VA Loan Forbearance
What veterans need to know before pausing their payments
VA loan forbearance can pause your mortgage payments when a hardship hits.
But paused payments are not forgiven. You will pay them back.
This guide is for veterans and VA loan borrowers facing real financial pressure.
You will learn how forbearance works, how long it lasts, and what your options are when it ends.
You will also learn what changed in 2025 that every veteran with a VA loan needs to know.
In This Article
What VA Loan Forbearance Actually Is
VA loan forbearance is a temporary pause or reduction in your monthly mortgage payments. Your loan servicer approves it, not the VA. To qualify, you need a VA-guaranteed home loan and a documented financial hardship. That hardship might be a job loss, a medical emergency, or a drop in income. The servicer reviews your situation and decides whether to grant the relief.
The most important thing to understand right away: forbearance is not forgiveness. You still owe the payments you skip. They wait for you at the end of the forbearance period. So the goal is not to make those payments disappear. The goal is to buy yourself time to stabilize your finances so you can deal with them later. The VA home loan program has backed more than 28 million loans since 1944, per the Department of Veterans Affairs. The program exists because financial hardships are a normal part of life, and the VA built it to help veterans stay in their homes through them.
For a broader look at what comes with a VA-guaranteed mortgage, our VA loan program page covers the full picture. When you contact your servicer to request forbearance, have your loan account number ready and a clear description of your hardship. The servicer will walk you through their process. The VA also provides guidance on avoiding foreclosure that covers all six options available to veterans who fall behind.
How Long VA Forbearance Lasts
The initial forbearance period runs up to 180 days. That’s roughly six months of payment relief. If your hardship continues after that, you can request an extension. Extensions can add up to another 180 days, putting the potential total at about 12 months for most borrowers. Extensions are not automatic. You have to contact your servicer before the initial period ends, explain that the hardship is ongoing, and make a new request.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the CARES Act expanded those protections. Borrowers with federally backed loans, including VA loans, could request up to 18 months of total forbearance. Those expanded timelines are not available for new requests. If you are entering forbearance now, the standard 180-day window is where you start.
One more protection worth knowing: if your VA loan is 61 days past due, the VA automatically assigns a loan technician to review your file, per VA guidance. That technician can help you work through your options. But the assignment happens at 61 days, not day one. Calling before you hit that mark gives you more room to work with.
One pattern we see consistently: borrowers who stay in contact with their servicer throughout the forbearance period end up with more options at the exit. The ones who go quiet often find the path narrower when the period ends. Don’t wait for your servicer to reach out first. You drive that conversation.
| Phase | Duration | How to Access It |
|---|---|---|
| Initial forbearance period | Up to 180 days | Contact your loan servicer and document your hardship |
| Extension (if hardship continues) | Up to 180 additional days | Request from servicer before initial period ends |
| Standard maximum total | Up to 360 days | Requires ongoing documentation of hardship |
| COVID-era CARES Act total (closed) | Up to 18 months | No longer available for new requests |
What Happens When VA Forbearance Ends
When your forbearance period ends, the missed payments don’t disappear. You and your servicer choose a path to resolve them. Your servicer will not demand the full amount in one lump sum in most cases. But you do need to choose a path, and the options available to you depend heavily on how you managed the forbearance period itself.
Repayment plans and deferrals
A repayment plan adds a set portion of the missed payments to your regular monthly bill each month until you are caught up. This works best if your income has recovered and you can handle a slightly higher payment for a period of time.
A deferral, sometimes called a partial claim, moves the missed payments to the end of your loan. You don’t pay that amount until you sell the home, refinance, or pay off the loan. For many borrowers, deferral is the least disruptive option. Your regular monthly payment goes back to normal right away.
Loan modification and reinstatement
A loan modification changes the actual terms of your loan on a permanent basis. The interest rate, loan length, or monthly payment could all shift to make the loan more manageable long-term. This makes sense when your financial situation has changed in a lasting way and the original payment is no longer realistic.
Reinstatement means paying the full missed amount in one lump sum at the end of forbearance. Most borrowers don’t have that cash available. It exists as an option, but it’s rarely the path people take.
“The borrowers who come out of forbearance in good shape are the ones who used that time to get their finances in order and started the exit conversation early. By the time forbearance ends, your options are already set. If you wait until the last week to call your servicer, you’re working with whatever’s left. We always tell people: start talking about the exit before you’re halfway through the entry.”
