Citation Nr: 20034516 Decision Date: 05/18/20 Archive Date: 05/18/20 DOCKET NO. 16-04 535 DATE: May 18, 2020 ORDER Entitlement to an extension of the delimiting date for educational assistance benefits under Chapter 30, Title 38, United States Code (Montgomery GI Bill), beyond February 14, 2012, is denied. FINDINGS OF FACT 1. The Veteran was separated from active duty service on February 13, 2002. 2. The Veteran did not submit a request for extension of the delimiting date within one year after the original delimiting date or within one year after recuperating from disability. CONCLUSION OF LAW The criteria for an extension of the delimiting date for receiving Chapter 30 educational assistance benefits are not met. 38 U.S.C. § 3031 (2018); 38 C.F.R. §§ 21.7050, 21.7051, 21.2033 (c)(1), (2) (2019). REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDINGS AND CONCLUSION The Veteran served on active duty from March 21, 1995 to February 13, 2002. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans Appeals (Board) on appeal from an August 2015 determination of the Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Office (RO) in Muskogee, Oklahoma. This matter was previously before the Board, most recently in December 2019, at which time the issue currently on appeal was remanded for additional development. The case has now been returned to the Board fur further appellate action. Extension of Delimiting Date – Montgomery GI Bill The Veteran initially filed a claim for Chapter 30 education benefits in October 2006 and he was awarded benefits via a Certificate of Eligibility (COE) in December 2006. He was informed in the COE that he had until February 14, 2012, to use the benefits which is 10 years from the date of his service discharge from active duty. See C.F.R. § 21.7050. In May 2014, the Veteran filed a Request for Change of Program or Place of Training (VA Form 22-1995). Later in May 2014, the Agency of Original Jurisdiction (AOJ) informed the Veteran that he was not entitled to benefits since it was past the delimiting date. In September 2014, the Veteran requested an extension of the Chapter 30 delimiting date for Montgomery GI Bill (MGIB) education benefits asserting that he was precluded from using Chapter 30 benefits by the delimiting date of February 14, 2012, because of physical disability. More specifically, he reported that he was physically disabled and unable to attend school from May 27, 2008, to August 30, 2012, due to two motor vehicle accidents that he was involved in in May 2008 and August 2009, respectively. In support of this contention he submitted treatment records and a letter from a private chiropractor stating that his soft tissue spine injuries and treatment precluded him from attending classroom activities from May 27, 2007, to August 30, 2012. Notably, the Veteran also reported that he had maintained full-time employment working 60-80 hours a week during this same period. VA shall grant an extension of the applicable delimiting period provided that a veteran applies for an extension within a specified time period, and that he or she was prevented from initiating or completing the chosen program during the original period due to physical or mental disability that did not result from that veteran’s willful misconduct. Medical evidence must clearly establish that such a program of education was medically infeasible. 38 C.F.R. § 21.7051 (a)(2). As noted above, extension requests are subject to timeliness restrictions. 38 C.F.R. §§ 21.1033 (c), 21.7051(a). VA must receive a claim for an extended period of eligibility by the later of the following dates: One year from the date on which a veteran’s original period of eligibility ended, or one year from the date on which the eligible claimant’s physical or mental disability no longer prevented him from beginning or resuming a chosen program of education. 38 C.F.R. §§ 21.1033 (c), 21.7051(a). Also, an extension of the time limit may be granted when a claimant establishes good cause for the untimely request. 38 C.F.R. § 21.1033 (e). Here, as noted, the Veteran filed for an extension of his delimitating date in September 2014 which is over one year after his original period of eligibility ended on February 14, 2012, and more than one year from the date on which his physical disability reportedly no longer prevented him from beginning or resuming a chosen program of education, that is, on August 30, 2012. In light of those undisputed facts, and the lack of any evidence showing just cause as to why the Veteran did not file an extension claim earlier, his application for an extension of Chapter 30 benefits cannot be considered timely. 38 C.F.R. §§ 21.1033(c), 21.7051(a). Although there has been development in this appeal with respect to the ending date of eligibility for the Veteran’s Chapter 30 benefits, see 38 C.F.R. § 21.7050, the basis of the denial at issue is that the Vetearn did not file a timely request for an extension of his Chapter 30 benefits. That basis is clearly set forth in the August 2015 decision; the August 2015 statement of the case; and the December 2015, April 2019, and June 2019 supplemental statements of the case. In light of that and the fact that denials of time limit extensions are separately appealable issues, any further consideration as to the underlying merits the Veteran’s claim for an extension of Chapter 30 benefits is not warranted. Accordingly, as the evidence in this case clearly demonstrates that the Veteran did not file a request for extension within the requisite period and in the absence of a showing of good cause to extend the time limit, his request for extension of the delimiting date must be denied based on a lack of entitlement under the law. Sabonis v. Brown, 6 Vet. App. 426, 430 (1994). Kristin Haddock Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board A. Shawkey, Counsel The Board’s decision in this case is binding only with respect to the instant matter decided. This decision is not precedential and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.