Military Educational Benefits FAQs

We can certify a student that is non-matriculated for 2 terms. Non-matriculated students are those who are not admitted to a formal degree or certificate program.

No. You must complete a Military Educational Benefits Request form each semester that you wish to be certified to the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Our office begins to accept the Military Benefits Request form after the student has enrolled in classes for the term. We do not begin certifying enrollment until a few weeks prior to the start of term. Submitting one month before the start of term, helps expedite this process.

Yes. Yellow Ribbon is available for undergraduate and select graduate programs to assist with higher out-of-state, private school, or graduate school tuition that the Post-9/11 GI Bill® doesn't cover. You can view more information here: Yellow Ribbon | University Registrar

No. Your entitlement is deducted based on your rate of pursuit. In other words, if the term is 4 months long, a student attending full-time will use 4 months of eligibility, while a student attending part-time will only use 2 months. Chapter 33 students must attend at greater than part-time to receive a MHA payment, and that payment is prorated (when applicable). Other students attending less than full time might not be eligible for the kicker payments (when applicable). Feel free to contact our office with your specific questions and we will do our best to assist.

If you withdraw from the University, we are obliged to report that change to the Department of Veterans Affairs. Depending on the date of your withdrawal, the VA might contact you to repay a portion of your Monthly Allowance for Housing and a portion of your tuition and fee payment. After this debt is paid, you will retain the months of eligibility during which you did not attend.

You will need to first contact the school you hope to attend as a visiting student and be sure they can certify your attendance to the VA. The school you are visiting will submit your VA certification for the term. You will next need to contact your School of Enrollment. They will need to send us an email verifying the courses that you hope to complete can transfer back to UVA We will then draft a Parent Letter, which will need to be submitted to the other university's Certifying Official.

Our office can certify terms retroactively, provided that you were eligible to receive benefits during the term dates. Please submit a Military Educational Benefits Request form to our office for each term that you wish us to certify. Once we receive payment from the VA, Student Financial Services will be able to refund the tuition payments that you had made for the term certified. It will be direct deposited to your bank, if you have set that up. If not, a check will be mailed to your current mailing address in the Student Information System.

No. Once you submit your Military Educational Benefits Request Form to our office, a positive indicator will be placed on your account. This will protect you from holds or late fees. Please make payment for items that your benefits will not cover. This includes bookstore charges, housing, and meal plans.

Military Educational Benefits Request Form

Our office can certify your attendance to the VA the same term that you receive Tuition Assistance. However, because the VA now has last payee status, the Tuition Assistance will affect the total amount we can certify to the VA.

As of 8/1/2011 the VA regulations for certifying tuition have changed. If you are an out of state student, we are required to certify the in-state rate for your program to the VA. If you received any scholarships that are specified for tuition and fees only, these scholarships must also be deducted from the total amount reported to the VA.

Each certification has 2 parts: credits and tuition. We are able to certify credit hours earlier in the term. For students receiving the Post 9/11 GI Bill^®, this will generate Monthly Housing Allowance (MHA) payments. We certify tuition and fees later in the semester. While we await the payment, we place a delay on the student's account to protect her from holds or late fees.