How to Get VA Licensing and Certification Test Reimbursement

You can get VA licensing and certification test reimbursement of up to $2,000 per exam by filing VA Form 22-0803 with proof you paid for and took an approved test.¹ The benefit runs through your GI Bill entitlement and covers professional exams across fields like nursing, IT, commercial driving, and the trades. Pass or fail, the VA pays the fee back as long as the test is on its approved list and you have entitlement left.

What the Reimbursement Actually Pays For

The VA reimburses the fee the testing organization charges you to sit for the exam, up to $2,000 per test.¹ A $350 exam gets you $350 back. A $2,400 exam gets you $2,000 back and you cover the remaining $400 yourself.²

Two costs are not covered. The first is the separate fee a state board or licensing authority charges to issue your credential after you pass. The second is textbooks and study materials.³

One boundary trips people up. “Certification” here means a credential earned by passing a test in a specific field, not a certificate handed out at the end of a training program.³ Finishing a coding bootcamp and getting a completion certificate does not qualify. Sitting for and passing the CompTIA Security+ exam does.

Prep Courses

If you’re using the Post-9/11 GI Bill (Chapter 33) or Survivors’ and Dependents’ Educational Assistance (Chapter 35), the VA also reimburses preparatory courses tied to an approved test. Entitlement for prep courses is charged in proportion to the fee.¹ Prep courses are not covered under the Montgomery GI Bill (Chapter 30) or the Montgomery GI Bill Selected Reserve (Chapter 1606).

Which GI Bill Chapters Qualify

Post-9/11 GI Bill (Chapter 33): test fees and prep courses.
Montgomery GI Bill Active Duty (Chapter 30): test fees only.
Montgomery GI Bill Selected Reserve (Chapter 1606): test fees only.
Survivors’ and Dependents’ Educational Assistance (Chapter 35): test fees and prep courses.

You need remaining entitlement under whichever chapter you’re claiming before you file.

Confirm the Test Is Approved Before You Pay

Not every professional exam qualifies. A test must either be required by federal, state, or local law for entry into a profession, or be generally accepted by employers as proof of competency in the field. Any test offered by a state or local government entity is automatically approved.⁴

Verify approval on the GI Bill Comparison Tool for licenses, certifications, and prep courses. Type the credential name into the “L&C Name” field and set the category to “Both” to catch every match.¹ If the test shows up, you’re clear to sit for it and file. If it doesn’t, contact the VA before spending anything.

How the Reimbursement Charges Your Entitlement

Every reimbursement burns some of your remaining GI Bill months. Since August 2018, the VA calculates the charge in days: it divides the amount paid by the applicable academic-year rate, multiplies by 30, and rounds to the nearest whole day, with a one-day minimum.⁵

The rate depends on chapter and updates each academic year. From August 1, 2025 through July 31, 2026:

Chapter 33: one month of entitlement per $2,496.26 paid.²
Chapter 1606: one month of entitlement per $493.00 paid.⁶

Worked example under Chapter 33: a $500 exam divided by $2,496.26, times 30, is roughly 6 days of entitlement. A $2,000 exam at the cap runs about 24 days. Multiple credentials add up, so check what you have left before filing.

Filing VA Form 22-0803

The form is VA Form 22-0803, Request for Reimbursement of Licensing or Certification Test Fees.⁷ The paperwork behind it is where most delays happen, so pull everything together before you start.

What you need:

The exact test name as it appears on official documents from the testing organization.
The date you sat for the exam.
The total fee you paid.
The testing organization’s name and address.
A copy of your test results, whether you passed or failed.¹
Proof of payment (credit card statement, canceled check, or receipt) that clearly links you to the specific test.

Confirm your Social Security number and VA file number are right on the form. Any mismatch between the fee you report and the amount on your receipt will trigger a follow-up or denial.

The quickest way to submit is uploading the completed form and documents through QuickSubmit on the AccessVA portal, which returns a confirmation number for tracking.¹ Paper filers mail the packet to the Regional Processing Office that handles their state.⁸ Approved claims are paid by direct deposit to the account the VA has on file, or by mailed check if no deposit information is on record.

Retakes and Failed Attempts

Failing the exam does not disqualify you. The VA reimburses each attempt, and there’s no cap on how many times you can retake the same test or how many different tests you can claim, as long as entitlement remains.³ Each attempt is its own claim and its own entitlement charge, so a retake on a difficult exam costs you real days of benefits.

Taxes

Reimbursements under this program are tax-free. The VA lists licensing and certification test fees among the education benefits that should not be reported as income, and you won’t get a 1099 or W-2 for the payment.⁹

If Your Claim Is Denied

You have one year from the date on the decision letter to request a Higher-Level Review using VA Form 20-0996. In that review, a more senior adjudicator re-examines the existing record without new evidence.¹⁰ Because licensing and certification reimbursement isn’t among the standard benefit types on the form, follow the specific instructions on your denial letter, which may require filing by mail or in person rather than online.

If new evidence has surfaced, such as a corrected receipt or updated results, a Supplemental Claim is the better route. Most denials in this program come down to missing documents or a test that wasn’t on the approved list, so verifying approval before you pay and assembling clean paperwork before you file is the best way to avoid an appeal.

1
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Licensing and Certification Tests and Prep Courses
2
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Post-9/11 GI Bill Chapter 33 Rates
3
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Licensing and Certification Test Reimbursement Fact Sheet
4
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 38 USC 3689 – Approval Requirements for Licensing and Certification Testing
5
eCFR. 38 CFR Part 21 Subpart P – Entitlement
6
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Montgomery GI Bill Selected Reserve Chapter 1606 Rates
7
Department of Veterans Affairs. VA Form 22-0803 – Request for Reimbursement of Licensing or Certification Test Fees
8
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Regional Processing Office Addresses for GI Bill Applications
9
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. How VA Education Benefit Payments Affect Your Taxes
10
Veterans Affairs. Higher-Level Reviews