomeAZ {
+		var homeAzResponse cns.GetHomeAzResponse
+		if homeAzResponse, err = httpRestServiceImplementation.GetHomeAz(ctx); err != nil {
+			return errors.Wrap(err, "failed to get HomeAz") // error out so that CNS restarts.
+		}
+		az := homeAzResponse.HomeAzResponse.HomeAz
+		logger.Printf("[Azure CNS] HomeAz: %d", az)
+		// Create Node Network Config CRD and update the Home Az field with the cache value from the HomeAz Monitor
+		var nnc *v1alpha.NodeNetworkConfig
+		err = retry.Do(func() error {
+			if nnc, err = directnnccli.Get(ctx, types.NamespacedName{Namespace: "kube-system", Name: nodeName}); err != nil {
+				return errors.Wrap(err, "[Azure CNS] failed to get existing NNC")
+			}
+			return nil
+		}, retry.Delay(initCNSInitalDelay), retry.Attempts(5))
+
+		newNNC := createBaseNNC(node)
+		if err != nil {
+			logger.Printf("[Azure CNS] Creating new base NNC with Az %d", az)
+			newNNC.Spec.AvailabilityZone = az
+			nncErr := retry.Do(func() error {
+				if err = directcli.Create(ctx, newNNC); err != nil {
+					return errors.Wrap(err, "failed to create base NNC with HomeAz")
+				}
+				return nil
+			}, retry.Delay(initCNSInitalDelay), retry.Attempts(5))
+			if nncErr != nil {
+				return errors.Wrap(nncErr, "[Azure CNS] failed to create base NNC with HomeAz")
+			}
+		}
+
+		if err == nil { // NNC exists, patch it with new HomeAz
+			logger.Printf("[Azure CNS] Patching existing NNC with new Spec with HomeAz %d", az)
+			newNNC.ObjectMeta.ResourceVersion = nnc.ObjectMeta.ResourceVersion
+			newNNC.Spec.AvailabilityZone = az
+			newNNC.Spec.RequestedIPCount = nnc.Spec.RequestedIPCount
+			newNNC.Spec.IPsNotInUse = nnc.Spec.IPsNotInUse
+			newNNC.Status = nnc.Status
+			newNNC.UID = nnc.UID
+			newNNC.Name = nnc.Name
+			newNNC.Namespace = nnc.Namespace
+			newNNC.Annotations = nnc.Annotations
+			newNNC.Labels = nnc.Labels
+			newNNC.Finalizers = nnc.Finalizers
+			newNNC.OwnerReferences = nnc.OwnerReferences
+			newNNC.CreationTimestamp = nnc.CreationTimestamp
+			newNNC.DeletionTimestamp = nnc.DeletionTimestamp
+			nncErr := retry.Do(func() error {
+				patchErr := directcli.Update(ctx, newNNC, &client.UpdateOptions{})
+				if patchErr != nil {
+					return errors.Wrap(patchErr, "failed to patch NNC")
+				}
+				return nil
+			}, retry.Delay(initCNSInitalDelay), retry.Attempts(5))
+			if nncErr != nil {
+				return errors.Wrap(nncErr, "[AzureCNS] failed to patch NNC with Home Az")
+			}
+		}
+		logger.Printf("[Azure CNS] Updated HomeAz in NNC %v", newNNC)
+	}
+
 	logger.Printf("Reconciling initial CNS state")
 	// apiserver nnc might not be registered or api server might be down and crashloop backof puts us outside of 5-10 minutes we have for
 	// aks addons to come up so retry a bit more aggresively here.
@@ -1513,6 +1575,18 @@ func InitializeCRDState(ctx context.Context, httpRestService cns.HTTPService, cn
 	return nil
 }
 
+func createBaseNNC(node *corev1.Node) *v1alpha.NodeNetworkConfig {
+	return &v1alpha.NodeNetworkConfig{ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
+		Annotations: make(map[string]string),
+		Labels: map[string]string{
+			"managed": "true",
+			"owner":   node.Name,
+		},
+		Name:      node.Name,
+		Namespace: "kube-system",
+	}}
+}
+
 // getPodInfoByIPProvider returns a PodInfoByIPProvider that reads endpoint state from the configured source
 func getPodInfoByIPProvider(
 	ctx context.Context,
diff --git a/crd/nodenetworkconfig/api/v1alpha/nodenetworkconfig.go b/crd/nodenetworkconfig/api/v1alpha/nodenetworkconfig.go
index 91691d6548..9379504c7e 100644
--- a/crd/nodenetworkconfig/api/v1alpha/nodenetworkconfig.go
+++ b/crd/nodenetworkconfig/api/v1alpha/nodenetworkconfig.go
@@ -48,8 +48,9 @@ type NodeNetworkConfigSpec struct {
 	RequestedIPCount int64    `json:"requestedIPCount"`
 	IPsNotInUse      []string `json:"ipsNotInUse,omitempty"`
 	// AvailabilityZone contains the Azure availability zone for the virtual machine where network containers are placed.
+	// NMA returns an int value for the availability zone.
 	// +kubebuilder:validation:Optional
-	AvailabilityZone string `json:"availabilityZone,omitempty"`
+	AvailabilityZone uint `json:"availabilityZone,omitempty"`
 }
 
 // Status indicates the NNC reconcile status
diff --git a/test/integration/manifests/cilium/cns-write-ovly.yaml b/test/integration/manifests/cilium/cns-write-ovly.yaml
index 4f3d919757..296edd3f48 100644
--- a/test/integration/manifests/cilium/cns-write-ovly.yaml
+++ b/test/integration/manifests/cilium/cns-write-ovly.yaml
@@ -12,7 +12,7 @@ metadata:
 rules:
 - apiGroups: ["acn.azure.com"]
   resources: ["nodenetworkconfigs"]
-  verbs: ["get", "list", "watch", "patch", "update"]
+  verbs: ["create", "delete", "get", "list", "watch", "patch", "update"]
 ---
 apiVersion: rbac.authorization.k8s.io/v1
 kind: ClusterRole