General Veterans fall into one of two categories ; war-time Veterans and peace-time Veterans. Many women do not consider themselves Veterans because they did not go off to war or carry a gun and they are so wrong. If you served on regular active duty either under normal enlistment or have been called up to active duty by the president, you have Veteran status. The job that you did in the military has no bearing on your status of being a Veteran or not. The time period you served on active duty determines whether you are a war-time Veteran or a peace-time time Veteran. If you served on active duty during the time frames listed below you have war-time Veteran status:

WWII: Dec 7, 1941 through Dec 31, 1946

Korean War: Jun 27, 1950, through Jan 31, 1955

Vietnam War: Aug 5, 1964 (Feb 28, 1961 for Veterans who served “in country” before Aug 5, 1964), through M ay 7, 1975

Gulf War: Aug 2, 1990 through a date to be set by law or Presidential Proclamation.

If your active duty was any time in between the above dates then you are considered a peace-time Veteran.

There is an important distinction between war-time Veteran and peace-time Veteran status. If you served during a war-time period , whether you went off to war or not, you may be eligible to apply for pension benefits. Upon your death your spouse may be entitled to death pension as well.

Both war-time Veterans and peace-time Veterans are eligible for a number of other VA benefits to include but not limited to: compensation, education, home loan, burial benefits, nursing home and cemetery benefits

The best thing to do is check with your Veteran service officer or a Veteran service officer near you to see if you are eligible for ANY Veteran’s benefits.