Active Duty GI Bill^®

The Montgomery GI^® Bill, Chapter 30 (commonly called the Active Duty GI Bill^®) was created for former active duty members of all branches of the Armed Forces who receive honorable discharges and have a high school diploma or equivalent or have 12 hours of college credit.

Chapter 30 Handout

Eligibility

Generally, you are eligible for Chapter 30 GI Bill^® if you paid into Chapter 30 GI Bill^® ($1,200), served on Active Duty for over 36 months, and have an honorable discharge. You may also be eligible if you paid into Chapter 30 GI Bill^® ($1,200) and were medically discharged. You will remain eligible for Chapter 30 GI Bill^® for 10 years from the date of separation from Active Duty (DD214). You may use any one GI Bill^® benefit for up to 36 months of full time use and may be able to combine multiple GI Bill^®benefits for up to 48 months of use.

Applying for Benefits

If you have never used Chapter 30 GI Bill^® benefits before you will need to apply for the benefits.

1.    Visit the VA’s website.  
2.    Select the tab Apply for Benefits.
3.    Launch the Veterans Online Application (VONAPP).
4.    Complete and submit the application (VA Form 22-1990).

The VA will mail you a Certificate of Eligibility (COE) (VA Form 22-0557) in 4-6 weeks. When you receive the COE please provide a copy to the Military Certifying Official.

Receiving Payments

When you notify the Military Certifying Official that you are registered for classes, the Military Certifying Official will submit a certification to the VA. The VA can take up to 4-6 weeks to process certifications.    

To receive the benefit payment you are required to complete a verification of attendance each month. The last day of the month is the first day you can verify attendance for that month. As an example; for a fall semester if school begins August 20th, the first day you can verify attendance is August 31st.  Once you have completed the verification, the VA can process your payment. There are two ways to verify your attendance. 

• Visit www.benefits.va.gov/gibill and then select the “Verify School Attendance” button.  
• Call (877) 823-2378 and complete the automated attendance verification process.

The VA prorates payments for partial months of school. As an example; if school begins August 20th, the first payment should be for August 20th to August 31st or 11 days of school. The payment for August would be about 1/3 of the full monthly payment amount.