VA home loans were set up as a way to thank honorably discharged veterans for serving their country. As you’ve already guessed, the VA in VA home loans stands for Veterans Administration. Not everybody who was or is still in the Armed Forces qualifies for VA home loan benefits. If you are not in the Armed Forces anymore, you need to have been honorably discharged in order to qualify. If you are the widow or widower of an honorably discharged veteran, you also qualify.
For Wartime Veterans
If you are a veteran that saw active combat, then you have less stringent eligibility requirements for VA home loan benefits. You need to have served at least 90 days, unless you were honorably discharged before 90 days of service due to getting injured in combat or in training for combat during wartime.
You need to have served during these times in these specific wars to be eligible for a VA home loan:
World War II : September 16, 1940 to July 25, 1947 Korea: June 27, 1950 to January 31, 1955 Vietnam: August 5, 1964 to May 7, 1975 Gulf War: August 2,1990 to a date not yet set Current Gulf War: Check with your local VA office to be sure, but you need to have served 90 days unless honorably discharged before hand
For Peacetime Veterans
You need to have served at least 181 consecutive days during these peacetime periods and be honorably discharged in order to be eligible for a VA home loan:
July 26, 1947 to June 26, 1950 February 1, 1955 to August 4, 1964 May 8, 1975 to September 7, 1980 (for enlisted personnel) May 8, 1975 to October 16, 1981 (for Officers)
Other Veterans
You may also be eligible for a VA home loan if you are:
A foreign veteran of an allied force in World War II A deceased veteran’s spouse who has not remarried The spouse of a veteran who is missing in action The spouse of a veteran who is a prisoner of war A member of certain organizations that help out the armed forces, such as a Public Health Service Officer, merchant seamen who served during WW II or the members of the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration Cadets and students of military training institutions like those for the Air Force, Army or the Coast Guard Academy and midshipmen from the United States Naval Academy.
Hopefully, now that you’ve read this far, you will know if you are really and truly eligible for a VA home loan. Good luck!