Falling behind on a mortgage can happen to any veteran. A job loss, unexpected medical bills, a divorce, or a difficult transition out of the service can put even a careful budget a few payments behind. The most important step is to learn your options before the problem grows. This summer, veterans with VA-backed home loans gained a new option worth knowing about: the VA Partial Claim Program.
What just changed
In June 2026, the Department of Veterans Affairs formally launched the VA Partial Claim Program. The program was authorized by the VA Home Loan Reform Act, which was signed into law on July 30, 2025. It was created for one specific situation: a veteran who has fallen behind on a VA-guaranteed mortgage, can afford the regular monthly payment going forward, but cannot repay the missed payments in a single lump sum.
The VA already works closely with mortgage servicers to help veterans stay in their homes. In fiscal year 2025 alone, those efforts helped about 173,000 veterans keep their homes. The Partial Claim Program adds one more tool to that effort.
How the VA Partial Claim Program works
The process is simpler than it sounds.
First, your mortgage servicer brings your loan current. The servicer advances the overdue amount on your behalf, and the VA reimburses the servicer. You do not pay the past-due balance upfront.
Second, the overdue amount becomes a separate, subordinate claim against your property. You repay it later, when you sell the home, refinance the loan, or pay it off completely.
Third, you return to making your normal monthly payment. From that point forward, your mortgage works the way it did before you fell behind.
What the program is not
There are limits, and they matter.
The Partial Claim Program is a home retention tool. It helps you keep a home you already own, and it cannot be used to purchase one. It applies only to VA-guaranteed loans that are already in default, so veterans who are current on their payments do not need it and would not qualify.
It is also not the only path back to good standing. The VA offers repayment plans that spread the overdue balance across future payments, traditional loan modifications, extended 30-year and 40-year modification options that lower the monthly payment, and disaster-specific modifications for veterans affected by federally declared disasters. The right choice depends on your circumstances, and your servicer is required to walk you through the options.
Why the 2030 deadline matters
The program is temporary. The law that created it includes a sunset provision that ends the Partial Claim Program about five years after enactment, which places the deadline around July 2030. After that date, the VA cannot approve new partial claims under the program.
Veterans who complete the program before the deadline are not affected. But if you are behind on a VA mortgage today, waiting could mean losing access to this option.
What to do if you are behind on your VA mortgage
Start with your mortgage servicer. Federal law and VA guidelines require servicers to contact borrowers in default and explain the available options, including this one. If your servicer has not mentioned the Partial Claim Program, ask about it directly.
If you cannot get clear answers, call the VA Loan Guaranty Service at 877-827-3702 and select option 6. The VA can work with your servicer on your behalf. A full list of VA home loan assistance programs is available at va.gov/housing-assistance/home-loans/trouble-making-payments.
The VA home loan benefit has helped veterans, service members, and survivors purchase more than 29 million homes. A season of financial hardship should not end your relationship with the home your service helped you earn. Know your options, act early, and use the benefits you have earned.
Your Service, Your Benefits.
Source: Military.com, “4-Year Time Limit on a New VA Mortgage Program to Avoid Foreclosure,” June 30, 2026
This material is provided for educational purposes only and does not guarantee a specific benefit, rating, payment, decision, or outcome. Individual results depend on the facts, records, evidence, eligibility, and decisions made by the appropriate agency or authority.