Does Army Active Duty Count Towards Reserves Service?

Chris Robin — Sat, 04 Apr 2020 14:47:53 -0400

My mom is an Army/Army Reserves veteran. I'm trying to figure out if she qualifies for a VA home loan through her Reserves time after being denied through her active duty time in the Army.

She enlisted in the Army Reserves in March '80. Did her basic and schooling and signed up for the DEP i. Enlisted in the Army for 3 years in Oct '80. Completed 23 months (including 18 mths overseas) and was honorably discharged. Her oath of extension of enlistment says she was in the Individual Ready Reserve from August '80 to Oct '86 and extended it 6 months to April '87. Her discharge orders say she was honorably discharged from the Ready Reserve in April '87.

My 2 questions are: does her active duty years in the Army count towards the "180 continuous days of active duty" VA loan requirement for Reserve veterans? And does her time after being discharged from the Army in the Ready Reserve count towards the 6 years of honorable service?

Thank you for any advice/insight!

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 4 at 2020 3:10 PM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 04 Apr 2020 15:10:02 -0400

https://www.va.gov/housing-assistance/home-loans/eligibility/

Your mother does not meet the AD requirement for the time period she served and IRR is not qualifying service.

Eligibility requirements for VA home loan programs | Veterans Affairs

Learn about VA home loan eligibility requirements. Find out how to apply for a Certificate of Eligibility (COE) to show your lender that you qualify for a VA-backed loan based on your service history and duty status.

Response by SFC Kenneth Hunnell made Feb 7 at 2021 7:55 PM

SFC Kenneth Hunnell — Sun, 07 Feb 2021 19:55:31 -0500

Was she a reservist while overseas?
They do have Army Reserve units overseas, well they did.
Then when he Reserve time ended, she could have been transferred to the IRR while still over there. You might want to ask her. She would know

Response by SSG Edward Tilton made Feb 9 at 2021 11:22 AM

SSG Edward Tilton — Tue, 09 Feb 2021 11:22:18 -0500

She had more than six months active duty, I would think she qualifies