1. Check your eligibility

Make sure you meet our eligibility requirements for enrollment before you apply.

Note: We can help connect you with mental health care—no matter your discharge status, service history, or eligibility for VA health care.

What are the eligibility requirements to enroll in VA health care?

You may be eligible to enroll in VA health care if all of these statements are true:

• You served in the active military, naval, or air service (including being called up from the National Guard or Reserve by a federal order), and
• You didn’t receive a dishonorable discharge, and
• You meet at least one of the service requirements for enrollment

You must meet at least one of these service requirements:

• You served at least 24 months in a row without a break (called continuous), or for your full active-duty period, or
• You were discharged for a service-connected disability, or
• You were discharged for a hardship or “early out,” or
• You served before September 7, 1980

Note: Time spent on active-duty status for training purposes only doesn’t count toward the service requirements.

2. Gather your information

1. Here’s what you’ll need to apply:
   • Social Security numbers for you, your spouse, and your qualified dependents.
   • Your military discharge information If you sign in to apply, we may be able to fill in this information for you. If you don’t sign in to apply, we’ll ask you to upload a copy of your DD214 or other separation documents.
   • Insurance cards for all health insurance companies that cover you. This includes any coverage that you get through a spouse or significant other. This also includes Medicare, private insurance, or insurance from your employer.

   We’ll also ask you for this optional information:

   • Last year’s gross household income for you, your spouse, and your dependents. This includes income from a job and any other sources. Gross household income is your income before taxes and any other deductions.
   • Your deductible expenses for last year These include certain health care and education costs. These expenses will lower the amount of money we count as your income.

It will take you through each step of the process. It should take about 30 minutes.

VA health process health care applications within about a week. We’ll send you a letter in the mail with our decision.

If you don’t receive your decision letter within a week after you apply, please don’t apply again. Call us at 877-222-8387 (TTY: 711). We’re here Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. ET.

When you apply, VA health review this information:

• Your service history
• Your VA disability rating
• Your income level (and the income level of your spouse or other qualified dependents)
• Your eligibility for Medicaid, VA disability compensation, and VA pension benefits

VA health use this information to help decide these 3 things:

• What types of VA health care benefits you’re eligible for, and
• How soon we can enroll you in VA health care, and
• How much (if anything) you’ll have to pay toward the cost of your care

We give Veterans with service-connected disabilities the highest priority.

Note: We ask about other health insurance for billing only. Having other health insurance doesn’t affect your eligibility for VA health care.

Save time and save your work in progress

Here’s how signing in now helps you:

• We can fill in some of your information for you to save you time.
• You can save your work in progress. You’ll have 60 days from when you start or make updates to your application to come back and finish it.

Note: You can sign in after you start your application. But you’ll lose any information you already filled in.

If you have questions about VA health care, call our Health Eligibility Center at 877-222-8387 (TTY: 711) from Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. ET.

If you have trouble using this online application, call our MyVA411 main information line at 800-698-2411 (TTY: 711).