Are you a Veteran who re-enlisted and served at least two periods of service? If so, you may be eligible for additional GI Bill benefits.
Under a previous policy, eligible Veterans who served at least two periods of service were forced to choose between the Montgomery GI Bill and the Post-9/11 GI Bill for a maximum of 36 months of GI Bill benefits. However, as a result of a 2024 Supreme Court decision in Rudisill vs. McDonagh, the VA has revised the process for awarding GI Bill benefits. This change means that many Veterans who served multiple periods of military service may be eligible for up to an additional 12 months of education benefits.
The court case was brought by James Rudisill who served in the U.S. Army for eight years, reenlisting twice and completing three tours of duty. His initial tour entitled him to 36 months of educational benefits under the Montgomery GI Bill. His subsequent tours separately entitled him to 36 months of educational benefits under the Post-9/11 GI Bill. These entitlements were subject to a 48-month aggregate-benefits cap. Ruling that he was only eligible for 36 months of benefits, the VA denied Rudisill’s claim for the additional entitlement. The Supreme Court reversed a lower court decision, and ruled that servicemembers who have separate entitlements to both Montgomery and Post-9/11 benefits can use their benefits, in any order, up to the aggregate 48-month cap.
Of the more than 1 million Veterans who potentially were impacted by the previous policy, the VA announced that they will be able to automatically adjudicate the claims for approximately 660,000 Veterans without any further action required by them. For the remaining Veterans, the VA will be contacting them directly to encourage them to file a claim. If your GI Bill benefits have expired and you are eligible for the additional benefits, you can be granted an extension, but you must apply for one. The deadline for filing a claim for the additional GI Bill benefits or for an extension is October 1, 2030.
