Should You Use Your GI Bill Benefits While on Active Duty?

Let me start this off by saying “It Depends”. Don’t you hate that answer?!  

Well, it's true...but don't worry, you'll get the 4 core considerations here.

For the record, I used my GI Bill while active duty during my last 2 years of service. Sometimes it makes sense, sometimes it doesn’t. 

If you are wondering whether you “can” or “should” use your GI Bill benefits while on active duty service, here is our answer:

Yes, you can use your GI Bill while on active duty. Should you use it while on active duty? Generally speaking, its not a good idea unless: tuition assistance can’t cover the expenses of your desired program, and you don’t want to wait until separation. Be advised that you won’t get a GI Bill housing allowance or one-time rural benefit while active duty. 

What are the nuances if you have the Post 9/11 GI Bill while active duty? What if you have the Montgomery GI Bill? When are you considered a veteran vs active duty? 

We’ll cover the differences, when it’s smart, when it's not, and more...read on!

Impact of Using the GI Bill While on Active Duty vs. As a Veteran

There are many benefits that the GI Bill provides for all eligible recipients, such as paying for tuition costs in pursuing higher education or training, paying for licensing and certification tests, and providing an allowance for housing as well as a stipend for books and supplies.

However, what benefits you are eligible to use depends on whether you are on active duty or a veteran: 

Since the GI Bill is designed primarily to aid veterans in transitioning to civilian life by providing educational assistance so they can open career opportunities, it goes to say that there are certain limitations for active duty service members who want to use the GI Bill benefits they have earned.

This is also in part due to the fact that there are programs specifically designed for active duty service members who want to study while serving the country, such as the Tuition Assistance, which is implemented by the Department of Defense through its individual branches.

Here are some limitations of using your GI Bill benefits while on active duty:

Fewer GI Bill Benefits While Active Duty

If you are an active duty service member who is eligible to receive benefits under the Post 9/11 GI Bill, you cannot claim a monthly housing allowance and a books and supplies stipend if you use your benefits while on active duty. 

For all other GI Bill programs (such as the Montgomery), however, these benefits are not provided whether you are on active duty or a veteran.

Higher Entitlement Charges

Furthermore, GI Bill recipients using their benefits while on active duty are automatically charged the full monthly rate of tuition costs on their entitlement benefits, regardless of the actual cost of their education.

For example, if you are receiving benefits from the Montgomery GI Bill, the current maximum payable amount for tuition and fees is $1,994 per month.

Let’s say you are at 100% eligibility percentage (which means if your tuition amounts to $1,994 monthly, you can receive this full amount).

Since this dollar amount is a monthly rate, it is directly equivalent to 1 month of entitlement benefit.

If you are a veteran, this means that you use up 1 month out of the maximum of 36 months of benefits you can have, for every $1,994 the VA spends on your tuition.

So if your tuition is only half, you only get charged 15 days of entitlement.

This is not the case when you are using your GI Bill benefits while on active duty. If you study for say, 6 months, you get charged 6 months of entitlement benefits, regardless whether your tuition is lower than the $1,994 full monthly rate.

When Does It Make Sense to Use my GI Bill While Active Duty?

Given these circumstances, you are probably wondering if you should even think about using your GI Bill benefits while you are still on active duty. 

Well, here’s when it might make sense to use it:

Scenario 1: You Are Separating From The Military Soon:

Like I previously stated, I used my GI Bill the last two years of active duty.  Many veterans want to hit the ground running when they get out of the military and have a job already lined up. For this reason, I spent my last two years of active-duty going to night and weekend classes so that I had my MBA the day that I separated. 

This way I didn't have to spend my first two (critical) years as a civilian going to school, and I was ready to start my career as soon as I separated.

If this is you, then It might make sense for you to use your GI Bill benefits while active duty.

What if you're separating via a medical discharge and want to use the GI Bill? In this case, you might want to wait.

A word of caution:

You need to make sure that your commander signs off on your game plan to go to school while active duty. This will depend on your commander, your deployment schedule, and your job in the military. 

Get “buy-in” first, before you put the plan in motion.  The last thing you want is to be pulled into another surprise deployment while in the middle of a school term!

Scenario 2: Tuition Assistance Won’t Cover Your Desired Program:

Many military members are trying to weigh tuition assistance versus the GI Bill. Let's be honest, if you want to go to a premium University, tuition assistance will probably not cover all the costs. If this is the case then you need to consider using the GI Bill while active duty.

I would only do this if you are not willing to (or can’t) wait until separation to get your degree/training done. 

You might consider using your GI Bill benefits while you are still in the military if the tuition costs for the school or training facility you want to attend are equivalent to or higher than the maximum payable amount set by the VA ($24,476.79 annually for Post 9/11 GI Bill, or $1,994 for the Montgomery GI Bill- Active Duty).

This way, you are making the most of using up your entitlement charges. 

You can check the current payment rates for all GI Bill programs on the VA Rate Tables.

Remember :

You lose out on your monthly housing allowance (MHA), also referred to as BAH, if you use your GI Bill while active duty, for obvious reasons: you are already getting BAH.

Also, if you are under a GI Bill program other than the Post 9/11 GI Bill, you won’t be missing out on housing allowances and books stipends. Though you might want to consider transferring to the Post 9/11 GI Bill. Find out more information about that here.

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If you want to push through with using your GI Bill benefits while on active duty, do consult with your Education Services Officer on how to proceed. They will provide counseling and assistance to make sure that you are making the most of your benefits.

Meanwhile, here are the eligibility requirements for the Post 9/11 GI Bill and the Montgomery GI Bill:

Post 9/11 GI Bill Eligibility

You can receive educational benefits from the Post 9/11 GI Bill if you have served for at least 90 days on or after September 10, 2001.

Your eligibility percentage goes higher with the duration of your active duty service. You can refer to the table below as a guide:

Information sourced from the VA website

Montgomery GI Bill Eligibility

You are eligible to receive benefits under the Montgomery GI Bill if you meet the following requirements:

• You have a high school diploma, a GED, or 12 hours of college credit, 

• You have been contributing $100 per month for your first 12 months of active duty service, and

• You meet the other qualifying requirements set per eligibility category as listed here

If you are eligible, you can start using your benefits after you have served for at least 2 years in active duty.

Another smart option we haven’t addressed yet:

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Using the GI Bill for Online School While Active Duty

Online schools allow for a lot of flexibility in terms of study hours and living situations. It’s perfect for military service members who have to attend to their military duties such as training, or for those who are TDY or deployed to different locations in and out of the country.

If you want to use your GI Bill benefits while studying at an online school, the VA will pay for your tuition costs under the same rates as when you are attending a physical institution.

If you are under the Post 9/11 GI Bill, you are still also qualified to receive a monthly housing allowance and a books and supplies stipend (this is not included if still active duty). 

However, the housing allowance is only applicable if you are at least a 50% rate of pursuit.

Also, if you are taking all your classes online, you are only eligible to receive half of the national average, which is currently at $1,789, meaning, you can get $894.50. 

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One loophole to this:

If you attend at least one class at a physical school. Then, you can get the full rate (provided you meet other qualifications such as 100% rate of pursuit). The only problem is, this might be difficult if you have to be deployed in the middle of the semester.

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