Student Veteran Benefit Restoration Act of 2025
The Student Veteran Benefit Restoration Act of 2025 would add a new provision to title 38 U.S.C. that allows certain VA education benefits to be restored for individuals who were defrauded by educational institutions that received VA payments. Specifically, if a school was not approved, violated fraud-related provisions, was found guilty of fraud by a court, or was closed by the Department of Justice for fraud or related violations, any VA education assistance paid for that period would not count against the beneficiary’s entitlement or toward the total periods of entitlement. Institutions from which benefits are restored must repay the government for the restored portion, and the Secretary could recoup those funds from the institution (including via the Treasury). The bill also creates an appeals process for institutions and defines key terms, expanding accountability for schools and aiming to ensure veterans can recover benefits they were entitled to despite institutional fraud.
Key Points
- 1Restoration of entitlement: The Secretary must treat payments of covered educational assistance to a veteran or eligible student for courses at certain problematic institutions as not charged against the individual’s VA education entitlement or the period of eligibility.
- 2Covered periods: Restoration applies to periods after enactment during which the institution was not approved, had approval revoked, violated applicable fraud provisions, was found guilty of fraud by a court, or was closed by the Department of Justice for fraud or related violations.
- 3Repayment by institutions: Institutions must repay to the VA the portion of the educational assistance that was restored to the student’s entitlement.
- 4Recoupment authority: If an institution is found guilty of fraud and ordered to provide financial relief to the federal government, the Secretary may file a Treasury claim to recoup all VA education funds obtained through that fraud.
- 5Appeals and definitions: The act provides a separate appeals process for institutions challenging such findings and defines terms like “covered educational assistance,” “covered individual,” and “fraud.”