The Department of Veterans Affairs announced on Mar. 26 that it is taking new measures to help eligible Veterans maximize their G.I. Bill education benefits following two recent court decisions.
The changes could impact millions of Veterans by allowing them to receive additional education benefits under both the Montgomery G.I. Bill and the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill, potentially increasing their total benefit period up to 48 months.
According to the VA, three main steps are being implemented in response to the rulings from Rudisill v. McDonough and Perkins v. Collins. First, Veterans will no longer need to formally request an assessment for eligibility under Rudisill; instead, VA will automatically review their cases for qualification. Second, VA is prioritizing reviews for those with less than three months of remaining benefits who are currently enrolled or were recently enrolled in school within the last six months, aiming to ensure that current or recent students do not lose out on possible additional support if they qualify under either decision.
Third, VA is updating its automated systems so that the Perkins decision can be applied more broadly across all cases once complete. In order to prevent delays during this transition period, initial approvals for up to 36 months of benefits will continue automatically for eligible applicants while further entitlement under Perkins is determined and communicated directly by VA if further action is required.
“These court decisions will influence the educational choices of millions of people, and VA is working to ensure Veterans know what they qualify for and how to claim their benefits,” said VA Secretary Doug Collins.
In background information provided by the department, it was noted that in 2024 the Supreme Court ruled in Rudisill v. McDonough that Veterans with multiple qualifying periods of military service could combine Montgomery G.I. Bill (MGIB) and Post-9/11 G.I. Bill (PGIB) benefits up to a total of 48 months; over one million may now qualify as a result of this ruling announced by VA in January 2025.
Additionally, a precedential opinion issued in Perkins v. Collins by the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims in 2025 clarified that even those with only one qualifying period could access both programs if service requirements are met—potentially enabling another one million Veterans an extra year’s worth of education assistance.
