Chapter 1606 VA Benefits: Eligibility, Rates, and How to Apply

Chapter 1606 VA benefits, formally the Montgomery GI Bill – Selected Reserve (MGIB-SR), pay a monthly education allowance to drilling members of the Reserve and National Guard. The current full-time rate is $493 per month, and the program provides up to 36 months of entitlement.¹ Unlike the Post-9/11 GI Bill, which is tied to active duty service, Chapter 1606 is built for members drilling in a Selected Reserve or National Guard unit who have committed to at least six years of service.

Who Qualifies

You need to meet all four of the following conditions to draw Chapter 1606 benefits:¹

A six-year Selected Reserve commitment signed after June 30, 1985. Officers must have agreed to six years on top of their initial obligation.
Completion of your initial active duty for training, meaning basic training and any required occupational specialty training.
A high school diploma, GED, or equivalent credential earned before you finished initial active duty for training. Twelve college credit hours will not substitute.
Good standing as an active, participating member of a Selected Reserve unit. If you were discharged from the Selected Reserve because of a disability not caused by misconduct, you still qualify.

The Selected Reserve covers the Army Reserve, Navy Reserve, Air Force Reserve, Marine Corps Reserve, Coast Guard Reserve, Army National Guard, and Air National Guard.² This is a participation-based benefit. The moment you leave the Selected Reserve, your payments generally stop, with the narrow exceptions described further down.

How Much Chapter 1606 Pays

Payments are a flat monthly allowance based on how heavily you are enrolled. For the period from October 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026, the college and university rates are:³

Full-time: $493.00 per month
Three-quarter time: $369.00 per month
Half-time: $246.00 per month
Less than half-time: $123.25 per month

Trade and vocational school programs pay the same monthly amounts. If your term begins or ends partway through a month, the VA prorates the payment: enrolling on the 20th of a month, for instance, gets you roughly one-third of the rate for that month.³

These amounts are modest compared to the Post-9/11 GI Bill and were never designed to cover full tuition and living costs on their own. Most reservists and Guard members combine MGIB-SR with federal tuition assistance, state tuition waivers for Guard members, and scholarships.

Kicker Payments

Some branches offer an additional monthly amount called a kicker to members in certain military occupational specialties. If your branch authorized a kicker when you enlisted or reenlisted, the VA adds it on top of the standard rate.³ The dollar figure is set by the military department, not the VA, and it should appear in your enlistment or reenlistment contract.

Apprenticeships and On-the-Job Training

Apprenticeship and on-the-job training programs pay on a declining schedule:³

Months 1 through 6: $369.75 per month
Months 7 through 12: $271.15 per month
After the first year: $172.55 per month

You must log at least 120 hours of work each month to receive the full amount. As the monthly payments drop, the VA charges less against your 36 months of entitlement, so the benefit lasts longer in these programs.

What You Can Use It For

Chapter 1606 covers undergraduate and graduate coursework at accredited colleges and universities, vocational and technical school programs, apprenticeships and on-the-job training, and correspondence courses.³

Flight training is covered at 60% of approved charges, though you generally need a private pilot’s license and a valid medical certificate before the VA will pay for advanced flight courses. Correspondence courses pay 55% of the approved cost based on the lessons you complete.³

You can also use the benefit for professional licensing and certification exams, up to $2,000 per test. The VA reimburses you whether you pass or fail, and each reimbursement counts against your 36 months of entitlement based on the dollar amount paid rather than a flat monthly deduction.⁴ For someone working through several certifications, the entitlement cost per test is often well below a full month.

When Benefits End

Eligibility is tied directly to your Reserve or Guard membership. The day you leave the Selected Reserve, your benefits generally end, which can catch people off guard if they separate mid-semester.¹

You can keep benefits for up to 14 years from the start of your original six-year obligation if any of these apply:¹

You left the Selected Reserve because of a disability not caused by misconduct.
Your unit was deactivated between October 1, 2007 and September 30, 2014.
You were involuntarily separated for reasons other than misconduct between October 1, 2007 and September 30, 2014.

If you are mobilized to active duty, the VA extends your eligibility period by the length of your mobilization plus four months. A 12-month deployment adds 16 months to your eligibility window, and that extension applies even if you later leave the Selected Reserve.¹

No matter how long your eligibility window stays open, the combined total is capped at 36 months of education benefits.¹

How to Apply

Start by getting your Notice of Basic Eligibility (DD Form 2384-1) from your Reserve or Guard unit. Your unit also codes your eligibility into the Department of Defense personnel system so the VA can verify it electronically.¹ If your unit hasn’t issued the form, ask your unit administrator or readiness NCO. Without the NOBE on file, expect delays.

The application is VA Form 22-1990, “Application for VA Education Benefits.” You can submit it online at VA.gov, mail it in, or work through a school certifying official.⁵ The online route is fastest. The form asks for your personal information, service details, and the program and institution you plan to attend.

Once the VA processes your application, you receive a Certificate of Eligibility. Take it to the VA certifying official at your school. That official certifies your enrollment to the VA each term, which triggers your monthly payments.⁶ You don’t reapply each semester, but the certifying official does need to submit enrollment information every term.

Verify Your Enrollment Every Month

To keep payments coming, you have to verify your enrollment monthly. Skip a verification and the VA pauses payments until you catch up. You confirm your credit hours or clock hours and the start and end dates for that month, and the VA offers text message, email, an online tool, the Ask VA portal, and phone as verification methods.⁷ When you first start your program, the VA reaches out to ask which method you prefer.

Taxes

Chapter 1606 payments are tax-free. You do not report them as income on your federal return, and that applies whether the payments go to you, a dependent, or a survivor.⁸ Expenses covered by the benefit cannot be double-counted when claiming education tax credits.

1
Department of Veterans Affairs. Montgomery GI Bill Selected Reserve (MGIB-SR)
2
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Montgomery GI Bill – Selected Reserve
3
Veterans Affairs. Montgomery GI Bill Selected Reserve (Chapter 1606) Rates
4
Veterans Affairs. Licensing and Certification Tests and Prep Courses
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Veterans Affairs. About VA Form 22-1990
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Veterans Affairs. After You Apply for Education Benefits
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Veterans Affairs. Verify Your School Enrollment
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Department of Veterans Affairs. How VA Education Benefit Payments Affect Your Taxes