Newcomers to the home loan process find there are many details to remember. When it comes to VA home loans a VA loan applicant has a variety of forms to complete, starting with the application for a VA Certificate of Eligibility or COE.

Active duty members are required to get paperwork showing their status as a member the the U.S. military in good standing; retired or separated veterans must submit a DD Form 214 which shows the nature of service and the type of discharge received.

Borrowers are always urged to submit copies of these official documents because the are often needed later for other purposes. The originals must never be submitted. But what happens when a borrower forgets and sends in the originals, or loses those original forms and needs to get replacement copies?

For active duty members, the process is a simple matter of going back to the orderly room or command staff and requesting a new document showing the member as a soldier, sailor, airman, or marine in good standing. But for those who have been discharged, the process is a bit more complicated.

Borrowers must request a copy of their DD Form 214 from the National Archives in St. Louis, Missouri. You may request this at no charge in most cases (the government will explain the circumstances under which a fee might be required, but such fees are not typical. The government now advises veterans to request copies of the DD Form 214 via the eVetRecs system.

According to the National Archives official site, Archives.gov, “Our online eVetRecs system creates a customized order form to request information from your, or your relative’s, military personnel records. You may use this system if you are a military veteran, or next of kin of a deceased, former member of the military.”

Requesting a replacement DD Form 214 should be done as soon as possible once it’s discovered that the form is missing–your VA home loan paperwork depends on having this form to verify your eligibility for a VA home loan and not having that paperwork could delay a VA loan approval or pre-approval.

Even though you may still have other official documents such as discharge paperwork, final orders or terminal leave papers, your DD Form 214 is the only form acceptable for issuing the VA Certificate of Eligibility for a VA home loan.

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