Who Can Get a VA Loan?

Eligibility

To get a VA backed loan, you must fall under one of four groups. These groups include veterans, active duty personnel, National Guard members and surviving spouses of a veteran who died due to military service. You will need a Certificate of Eligibility to prove your eligibility for a VA loan. Except for surviving spouses, you can apply online for the certificate, request it by mail by submitting VA Form 26-1880 or apply for it through your mortgage lender. Surviving spouses must request the certificate by mail using VA Form 26-1817.

To qualify for a VA loan, veterans must meet certain service requirements. Veterans with a dishonorable discharge require review by the VA to qualify. Depending on when you served, you will need either 90 days, 181 days or 24 months of continuous active duty. There are some exceptions to these requirements such as those discharged early due to a disability. Those currently in the military must have completed at least 181 days of regular duty. Reservists and National Guard personnel must complete at least 6 years of service. You can find a complete listing of service requirements on the VA's website.

Surviving spouses of veterans who died because of their service, while on active duty or because of a disability connected to a service injury, will be eligible for a VA-backed mortgage loan. In addition, spouses qualify if the serviceperson's status is missing in action or a prisoner of war. However, spouses who remarry may be ineligible for a VA loan.

Once you obtain a VA loan, you are usually eligible for a second VA loan after you pay off your first VA loan and sell your property. You will need to submit VA Form 26-1880 and evidence of paying off the earlier VA loan to obtain the second one. If you default on the loan, or another veteran assumes and defaults on the loan, you lose your eligibility for a second VA loan. When you pay off a VA loan without selling the property, but want a second VA loan, the VA will allow a second loan on a one-time basis.