— Reed Letson, Owner, Elevation Mortgage
| Option | How It Works | Best Fit |
|---|---|---|
| Repayment Plan | Missed amount spread across future payments on top of your regular bill | Income has recovered; can handle a higher monthly payment temporarily |
| Deferral / Partial Claim | Missed payments moved to end of loan; regular payment resumes as normal | Income is stable but can’t absorb extra payment right away |
| Loan Modification | Loan terms permanently changed to create a lower monthly payment | Financial situation has changed in a lasting way; original payment is no longer feasible |
| Reinstatement | Full missed amount paid in one lump sum at forbearance end | Borrower has access to a lump sum through savings, a gift, or asset sale |
How one Colorado Springs veteran handled a VA forbearance exit
A veteran in Colorado Springs had his income cut significantly after a layoff from a defense contractor. He contacted his servicer within 30 days and requested forbearance. The servicer approved 180 days.
During that period, he found new work at a comparable salary. When forbearance ended, the servicer offered a deferral that moved the missed payments to the back of his loan. His regular monthly payment returned to exactly what it was before.
The key was calling right away instead of waiting to see whether things would improve on their own. That early call gave him more exit options when the period ended, and he walked away with his loan intact and his credit protected.
How VA Forbearance Affects Your Credit
The short answer: it depends on when you ask for help. During forbearance, your servicer should not report your account as delinquent if you arranged the forbearance before missing any payments and your account was current when you called. The CARES Act required servicers to report these accounts as current to the credit bureaus when borrowers entered forbearance from a current standing. That protection is real and it matters.
But it only applies if you requested forbearance before missing payments, not after. If payments were already late when you called, those marks may already be on your credit report. And when forbearance ends, how you handle the exit still affects your credit. A borrower who exits forbearance and then struggles on a repayment plan can see further credit damage if payments fall behind again.
This is where the timing of your call matters more than most people expect. Getting ahead of the situation before anything appears on your report gives you the best chance of a clean outcome. An experienced lender who has worked through forbearance exits with real borrowers can help you read the options before they close. Our page on mortgage approval factors walks through what lenders actually look at after events like forbearance.
For Florida VA borrowers, there is one more layer to know. Florida sits in a high-risk zone for hurricanes and tropical storms. When a federal disaster declaration covers your county, you may qualify for additional forbearance protections tied to that declaration. These are separate from standard forbearance and can extend your timeline beyond the normal limits. Contact your servicer and ask specifically about disaster-related options if you live in an area covered by a federal declaration.
What This Means for Your Situation
If you called your servicer before missing a payment and secured forbearance in writing, your credit is likely protected during the forbearance period. But if payments were already late when you requested forbearance, those late marks may already be on your report. The difference between these two situations can affect your financing options for years. Acting before you miss a payment is almost always worth the difficult phone call.
What’s Available After VASP: The New Partial Claim Program
The VA Servicing Purchase program, known as VASP, accepted new referrals through May 1, 2025, then closed. VASP had allowed the VA to purchase seriously delinquent loans from servicers, restructure them at a 2.5% fixed rate, and service them directly. When it closed, veterans who hadn’t enrolled were left with standard loss-mitigation tools only. More than 10,000 veterans lost their homes through foreclosure sales in the period following the closure, according to ICE Mortgage Technology data cited by NPR in April 2026.
The VA Home Loan Program Reform Act, signed into law on July 30, 2025, created a new partial claim program designed to fill that gap. Under this law, the VA can advance funds to cover a veteran’s missed payments and bring the loan current. That amount attaches to the property as a subordinate lien with no monthly payment required. The veteran repays it when they sell, refinance, or pay off the mortgage. The program covers up to 25% of the loan balance, or 30% for borrowers who previously used a COVID-era partial claim, per Military.com’s reporting on the legislation.
The key advantage is that the veteran keeps their original loan terms. If you locked in a low rate during the pandemic years, a partial claim brings you current without forcing a reset to today’s rates. The VA was still finalizing implementation details as of late 2025. If you are behind on your VA loan, contact your servicer or the VA Loan Technician line at 877-827-3702 to ask about current eligibility and what steps apply to your situation. Do not wait. The window to negotiate favorable terms narrows with every payment missed.
Alternatives to VA Forbearance
Forbearance is not always the right tool. It works best when the hardship is temporary and your income is expected to recover. If your situation has shifted in a more lasting way, other options may serve you better.
