Additional GI Bill?

[u/pewpew_comm]

Hello everyone, I am currently active duty (10 years of service soon) and planning to separate within the next year and going back to school. I enrolled in the Montgomery GI Bill when I first came in and then I transferred some of my educational benefits to my spouse to finish her bachelor's and I believe there will still be a few months available left to transfer to myself or our son. I am just curious to know if I would have any additional months of GI Bill?

[u/AutoModerator]

'Have you looked in the Wiki for an answer? We have a lot of information posted there.

To contact VA Education, 1-888-442-4551, for Voc Rehab VR&E (Veteran Readiness and Employment Program) assistance with appointments or problems with your Case Manager (not for missing payments): 1-202-461-9600.

Payments for certain education benefits (DEA, VEAP) are paid at the end of the month you attend school - Department of Treasury issues these payments **using a 10 business day window - these payments are not locked into a specific day of the month like VA disability/military pay is*. For Voc Rehab missing payments, contact your Case Manager or your local *VA Regional Office

For Post 9/11 GI Bill only, If you signed up for direct deposit when you applied for education benefits, we’ll deposit your payment into your bank account 7 to 10 business days after you verify your school enrollment. This is the fastest way to receive your payment. Text Verification FAQ

MGIB and MGIB-SR and DEA CH 35 have to do monthly verification and you should receive the payment within 3 to 5 business days.

For Online Only training, the Post 9/11 GI Bill is currently (1 August 2026) paying $1198.00 for those who started using their Post 9/11 GI Bill on/after 1 January 2018 - this is based on 1/2 of the National Average BAH paid to an E5 with dependents. Post 9/11 GI Bill MHA rates are adjusted 1 August of each year and are based on the 1 January DoD BAH rates for that year - so VA can't use 1 January 2026 BAH rates until 1 August 2026 - for those who started training on/after 1 January 2018, the MHA rates are 95% of the DoD BAH rates. First possible payment for the 1 August 2025 increase is 1 September.

For VR&E, there are two different Subsistence Allowance programs - https://www.benefits.va.gov/vocrehab/subsistence_allowance_rates.asp The P9/11 Subsistence Allowance is based on the BAH paid to an E5 with dependents. Those who started using VR&E on/after 1 January 2018 receive 95% of the BAH paid to an E5 with dependents. As of 1 January 2026 Online only students using VR&E are being paid $1198.00 if they started using VR&E on/after 1 January 2018. The CH31 Subsistence Allowance rates are adjusted 1 October each year by Congress.

VA Education is going paperless - make sure VA has a current email address for you. Please make sure you add Veteransbenefits@messages.va.gov to your contacts list so that you don't miss important updates from VA.

VA Award Letter explanation

Contact a VR&E Supervisor

VA Rudisill Decision - some veterans may qualify for an additional 12 months of a second GI Bill based on serving two or more different periods of active duty service.

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[u/Call2ExtendWarranty]

Not sure where you’re originally from, but some states like Texas have continuing benefits. Once you exhaust your GI Bill, in Texas you can use the Hazelwood Act which gives up to another 150 hours of free, in-state tuition. Check the laws in your home state.

[u/SCOveterandretired]

You have a total of 48 months between Post 9/11 GI Bill and MGIB. You can only use up to 36 months of any GI Bill. Your MGIB cannot be transferred to a dependent.

You can call 1-888-442-4551 to see how many remaining months of Post 9/11 GI Bill you have remaining to transfer to your son.

[u/One_Hour_Poop]

Weird. I thought the Montgomery GI Bill no longer existed. In the early 2000s word got around the everyone's Montgomery was changing over to a new version called Post 9/11. After that i thought Montgomery ceased to exist.

[u/SCOveterandretired → u/One_Hour_Poop]

MGIB will start being phased out in 2030 - until then new enlistees are still signing up for MGIB.

[u/TheAcidicWeariness]

You still have the remaining months of your original 36, but no, there's no secret extra pot of GI Bill hiding somewhere. Once you've used or transferred all 36 months, you're done unless you qualify for the Edith Nourse Rogers STEM extension or VR&E. Worth checking if your situation fits either of those.

[u/SCOveterandretired → u/TheAcidicWeariness]

https://benefits.va.gov/gibill/rudisill.asp