VA Entitlement Explained: Full, Partial, Restoration and Second-Tier

What entitlement means

When VA guarantees your loan, it promises to cover part of the lender's loss if the loan goes bad. Entitlement is the dollar amount of that promise you can use. Lenders like to see that your entitlement, your down payment, or the two together cover at least 25% of the loan. When they do, you can usually buy with no money down.

Basic and bonus entitlement

VA splits entitlement into two tiers:

• Basic entitlement (first tier) is $36,000. It shows on your COE. It covers loans of $144,000 or less.
• Bonus entitlement (second tier) covers loans above $144,000. It is not printed on your COE, so you or your lender figure it out.

With full entitlement, VA guarantees up to 25% of the loan amount, no matter how large. That is why there is no VA loan limit for people with full entitlement.

Full vs. partial entitlement

You have full entitlement if:

• You have never used your VA loan benefit, or
• You used it, paid the loan in full and sold the home, or
• You had a foreclosure or short sale and repaid VA in full.

You have partial entitlement if part of it is still tied up. Common reasons are an active VA loan on a home you still own, a VA loan someone assumed without substituting their entitlement, or a past foreclosure where VA lost money that was not repaid.

How partial entitlement is figured

With partial entitlement, county loan limits come into play. VA uses the FHFA one-unit conforming limit for the county, even for multi-unit homes. For 2026, that limit is $832,750 in most counties and up to $1,249,125 in high-cost areas.

Step by step: remaining entitlement

1. Find the entitlement charged on your COE, in the prior loans table.
2. Look up the county's one-unit limit on the FHFA site.
3. Multiply that limit by 25%. In a $832,750 county, that is $208,187.50.
4. Subtract the entitlement already used. If $50,000 is in use, you have $158,187.50 left.
5. Multiply by four to find the most most lenders will lend with no down payment: about $632,750 in this example.

If you want a bigger loan, you generally need a down payment equal to 25% of the amount above that figure. Your lender will run the exact math.

Restoring entitlement

Restoration means getting used entitlement back. You can apply for it when:

• You sold the home and paid off the loan. This is the most common case.
• A qualified Veteran assumed your loan and agreed to substitute their own entitlement for yours.
• You paid off the loan but kept the home. This is the one-time restoration. You can do it only once. To restore again later, you must sell the property.

You ask for restoration by requesting a new COE and showing that the loan was paid off, such as with a settlement statement or payoff letter. Many lenders handle this for you.

Second-tier use: two VA loans at once

Even if you still own a home with a VA loan, you may have enough remaining entitlement to buy another home, for example after a PCS move. The new home must be your primary residence. The math above tells you how much you can borrow with no money down.

Foreclosure and short sales

If a VA loan ended in foreclosure, short sale or deed in lieu and VA paid the lender a claim, that amount stays charged against your entitlement until it is repaid. You can still use whatever is left. Repaying VA's loss can restore it in full.

Tips

• Always ask your lender to explain your entitlement in writing.
• Keep payoff and closing papers from every VA loan you have had.
• If your COE shows an old loan that was paid off years ago, ask for restoration before you shop.