Chapter 33 VA Benefits for 2026-2027: The Six Tiers, the $30,908.34 Private School Cap, and What Housing Pays Near Five Bases
Chapter 33 is the Post-9/11 GI Bill. VA's rates for August 1, 2026 to July 31, 2027 are set; here is what each tier pays, and how the housing compares with the BAH you drew on active duty.
The bottom line up front
- 1.Chapter 33 is the Post-9/11 GI Bill; VA's rates for August 1, 2026 to July 31, 2027 are published, and the 2027-2028 rates are due in March 2027.
- 2.At 100 percent: full net in-state tuition and fees at a public school, up to $30,908.34 a year at a private school, up to $1,000 a year for books.
- 3.Six tiers from 50 percent (90 days) to 100 percent (1,095 days, a Purple Heart, or a service-connected disability discharge after 30 continuous days) scale every payment.
- 4.Housing starts from the 2026 E-5 with-dependents BAH at the school: $1,869.00 in San Antonio, $3,975.00 in San Diego, at 100 percent and full time.
- 5.No housing is paid on active duty, to a spouse using transferred benefits while the member serves, or at half time or less.
Chapter 33 of title 38 is the Post-9/11 GI Bill, and VA's rates for it run from August 1, 2026 to July 31, 2027. At the 100 percent tier VA pays net tuition and mandatory fees in full at a public school, up to $30,908.34 a year at a private school, up to $1,000 a year for books, and a monthly housing allowance built on the 2026 BAH for an E-5 with dependents at the school's location. All of that is settled: it is VA's published rate page, last updated October 13, 2026. What is not settled is the 2027-2028 academic year. VA's future-rates page says to "check back in March 2027."
Status as of October 14, 2026
Settled: the Chapter 33 rates and tiers below, effective August 1, 2026 through July 31, 2027, and the statute behind them, 38 U.S.C. 3313. Not yet published: the rates for August 1, 2027 onward, which VA says it will post in March 2027. The housing figures in this article use the 2026 BAH table, the same table VA names for this academic year.
Your tier sets every number
VA calls the percentage your "eligibility tier," and it multiplies tuition, housing and books alike. The rate page is blunt about it: "multiply the rates on this page by your percentage." The tier comes from total active duty after September 10, 2001, with or without breaks. You get 100 percent at 1,095 days, or with a Purple Heart received on or after September 11, 2001, or after at least 30 continuous days of active duty ending in a discharge for a service-connected disability.
Tier
| Tier | Active duty served | Private school cap a year | Books a year | Housing, San Antonio (TX285) | Housing, San Diego (CA038) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100% | 1,095 days or more (36 months) | $30,908.34 | $1,000.00 | $1,869.00 | $3,975.00 |
| 90% | 910 to 1,094 days (30 to 35 months) | $27,817.51 | $900.00 | $1,682.10 | $3,577.50 |
| 80% | 730 to 909 days (24 to 29 months) | $24,726.67 | $800.00 | $1,495.20 | $3,180.00 |
| 70% | 545 to 729 days (18 to 23 months) | $21,635.84 | $700.00 | $1,308.30 | $2,782.50 |
| 60% | 180 to 544 days (6 to 17 months) | $18,545.00 | $600.00 | $1,121.40 | $2,385.00 |
| 50% | 90 to 179 days (90 days to 5 months) | $15,454.17 | $500.00 | $934.50 | $1,987.50 |
Housing in the table is monthly, for a full-time student taking classes in person. The starting figure is the 2026 E-5 with-dependents BAH from the DTMO table in our BAH rates tool: $1,869.00 in San Antonio and $3,975.00 in San Diego. The same 100 percent figure is $1,806.00 at Fort Bragg (NC182), $2,430.00 in Norfolk (VA298) and $2,433.00 at Eglin (FL056).
Your rank stops mattering the day you enroll
The statute pegs the stipend to "a member with dependents in pay grade E-5," whatever grade you left at. For a junior enlisted veteran that is a raise over the BAH you had. For a senior NCO or a field-grade officer it is a cut, and the cut grows with the cost of the city. The table compares 2026 with-dependents BAH by grade with the 100 percent, full-time Chapter 33 housing at the same location.
Grade at separation
| Grade at separation | 2026 BAH with dependents, San Antonio | Chapter 33 housing ($1,869.00) vs that BAH | 2026 BAH with dependents, San Diego | Chapter 33 housing ($3,975.00) vs that BAH |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| E-3 | $1,728.00 | $141.00 more | $3,666.00 | $309.00 more |
| E-5 | $1,869.00 | Same | $3,975.00 | Same |
| E-7 | $2,112.00 | $243.00 less | $4,446.00 | $471.00 less |
| O-1 | $1,905.00 | $36.00 less | $4,032.00 | $57.00 less |
| O-3 | $2,127.00 | $258.00 less | $4,518.00 | $543.00 less |
| O-5 | $2,457.00 | $588.00 less | $5,493.00 | $1,518.00 less |
A retiring O-5 who plans a degree in San Diego should budget for $1,518.00 a month less housing money than the BAH line on the last LES, before any tier or part-time cut. Check your own location in the GI Bill Guide.
