Transfer of Education Benefits (TEB)


Transfer of Education Benefits (TEB) is an incentive for continued service offered to Servicemembers who qualify for the Post 9/11 GI Bill®. An approved TEB request allows you to share your Post 9/11 GI Bill with eligible dependents. Depending on how many months of federal benefits you’ve used previously, you may be awarded up to 36 months of the Post 9/11 GI Bill. You still have complete control over Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits and can still use the benefit yourself after receiving approval to transfer.
 
  1. How to qualify:
    1. Must have 6 creditable years of service in any branch/component of the U.S. military.
    2. Must have 4 years remaining on your contract. Your TEB request will be denied if your ETS or MRD is less than 4 years away.
    3. Have at least 90 days of qualifying service for the Post 9/11 GI Bill that has not expired.
      1. Review our Post 9/11 GI Bill webpage for more information on qualifying service and payment eligibility tiers. If you’re not sure if you have qualifying service, please reach out to our office.
    4. Cannot be flagged.
    5. Must have eligible dependents in DEERS.
      1. Dependents who are veterans or current Servicemembers may still have benefits transferred to them.
      2. Children (including stepchildren) must be under age 21, or under 23 if they are a full-time student, on the date of the TEB request.
      3. A ward or foster child is also eligible if placed in your legal custody as a result of a court order for at least 12 months prior to requesting TEB.
 
  1. When can my dependents use benefits?
    1. Spouses can use transferred benefits right away.
    2. Children can use benefits after you’ve completed 10 years of service.
      1. Must be at least 18 years of age or graduated high school.
      2. Must use benefits before their 26th birthday.
 
  1. What happens if my Post 9/11 GI Bill expires?
    1. If your last period of qualifying service ended after 1 January 2013, your eligibility falls under the Forever GI Bill and does not expire. Your benefit expires after 15 years if your last period of qualifying service ended before this date.
 
    1. Once your benefit expires, you and your spouse can no longer use it. Your children can still use the benefit between ages 18-26, even after the 15 years is up. This is why it’s important to TEB before your benefit expires!
 
  1. How does the 48-Month Rule impact my TEB?
    1. Federal GI Bills generally provide benefits for up to 36 months. It's possible to receive up to 48 months of GI Bill benefits overall if you qualify for more than one program. For instance, if you've used all 36 months of a Montgomery GI Bill, you may only have 12 months of the Post 9/11 GI Bill to transfer to your dependents.
    2. If you only have one qualifying period of service for both Chapter 30 and Chapter 33, you will be limited to 36 months of benefits. We recommend reaching out to our office to discuss this before submitting a TEB request.
    3. You can estimate how many months of the Post 9/11 GI Bill you can transfer to dependents by:
      1. Send the VA a message or call the GI Bill Hotline (888-442-4551) to ask how many months of Chapter 1606 or Chapter 30 you’ve used. Subtract this number from 48 (unless you only have one period of service that qualifies for both Chapter 30 and the Post 9/11 GI Bill).
      2. If you’ve used the Post 9/11 GI Bill before, log into your va.gov account and check your remaining benefits.
 
  1. How to request TEB:
    • Verify you meet eligibility. If an extension is required, first contact your Retention NCO.
    • Complete the online application on milConnect.
      • Navigate to Transfer my education benefits.
      • For each eligible family member that you want to receive benefits, enter the number of months to transfer (recommendation is to give each dependent at least one month).
      • Select the Post-9/11 GI Bill Chapter 33 radio button in the Select the educational program from which to transfer benefits section.
      • Select all the boxes in the Transferability of Education Benefits Acknowledgements section to indicate that you have read and understand each statement.
      • Click Submit Request.
Note: You will receive a confirmation email to your @army.mil address, and milConnect will update with an approval/rejection once your TEB request is processed. If you receive a denial that you believe was in error, reach out to ngwi.edu@army.mil or 608.242.3447 for assistance.
  1. How to apply for benefits:
    1. Gather the following information:
      1. social security number
      2. bank account direct deposit information
      3. education history
      4. name of school you want to attend or are attending
    2. Each dependent must establish their own account on va.gov.
    3. Once logged in, your dependent will fill out the online application by navigating to VA Benefits and Health Care ® Family Member Benefits ® Education and Career Benefits for Family Members  ® Transferred Post 9/11 GI Bill Benefits.
    4. The VA will mail a certificate of eligibility (COE). Application processing can take around 30-45 days.
    5. They will notify their School Certifying Official (SCO), so their enrollment is certified to the VA.
    6. Continue to verify their enrollment each month.
GI Bill® is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). More information about education benefits offered by VA is available at the official U.S. government website at the official U.S. government website.