VA Disability College Student Benefits: DEA, GI Bill, and Fry

A service-connected disability opens up several distinct college benefits, and which ones apply depends on who is going to school and what the veteran’s rating and service history look like. A disabled veteran attending college may qualify for Veteran Readiness and Employment. Dependents may qualify for Chapter 35 DEA, a transferred Post-9/11 GI Bill, or the Fry Scholarship if the veteran died in the line of duty. On top of the federal programs, the veteran can receive extra monthly disability compensation for a child in college, and many states waive tuition at public colleges for dependents. Together, these are the VA disability college benefits most families should know about before writing a tuition check.

The programs don’t stack freely. Most dependents can only use one VA education benefit at a time, and picking the right one takes some comparison. Below is what each program covers, who qualifies, and how the pieces fit together.

Extra Dependent Compensation for a Child in College

Veterans rated at 30% or higher already receive additional monthly compensation for dependents. What many families miss is that the VA automatically drops a child from those payments at age 18. To keep the additional amount for a child between 18 and 23 who is enrolled in school, the veteran has to file VA Form 21-674, Request for Approval of School Attendance.¹

As of December 2025, the monthly amount for each qualifying child over 18 in school runs from $105.00 at a 30% rating up to $352.45 at 100%.² The full schedule:

30%: $105.00
40%: $140.00
50%: $176.00
60%: $211.00
70%: $246.00
80%: $281.00
90%: $317.00
100%: $352.45

Normal school breaks such as holidays and vacations don’t interrupt continuous enrollment as long as the student is attending at the end of one term and returns for the next.³ If the student stops going, the veteran needs to tell the VA right away; benefits end the first day of the month after attendance stops. The VA sets an automatic end date at the planned completion date or the child’s 23rd birthday, whichever comes first.

This add-on can’t be paid if the same student is also receiving Chapter 35 DEA, the Fry Scholarship, or certain other federal programs where the government fully supports the student.³

Chapter 35 DEA for Dependents

Survivors’ and Dependents’ Educational Assistance, known as Chapter 35 DEA, is the main VA education benefit for children and spouses of veterans with a permanent and total (P&T) service-connected disability. It also covers dependents of veterans who died from a service-connected condition or are missing in action. It pays a flat monthly amount directly to the student for undergraduate and graduate programs, vocational training, apprenticeships, and on-the-job training.⁴

For the 2025–2026 academic year, the full-time monthly rate at an institution of higher learning is $1,574. Three-quarter time pays $1,244 per month, and half-time pays $912.⁵ The benefit provides up to 36 months of entitlement for training that began on or after August 1, 2018.

One thing families often misunderstand: DEA is a single monthly check to the student, not a tuition payment to the school. Unlike the Post-9/11 GI Bill, there’s no separate housing allowance and no book stipend layered on top. The one payment is meant to cover everything.⁵

Age and Time Limits

For children whose eligibility was established on or after August 1, 2023, there is no age limit and no deadline for using DEA. Children whose eligibility was established before that date generally must use the benefit before turning 26, with limited exceptions.⁴

Spouses have parallel rules: no time limit if the qualifying event was on or after August 1, 2023, and generally a 10- to 20-year window for earlier events. Remarriage usually ends a spouse’s eligibility, though it can be restored if the remarriage happened at age 57 or older or if that marriage later ended.⁴

Dependents apply on VA Form 22-5490, filed online through VA.gov or mailed to the regional processing office. The school’s certifying official then submits enrollment information to the VA, and monthly enrollment verification keeps the payments flowing.⁴

Transferring the Post-9/11 GI Bill to a Spouse or Child

When it’s an option, transferring Post-9/11 GI Bill (Chapter 33) benefits is usually the most valuable choice for a dependent. The Post-9/11 GI Bill pays tuition and fees, a monthly housing allowance tied to the school’s location, and a books-and-supplies stipend.⁶

The critical constraint is timing. The transfer request has to be made through the Department of Defense’s milConnect portal while the service member is still on active duty or in the Selected Reserve. The member must have completed at least six years of service and agree to serve another four. Purple Heart recipients are exempt from the service requirements but still have to initiate the transfer while on active duty.⁷

