Minnesota GI Bill: Eligibility, Benefits, and How to Apply

The Minnesota GI Bill is a state-funded education benefit that provides up to $15,000 in lifetime assistance to eligible Minnesota veterans, certain current service members, and some surviving spouses and children. Administered by the Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs (MDVA), it works as a “last dollar in” benefit: it fills the gap left after federal grants, state aid, and federal military education benefits are applied, and it can be used for higher education, on-the-job training and apprenticeship, or professional licensing and certification.¹

Who Qualifies

Three groups can apply, each with its own service or relationship test.¹

Veterans who served honorably in any branch of the U.S. armed forces.
Non-veteran service members with at least five cumulative years of honorable service in the Minnesota National Guard or any U.S. active or reserve component, with some of that service on or after September 11, 2001.
Surviving spouses and children of a service member who died or who has a 100% permanent and total service-connected disability rating from the VA. These applicants must also qualify for federal Chapter 33 (Fry Scholarship) or Chapter 35 benefits and provide a certificate of eligibility.²

Every applicant must be a Minnesota resident under state law. The higher education benefit is limited to applicants under age 62. The benefit is not automatic year to year; you have to reapply annually.¹

What the Benefit Pays For

The $15,000 lifetime cap is a single ceiling that covers all three benefit tracks combined. You can use one track or move between them, but the total across your lifetime cannot exceed $15,000.¹

Higher Education

Students enrolled in a Title IV-eligible certificate, diploma, undergraduate, or graduate program at a participating Minnesota school can receive up to $5,000 per academic year. The benefit also covers admission tests such as the SAT, GRE, and LSAT, preparatory courses for those tests, and national exams that offer course credit. Instead of paying for tuition, fees, and books as separate line items, the statute uses a cost-of-attendance formula: the school’s cost of attendance minus federal Pell Grants, state grants, and any federal military or veterans education benefits, with the state benefit covering the remainder up to the annual and lifetime caps.³ You must file the FAFSA and enroll at a Minnesota institution that has a participation agreement with the MDVA.¹

On-the-Job Training and Apprenticeship

Veterans training with an approved employer or apprenticeship program can receive up to $2,000 per fiscal year, paid out after every six months of training. The training must be with an employer approved by the Minnesota State Approving Agency and must lead to an entry-level position requiring at least six months of training. The total paid to or on behalf of one individual in a single fiscal year is capped at $5,000.¹⁴

Licensing and Certification

Up to $3,000 per state fiscal year is available to reimburse fees for professional licensing or certification tests, admission tests for higher education or graduate school, national tests that can yield course credit, and preparatory courses for qualifying exams.¹

How It Stacks With Federal Aid

The Minnesota GI Bill pays last. When you apply, the MDVA looks at your cost of attendance and subtracts every other public source of aid you receive or are eligible to receive: federal Pell Grants, Minnesota state grants, and federal military or veterans benefits such as the Post-9/11 GI Bill or Montgomery GI Bill. Whatever eligible cost remains is what the state benefit covers, subject to the annual and lifetime caps.⁵⁶ Veterans with substantial federal coverage will draw a smaller state benefit; those with less federal coverage will draw more.

How To Apply

Applications go through the MDVA’s online GI Bill Portal at gibill.mn.gov. You reapply each year, and the fall-semester window typically opens in the spring.¹

Every applicant uploads a W-9, a DD-214, and a direct deposit form. Track-specific documents are added on top:

Higher education applicants complete the FAFSA.
OJT and apprenticeship applicants upload a training verification form.
Licensing and certification applicants upload receipts for exam, license, certification, or coursework fees.

The MDVA has Education Regional Coordinators around the state, and County Veteran Service Officers can also walk you through the process. You can find a CVSO through the Minnesota Association of County Veteran Service Officers directory or through the Veterans Linkage Line (LinkVet), which takes calls and live chats seven days a week.⁷

Where You Can Use the School Benefit

The higher education track works only at participating postsecondary institutions located in Minnesota. The school must offer Title IV-eligible programs and hold a current participation agreement with the MDVA. A searchable list of participating schools is on the MDVA website. Out-of-state institutions do not qualify.¹

How It Compares to the Federal GI Bill

The Minnesota GI Bill is separate from federal programs such as the Post-9/11 GI Bill, the Montgomery GI Bill, and the Veterans Educational Assistance Program.⁸ Federal programs can pay full tuition and fees along with a monthly housing allowance and book stipend. The state program is smaller by design, capped at $5,000 per academic year and $15,000 over a lifetime, and it applies only to Minnesota residents attending Minnesota schools. Because the state benefit is calculated after federal benefits are subtracted, the two are meant to work together: federal aid pays first, and the Minnesota GI Bill picks up eligible costs that remain.

1
Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs. Minnesota GI Bill
2
University of Minnesota One Stop. Minnesota GI Bill
3
Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minn. Stat. 197.791
4
Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry. GI Bill Benefits and Apprenticeship
5
University of Minnesota One Stop. GI Bill Payments
6
Minnesota House of Representatives Research Department. Military and Veterans Legislation, 2007
7
LinkVet. Minnesota Veterans Education Benefits Guide
8
Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs. Minnesota GI Bill Overview