Is There a Deadline for Switching GI Bills?

Hi Jeffrey, Regardless of the rumors you may hear, there is no deadline for switching between the Montgomery GI Bill and the Post 9/11 GI Bill.  I say that because I hear from a lot of active duty service members that they are being told they have to make a decision as to which GI Bill they plan to use prior to leaving the military.

The only deadlines that you need to be concerned with are when your GI Bill benefits expire.  You have 10 years from your active duty separation date to use your Montgomery GI Bill benefits and 15 years to use your Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits.  Those time periods can be extended if you go back onto active duty for a least 90 days, in which case they start over when you leave active duty the second time.

I recommend that service members and veterans not make a decision on which GI Bill they plan to use until they know exactly what their planned education program is going to be.  It is very easy to switch from the Montgomery GI Bill to the Post 9/11 GI Bill, but it can be very difficult to switch back if you think you made a mistake.  Wait until you know what type of school you plan to attend and what your course of study is going to be, and then do a GI Bill comparison prior to making your GI Bill decision.

One last thing to keep in mind, if you are eligible for both GI Bills and you use all 36 months of your Montgomery GI Bill benefits, you can receive 12 months of Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits for a total of 48 months of benefits.  If you switch prior to using all of your MGIB, you are only going to receive a total of 36 months of benefits.