A dependent child can start using transferred benefits once the service member has 10 years of service. The child must be 18 to 26 or have a high school diploma or equivalent. Up to 36 months of entitlement can be transferred, and dependents 18 or older apply on their own through VA.gov.⁷

Dependents using the transferred Post-9/11 GI Bill at the 100% benefit level may also access the Yellow Ribbon Program, which pairs a voluntary school contribution with a VA match to cover tuition beyond the program’s cap at private, foreign, or out-of-state public schools. Participation and slots vary by school, and spots are generally first-come, first-served.⁸⁹

Fry Scholarship for Survivors

The Marine Gunnery Sergeant John David Fry Scholarship gives Post-9/11 GI Bill-level benefits to children and surviving spouses of service members who died in the line of duty on or after September 11, 2001. It covers tuition and fees, a monthly housing allowance, and a books-and-supplies stipend at the 100% benefit rate for up to 36 months.¹⁰

At private or out-of-state schools, tuition is capped; the 2025–2026 cap is $29,920.95, with the Yellow Ribbon Program available to close the gap.¹¹

A child who receives Dependency and Indemnity Compensation must give up those DIC payments to use the Fry Scholarship. A surviving spouse can receive DIC and the Fry Scholarship at the same time.¹⁰

Veteran Readiness and Employment for the Veteran

If the disabled veteran is the one going to college, the program to look at is Veteran Readiness and Employment (Chapter 31), formerly Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment. It’s designed for veterans whose service-connected disability limits their ability to work, and it can fund college as part of a rehabilitation plan.¹²

Eligibility requires at least a 10% disability rating and a discharge other than dishonorable. For veterans discharged on or after January 1, 2013, there is no time limit. For earlier discharges, the basic window is 12 years from separation or from the first VA disability rating, extendable for a serious employment handicap.¹²

VR&E covers post-secondary education at colleges, technical schools, and vocational schools, along with counseling, job training, resume help, and placement. Participants receive a monthly subsistence allowance. For full-time institutional training in 2025–2026, the standard rate is $812.84 per month with no dependents, $1,008.24 with one dependent, and $1,188.15 with two.¹³ Veterans who also qualify for the Post-9/11 GI Bill can elect to receive the housing allowance under that program instead, which is typically higher.¹²

A meaningful advantage: using VR&E does not consume Post-9/11 or Montgomery GI Bill entitlement. The 48-month aggregate cap on VA education benefits generally does not include Chapter 31 benefits.¹⁴

Choosing Between Benefits

Only one VA education benefit can be used at a time.⁴ For a child eligible for both DEA and the Fry Scholarship, the combined cap depends on when the parent died. If the death was before August 1, 2011, the child may use both programs, one at a time, up to a combined 81 months. If the death was on or after that date, the combined cap is 48 months, and the child may only use both if they qualify for DEA through a separate qualifying event.¹⁰ Spouses must make an irrevocable choice between DEA and the Fry Scholarship.¹⁵

For dependents combining Chapter 35 DEA with other VA education programs listed under 38 U.S.C. 3695, the aggregate entitlement cap is 81 months, set by a 2025 VA final rule aligning regulations with the Honoring America’s Veterans and Caring for Camp Lejeune Families Act of 2012.¹⁶

State Tuition Waivers for Dependents

Many states run their own tuition waiver programs for dependents of disabled veterans, and these can be used alongside federal VA benefits. The details vary. A few of the larger programs give a sense of the range:

