Survivors' & Dependents' Educational Assistance Chapter 35
 

Benefit Description

Survivors' & Dependents Educational Assistance is an education benefit for eligible spouses and children of certain veterans.  Eligible persons can receive up to 45 months of full-time or equivalent training for:

  • college, business Courses
  • technical or vocational courses
  • correspondence courses (spouses only)
  • apprenticeship/job training

  • remedial, deficiency & refresher training (in some cases)

Who is Eligible?

A claimant must be the son, daughter or spouse of:

  • a veteran who died or is permanently and totally disabled as the result of a service-connected disability. The disability must arise out of active services in the Armed Forces.

  • a veteran who died from any cause while such service-connected disability was in existence.

  • a service member missing in action or captured in line of duty by a hostile force.

  • a service member forcibly detained or interned in line of duty by a foreign government power.

Period of Eligibility

 

If you are a son or a daughter and wish to receive benefits for attending school or on the job training, you must be between the ages of 18 and 26. In certain instances, you may begin before the age 18 and continue after 26. Marriage is not a bar to this benefit.  You may not receive this benefit while on active duty in the Armed Forces.  To pursue training after military service, your discharge must not be under dishonorable conditions. VA can extend your period of eligibility by the number of months and days you spent on active duty; however, this extension generally cannot go beyond your 31st birthday.

 

If you are a spouse, benefits end 10 years from the date VA determines your eligibility.

 

How to Apply

 
For more information, visit http://www.gibill.va.gov.
 

NOTE:  If you are not eligible for Chapter 35 educational benefits but are the dependent of a disabled veteran, contact your County Veteran Service Office (CVSO) for information about the California Department of Veteran Affairs (CDVA)Fee Waiver Program.