WHO IS A VETERAN?

The United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) provides a broad range of benefits to uniformed services Veterans and certain family members. Among these benefits are monthly, tax-free payments to disabled veterans, health care, education benefits, housing assistance, and burial benefits. To receive any of these benefits, a former servicemember must meet certain basic criteria, including the statutory definition of Veteran.

For a former servicemember to establish veteran status, the individual generally must have served in active military service for a minimum period of time (180 days) and been discharged "under conditions other than dishonorable." Reservists and National Guard members may or may not always qualify for veteran status.

An explanation of when individuals who serve in the reserve components —including the National Guard—are considered veterans eligible for VA benefits: 

The statutory definition of veteran contains two key provisions that a servicemember must meet to be considered a veteran by law.

First provision, the servicemember must have served and completed "active military, naval, air, or space service." Active military, naval, air, or space service includes:

  • Active duty;

  • Any period of active duty for training during which the individual was disabled or died from a disease or injury incurred or aggravated in the line of duty; and

  • Any period of inactive duty training during which the individual was disabled or died

  • from an injury incurred or aggravated in the line of duty; or

  • from an acute myocardial infarction, a cardiac arrest, or a cerebrovascular accident occurring during such training.


The second provision is that a servicemember must be discharged from service under "other than dishonorable conditions." That definition includes discharge statuses that have been upgraded from dishonorable to something other than dishonorable or reviewed by VA through its character of discharge process.

Active Duty for Training

A period of active duty for training constitutes active military service only if, during that period, the servicemember was disabled or died from an injury or disease incurred or aggravated in the line of duty. Active duty for training includes

  • full-time duty for training performed by reservists;

  • full-time duty for training purposes as a commissioned officer in the Reserve Corps of the Public Health Service;

  • full-time training duty by members of the Air or Army National Guard;

  • duty by members of the Senior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) program on field training or practice cruise; and

  • authorized travel to and from duty for training.

This training includes the servicemember receiving initial training or advanced individual training as well as acquiring or maintaining his or her military skills throughout service.

Inactive Duty for Training

A period of inactive duty for training constitutes active military service only when the servicemember was disabled or died from an injury—but not a disease—incurred or aggravated in the line of duty or from certain health conditions incurred during the training. Inactive duty for training includes

  • duty, other than full-time duty, for reservists;

  • other duties authorized for reservists performed on a voluntary basis;

  • training (other than active duty for training) by a member of, or applicant for membership in, Senior ROTC; and

  • duty, other than full-time, for members of the Air or Army National Guard.

This training may also include special additional duties performed during training or maintenance activities for the units to which the servicemember is assigned.

For National Guard members, this training may also include unit training assemblies.

Active Duty

Generally, active duty for the purpose of determining active military service means full-time duty, other than active duty for training, as a member of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, and Space Force, including active duty in the reserve components. It also includes full-time duty (other than for training purposes) as a commissioned officer of the Public Health Service and as a commissioned officer of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration or its predecessors. Additionally, service as a cadet at the U.S. Military, Air Force, or Coast Guard Academies or as a midshipman at the U.S. Naval Academy qualifies as active duty. Finally, authorized travel to or from duty or service of any of the individuals described in this section is considered active duty.

The situations listed above are the most common. Each individual (situation) is distinct, unique and must be verified.