A loan modification changes your loan terms directly. Your servicer can lower your interest rate, extend your loan term, or reduce your monthly payment in a lasting way. The process requires documentation of your hardship and current income. It makes sense when you know your income won’t return to where it was and you need a sustainable long-term payment.
A repayment plan is another path if you are already back on your feet. You resume your normal payment and add a fixed amount each month to cover what was missed. There’s no extension of your loan timeline, and it resolves the missed balance faster than deferral does.
Selling the home is also on the table if you have equity. If you owe more than the home is worth, a VA compromise sale may be possible. This arrangement lets you sell for less than the outstanding balance with VA approval. It avoids foreclosure on your record but carries consequences for your credit and VA loan entitlement.
Once you are out of forbearance and have a period of on-time payments behind you, refinancing may become an option. Refinancing is not available while you are actively in forbearance. But after a clean exit, refinance options, including the VA Interest Rate Reduction Refinance Loan, can lower your rate or adjust your term. For a broader look at programs that may apply once your situation stabilizes, the available loan programs page covers multiple paths depending on where you land after the hardship.
Run the Numbers Before You Start Shopping
Our first-time buyer tools let you estimate your payment, check affordability based on your income, and compare loan options side by side — before you ever talk to a lender.
Open the First-Time Buyer ToolsCommon Mistakes to Avoid
Waiting Too Long to Call
The single most common mistake is waiting to see if things improve before contacting your servicer. By the time you’ve missed two or three payments, your options have already narrowed. Call before the first payment is missed. Servicers have more room to work with you when they hear from you early, and your credit stays protected when you act from a current standing.
Assuming Forbearance Forgives the Debt
Borrowers regularly enter forbearance thinking the missed payments are gone. They are not. Every paused payment waits at the exit. Going in without understanding that creates real problems when the servicer asks about your repayment plan. Know your exit strategy before you enter.
Not Planning the Exit During the Forbearance Period
Forbearance gives you time. Most borrowers spend that window addressing the hardship and little else. The borrowers who use that period to prepare, stabilizing income, reviewing repayment options, and checking deferral eligibility with their servicer, end up in a much cleaner spot when forbearance ends. Start the exit conversation early, not in the last week before forbearance expires.
Questions to Ask Your Servicer
- If I request forbearance now, will my account be reported as current during that period?
- What repayment options will be available to me when forbearance ends?
- Am I eligible for a deferral that moves missed payments to the end of my loan?
- Will entering forbearance affect my ability to refinance my VA loan later?
- Are there disaster-related forbearance protections available in my county?
- What documentation do I need to provide to request an extension?
Find Out What Actually Drives Your Approval
Credit score is just one piece. Income, debt, assets, and loan type all factor in. Our approval guide breaks down what lenders actually look at and what you can do about it.
See What Affects Your ApprovalFrequently Asked Questions
If you arranged forbearance before missing a payment and your account was current at the time, your servicer should report the account as current during the forbearance period. But if payments were already late when you requested forbearance, those marks may already be on your credit report. How you exit forbearance also matters. Falling behind on a repayment plan after forbearance ends can cause additional credit damage.
When forbearance ends, you and your servicer agree on a plan for the missed payments. Common options include a repayment plan that spreads the missed amount across future monthly bills, a deferral that moves the balance to the end of your loan, or a loan modification that permanently adjusts your loan terms. Your servicer will present the options that apply to your situation. Starting that conversation before forbearance ends gives you more choices at the exit.
Contact your loan servicer directly. The servicer is the company you make payments to each month. The VA itself does not process forbearance requests. Call before you miss a payment if possible, have your loan account number ready, and be prepared to describe your hardship clearly. Your servicer will walk you through their documentation requirements from there.
The VA Home Loan Program Reform Act, signed into law on July 30, 2025, created a partial claim program for veterans behind on their VA loans. Under this program, the VA can advance funds to bring the loan current, with that amount repaid when the veteran sells, refinances, or pays off the mortgage. The veteran keeps their original loan terms, including their existing interest rate. Contact your servicer or the VA Loan Technician line at 877-827-3702 for current eligibility details.
Refinancing is generally not available while you are in active forbearance. After forbearance ends and you resolve the missed payments through a repayment plan, deferral, or modification, refinancing may become an option again. Most lenders want to see a period of on-time payments after the forbearance exit before approving a refinance. The exact timing varies by lender and loan type, so it is worth asking both your servicer and a mortgage professional at the same time.