Part time, online and active duty
Housing is prorated a second time by your "rate of pursuit," which VA rounds to the nearest tenth. VA's own example: 9 credits at a school where 12 is full time is 80 percent. The rate of pursuit must be more than 50 percent, so a student at half time or less gets no housing at all, only tuition and books.
Online-only students get a flat national rate instead of the school's ZIP code. The statute sets it at 50 percent of the national average BAH, and VA's rate page (updated October 13, 2026) puts it at $1,198.00 a month at the 100 percent tier for 2026-27, half of the $2,396.00 national average that foreign-school students receive. Taking at least one class in person moves you to the resident rate for that campus.
Two groups get no housing payment at all, per the rate page: anyone "on active duty," and a spouse "using transferred benefits while the Veteran is on active duty." An Airman taking night classes on Chapter 33 gets tuition and books, and a spouse using a transferred benefit gets the housing only after the member separates or retires. For classes while serving, compare the Tuition Assistance cap first, and for a spouse, MyCAA.
Worked example
A veteran with 26 months of active duty, 9 credits a term at a school in San Antonio
Books pay $41.67 per credit hour for up to 24 credits a year, within the $1,000 yearly limit. Housing is paid at the end of each month and stops during breaks between terms. A public school bills 80 percent of net in-state tuition and fees for this student; the other 20 percent is the student's.
Chapter 33 is not Chapter 35 or 1606
Searches for "ch 33" often sit next to "ch 35" and "1606." Chapter 35 is Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance for certain spouses and children of veterans, paid at $1,621.00 a month full time from October 1, 2026. Chapter 1606 is the Montgomery GI Bill for the Selected Reserve. Their deadlines are in Does the GI Bill expire?. If disability is part of your discharge, start with the VA disability calculator.
Rates and verification
Chapter 33 rates are VA's academic year 2026-2027 figures. BAH figures are the FY2026 DTMO rates effective January 1, 2026. VA computes your actual award from your certificate of eligibility and your school's enrollment certification; verify with VA and, for active duty pay figures, with your finance office.
Sources
- U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Post-9/11 GI Bill (Chapter 33) rates, effective August 1, 2026 to July 31, 2027: eligibility tiers 100% (1,095 days, Purple Heart on or after September 11, 2001, or 30 continuous days with a service-connected disability discharge), 90% (910 to 1,094 days), 80% (730 to 909), 70% (545 to 729), 60% (180 to 544), 50% (90 to 179); private and foreign school cap $30,908.34; flight training $17,661.89; correspondence $15,012.59; MHA based on 2026 E-5 with-dependents BAH, prorated by tier and rate of pursuit (more than 50% required; 9 of 12 credits = 80%); no MHA on active duty or for a spouse using transferred benefits while the Veteran is on active duty; books up to $1,000 a year, $41.67 per credit hour up to 24 credits; rural relocation $500; page last updated October 13, 2026 (https://www.va.gov/education/benefit-rates/post-9-11-gi-bill-rates/), read October 14, 2026
- U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Future rates for Post-9/11 GI Bill: "Check back in March 2027" for August 1, 2027 to July 31, 2028 (https://www.va.gov/education/benefit-rates/post-9-11-gi-bill-rates/future-rates/), read October 14, 2026
- 38 U.S.C. 3313(c)(1)(B): monthly stipend for more than half-time pursuit at the BAH for "a member with dependents in pay grade E-5" in the school's military housing area; distance learning at 50 percent of the national average BAH (https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/38/3313)
- Defense Travel Management Office, 2026 BAH with dependents, effective January 1, 2026, as carried in server/data/bah-rates.json: San Antonio TX285 E-3 $1,728, E-5 $1,869, E-7 $2,112, O-1 $1,905, O-3 $2,127, O-5 $2,457; San Diego CA038 E-3 $3,666, E-5 $3,975, E-7 $4,446, O-1 $4,032, O-3 $4,518, O-5 $5,493; E-5 Fort Bragg NC182 $1,806, Norfolk VA298 $2,430, Eglin FL056 $2,433 (https://www.travel.dod.mil/Allowances/Basic-Allowance-for-Housing/)
- U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance (Chapter 35) rates effective October 1, 2026: $1,621.00 full time, as carried in server/data/va-education-rates.json (https://www.va.gov/family-and-caregiver-benefits/education-and-careers/dependents-education-assistance/rates/)
Figures reflect 2026 rates and regulations. This guide is general information, not personalized financial or tax advice. Always verify with your finance office or a tax professional before making a decision. How we research and source: our methodology.
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Run your own numbers
REF: Military Toolkit Guides, effective 2026
Official 2026 DoD, DFAS, DTMO, IRS, and VA sources. See each guide’s Sources list
Results are estimates. Always verify with your finance office.
Reviewed by Guilherme Correia · Military Toolkit editorial