For those who serve our country through the National Guard or Reserve, you may qualify for a wide range of benefits offered by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). VA benefits include disability compensation; pension; home loan guaranty; education; health care; insurance; burial; and vocational rehabilitation and employment.
All National Guard and Reserve members discharged or released under conditions that are not dishonorable are eligibility for some VA benefits. To determine eligibility for specific benefits, the VA considers different factors, such as length of service, service commitment and/or duty status, wartime service, and/or a service-related disability.
Active service in the National Guard or Reserve includes:
- Active duty (Title10) – full time duty in the Armed Forces, such as unit deployment during war, including travel to and from such duty, except active duty for training, or
- Full-time National Guard duty (Title 32) – duty performed for which members are entitled to receive pay from the Federal government.
Traditional National Guard and Reserve members usually service one weekend per month and two weeks per year. Eligibility for disability compensation requires that a disability was the result of an injury or disease incurred or aggravated in the line of duty during active duty or active duty training. For inactive duty training, the disability must have resulted from injury, heart attack or stroke. Other benefits require a specified number of days of active service.
For more information about VA benefits for National Guard and Reserve members, visit www.benefits.va.gov/guardreserve.