Texas Hazlewood Act: spouses and children of veterans who are 100% P&T from service-connected conditions get their own exemption of up to 150 hours of tuition and mandatory fees at Texas public institutions, with no age limit. Veterans can also transfer unused Hazlewood hours to one eligible child at a time under the Legacy Act, provided the child is 25 or younger.¹⁷
Virginia Military Survivors and Dependents Education Program (VMSDEP): waives tuition and mandatory fees for up to eight semesters at Virginia public colleges for children ages 16 to 29 and spouses of veterans rated at 90% or higher permanent disability, with a stipend tier for combat-related disabilities.¹⁸
Washington: public colleges must waive undergraduate tuition and fees for up to 200 quarter credits for dependents of 100% disabled veterans or those who died from military service, with a $500 annual book stipend subject to funding.¹⁹
Indiana: children of disabled veterans get a tuition and fee exemption at Indiana public colleges for up to 124 credit hours. For veterans who enlisted before July 1, 2011, the exemption covers 100% of tuition at the undergraduate resident rate. For later enlistments, coverage equals 20% plus the veteran’s VA disability percentage. Students at qualifying private schools who graduated high school on or after January 1, 2023, may receive up to $5,000 annually.²⁰
California (CalVet Plan A): waives mandatory system-wide tuition and fees at community colleges, CSU, and UC campuses for dependents of service-connected disabled or deceased veterans.²¹
Florida: scholarships for children and spouses of veterans who died from a service-connected disability or are 100% P&T. The Congressman C.W. Bill Young Tuition Waiver Program also waives out-of-state fees for honorably discharged veterans and their dependents using GI Bill benefits at Florida public institutions.²²
Illinois: the Children of Veterans Tuition Waiver at the University of Illinois covers four consecutive years of in-state tuition, but is limited to three waivers per county per year, and applicants must be permanent county residents.²³
New York: the MERIT program provides financial aid to dependents of service members who died or became severely and permanently disabled during military duty, and a $450-per-year Regents Award is available to children of deceased or disabled veterans with a rating of 40% or higher.²⁴

If your state isn’t listed, check your state’s department of veterans affairs; many other states run similar programs with their own eligibility rules.

FAFSA and VA Education Benefits

Students using VA education benefits should still file the FAFSA every year. VA education benefits, including Chapter 35 DEA, the Post-9/11 GI Bill, and Veteran Readiness and Employment, are classified as “resources” rather than income for federal student aid and should not be reported as income on the FAFSA. The form does ask for VA education benefit amounts in a specific question, but answering there does not raise the Expected Family Contribution.²⁵

Students on Chapter 35 DEA can receive Pell Grants and state grants alongside the VA payment, because DEA doesn’t pay tuition directly to the school.²⁶ VA education benefits are still treated as a resource that can reduce need-based aid dollar for dollar if total aid plus resources exceeds demonstrated need. Reporting VA education benefits as income by mistake can hurt the student twice: once through a higher family contribution estimate, and again through the resource reduction.²⁵

Non-education VA benefits are handled differently. Disability compensation, death pension, and Dependency and Indemnity Compensation must be reported on the FAFSA as untaxed income.²⁵

Before enrolling, a family should map out which benefits the veteran and each dependent qualify for, compare the monthly value against tuition and living costs at the target school, and check whether the state offers a waiver that changes the math. The right combination often looks different for each child.

1
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Request for Approval of School Attendance (VA Form 21-674)
2
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. VA Disability Compensation Rates
3
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. VA Form 21-674 Instructions
4
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Survivors’ and Dependents’ Educational Assistance
5
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. DEA Benefit Rates
6
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Post-9/11 GI Bill
7
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Transfer Post-9/11 GI Bill Benefits
8
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Yellow Ribbon Program
9
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Yellow Ribbon Frequently Asked Questions
10
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Fry Scholarship
11
My Army Benefits. Fry Scholarship
12
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. VR&E Eligibility
13
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. VR&E Subsistence Allowance Rates
14
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. VA Education Eligibility
15
My Army Benefits. Survivors’ and Dependents’ Education Assistance Program
16
Federal Register. The 81-Month Rule for Dependents Education Assistance
17
Texas Veterans Commission. Hazlewood Act
18
Virginia Department of Veterans Services. VMSDEP
19
Washington Department of Veterans Affairs. Washington Tuition Waiver
20
Indiana Commission for Higher Education. Tuition and Fee Exemption for Children of Disabled Veterans
21
Solano County. CalVet College Fee Waiver Program
22
Florida Department of Veterans’ Affairs. Education Benefits
23
University of Illinois Office of Student Financial Aid. Children of Veterans Tuition Waiver
24
New York State Higher Education Services Corporation. Military and Veteran Families
25
Fastweb. Veterans Education Benefits
26
Monroe Community College. Financial Aid and Your Benefits