The Paper Door: When Your Discharge Character Decides

TLDR

Honorable and General Under Honorable Conditions walk through the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) door — VA treats both as under honorable conditions.
Other Than Honorable is NOT an automatic no: you can apply, VA makes its own character-of-discharge determination, and since June 25, 2024 the rules are wider than they used to be.
The true statutory wall is short — a dishonorable discharge or a general court-martial bad-conduct discharge bars VA benefits (with one narrow exception) — and a separate upgrade road exists through the Discharge Review Board within 15 years, then the correction boards.

The paper that walks through

An honorable discharge is never a VA character bar. A discharge characterized as general under honorable conditions is likewise treated by VA as under honorable conditions.

Other Than Honorable (OTH): VA decides for itself

An Other Than Honorable (OTH), undesirable, or bad-conduct discharge is not an automatic denial. The former member can apply for benefits.

VA makes its own character-of-discharge determination. A favorable determination by VA can establish eligibility for the period of service VA finds qualifying.

The statutory wall

Under 38 United States Code (USC) 5303, federal statute establishes specific bars to VA benefits:

A conscientious objector who refused to perform military duty, wear the uniform, or abide by lawful orders.
Discharge by sentence of a general court-martial.
An officer's resignation for the good of the service.
A deserter.
An alien who requested release during hostilities.
An OTH discharge for continuous absence without leave (AWOL) of 180 or more days, subject to the compelling-circumstances proviso.

The one exception to the wall

The statutory and regulatory bars do not apply where VA finds that the person was insane at the time of the offense causing the discharge.

The regulatory bars — and the 2024 widening

The current regulatory bars listed in 38 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 3.12(d) use the regulation's own terms:

Acceptance of an undesirable discharge in lieu of general court-martial (as narrowed).
Mutiny or spying.
Moral turpitude.
Willful and persistent misconduct.

On June 25, 2024, a final rule went into effect that changed these evaluations. It eliminated the homosexual-acts regulatory bar. It created and expanded compelling-circumstances treatment. It expanded consideration of certain OTH and special-court-martial bad-conduct discharge (BCD) cases. It also narrowed the in-lieu-of-general-court-martial regulatory bar strictly to charges that could have resulted in a punitive discharge.

Court-martial paper: special is not general

Special court-martial paper is fundamentally different from general court-martial paper. A bad-conduct discharge (BCD) adjudged by a special court-martial is not an automatic statutory bar; VA runs its character-of-discharge determination process.

A dishonorable discharge or a BCD adjudged by a general court-martial is a statutory bar, the insanity exception aside.

The upgrade road

Applying for VA benefits and applying for a discharge upgrade are two separate processes. VA's character-of-discharge determination decides your eligibility for VA benefits. An upgrade changes the discharge paperwork itself.

To change your military discharge record, apply to your service's Discharge Review Board, generally within 15 years of discharge. After 15 years, apply to your service's Board for Correction of Military or Naval Records. Each board operates under its own jurisdiction and rules.

The traps

Believing "OTH means nothing, forever" and never applying for a VA character-of-discharge determination.
Assuming a special court-martial BCD is the same as a general court-martial BCD — a general court-martial BCD is a statutory bar, while a special court-martial BCD goes through VA's determination process.
Reading the 180-day continuous AWOL statutory bar as a flat exclusion without its compelling-circumstances proviso.
Letting the 15-year Discharge Review Board application window close while waiting.
Assuming a character-of-discharge case decided under the old bars is still the last word after the June 25, 2024 final rule widened the rules.
Assuming anyone other than VA decides a character-of-discharge determination for VA benefits.

Where to go

Department of Veterans Affairs — apply for benefits and request a character-of-discharge determination.
Your service's Discharge Review Board — discharge upgrade applications within 15 years of discharge.
Your service's Board for Correction of Military or Naval Records — discharge upgrade applications after 15 years.
A VA-accredited Veterans Service Organization (VSO) or attorney — assistance with claim and case preparation.