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VA GI Bill – Military Housing Allowance (MHA) for Veterans�

Program Utilization for DOL Registered Apprenticeships

By: Jamie Pace – Director of Apprenticeship Administration for Fastport

jamie.pace@fastport.com

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VA GI Bill – Military Housing Allowance (MHA) Benefits

Veteran GI Bill Benefits are best known as a means for Veterans to pay for their education once they transition out of the Military.
These benefits can also be utilized for Department of Labor (DOL) Registered Apprenticeship (RA) Programs.
Employers with DOL RA Programs must go through an application process with the VA to become a GI Bill Benefit provider.
This allows RA Employers to process MHA Benefits for eligible Veterans who are actively enrolled as a DOL Registered Apprentice and training in their program on a monthly basis.
This is a Monthly Housing Allowance payment for the Veteran they receive from their available GI Bill funds and is in addition to their wages as a Registered Apprentice W2 employee, and is an excellent recruiting and retention tool for Veteran talent.

MHA Benefits are Paid Directly to the Veteran Registered Apprentice

The MHA Benefit payment amount is based on location that the Registered Apprenticeship Training is conducted in, pending approval by the VA.
The benefit amount varies by each DOL RA Training location's zip code; however, the average is $1600 per month.
Benefits start at a 100% payment amount then decrease by 20% every 6 months until they reach 40%. Benefits then stay at 20% for the remainder of their Registered Apprenticeship enrollment if the RA term length is beyond 2 years.
After the Veteran connects their benefits to the RA employer's VA approved location and enrollment and hours reporting is completed by the RA employer with the VA, these funds are directly deposited by the VA into the Veteran Registered Apprentice’s account. (The funds do not route through the RA employer.)

MHA Payment Examples

VA Approved Facility Codes Required for Participation

A VA application for a Facility Code(s) must be submitted for each location and apprenticeship occupation where an employer provides DOL RA Program training. This is needed so a Veteran can 'attach' their GI Bill benefits to the VA approved RA Program location they are training at.

RA employers that have multiple RA Training sites can apply for Facility Codes in multiple states if they have a National DOL RA program, or within the states where they have State DOL RA Programs.

The application is submitted to the VA's SAA (State Approving Agency.) Once approved, the VA issues a Facility Code for each location, which allows an RA employer to process MHA Benefits for any Veteran that wants to access their benefits, and is an active DOL Registered Apprentice who is training in that specific facility and occupation.

The time from application submission to approval of a Facility Code can take an average of 4 months or less. Once the VA's SAA (State Approving Agency) approves your application, it is then sent to the National VA Office to issue the Facility Code.

Veterans MUST be enrolled in the participating employer's Department of Labor Registered Apprenticeship Program to be eligible to access GI Bill MHA Benefits. They are only eligible to receive MHA Benefits for the timeframe they are an active Apprentice.

For Veterans that are enrolled in your Registered Apprenticeship prior to Facility Code approval, you can process 'back pay' for them once your Facility Code is approved, from their Registered Apprenticeship Start Date. Do not wait to enroll Veterans into your RA program as they will lose these back pay benefits.

Required Documentation for the VA Application for Facility Code(s)

DOL National or State Program Standards
Work Process Schedule for the Occupation
Blank DOL-ETA671 Document showing program information.
VA 22-8794 (Provided by the VA) and Certifying Officials Training Certification Requirement

This document outlines who you designate as SCO's – School (RA Program) Certifying Officials. Anyone listed on this document will be responsible for properly administering the program and will need to complete VA SCO Training for 'OJT / Apprenticeship Programs to obtain a Certificate of Completion and provide the Certificates to the VA.

The information you provide on this document MUST match your RA Work Process Schedule and ETA671 documents.

Once Approved, how are MHA Benefits Processed?

Once an RA employer has been approved for a Facility Code(s) any SCO's (that were listed on the VA 22-8764 document for each location, must complete the VA's Enrollment Manager Training. Enrollment Manager is a secure VA Website where the employer will manage and process all Veteran Registered Apprentice MHA Benefits.
A Veteran Registered Apprentice must first 'connect' their GI Bill Benefits with the approved Facility Code and it's corresponding training location information, which the employer must provide to them to begin the process.
Once completed, the employer will 'enroll' that Veteran in Enrollment Manger and will enter any hours that Veteran works in the Registered Apprenticeship on a monthly basis. A best practice is to process these hours on the 1st business day of each month for the previous month's hours worked.
Once approved by the VA, they will direct deposit the MHA payment into the Veteran's account.
Employers must keep all records and documentation such as ETA671's, RA Training progress records, Hours and Payroll for each Veteran Enrolled.