The Quick Read: When you refinance an existing VA-guaranteed loan into a VA cash-out, the old loan must be seasoned by the date the new note is signed. Two tests apply, and both must be met. The first payment due date on the old loan must be at least 210 days before the new note date, and six consecutive monthly payments must have been made. The later of the two dates controls, and a lender cannot waive either one.
What Is Seasoning, and Why Does VA Require It?
Seasoning is the waiting period an existing loan must complete before it can be refinanced into a new VA-guaranteed loan. It keeps a loan from being refinanced again and again before the borrower has had time to benefit from it. VA treats it as a statutory standard, grouped with fee recoupment, net tangible benefit, and disclosure in VA Circular 26-19-22. That circular also says VA cannot guarantee a refinance when the loan being paid off was not seasoned by closing.
VA cash-out estimate
Seeded with an example value, a typical balance, and a round cash request at the first-use fee; change any field.
Editable benchmark: 7.32% as of October 22, 2026 · Freddie Mac 30-year average via FRED®. A conventional market reference, not a VA cash-out refinance quote.
Illustrative starting assumptions: a $350,000 home value, a $193,000 current balance, the full-value VA cap with the first-use funding fee financed, a thirty-year term at the current Freddie Mac benchmark, and property taxes and insurance estimated at typical national rates. Every field is editable.
Illustrative estimate only — not a Loan Estimate, approval, quote, or commitment to lend. The rate field carries the weekly Freddie Mac thirty-year conventional benchmark, a market reference and not a VA cash-out refinance quote; a VA loan is priced by the lender at lock. The total loan, funding fee included, is capped at the program leverage on the reasonable value; the fee follows the tier chosen. The cash available is what the cap allows less the balances paid off and the fee, before closing costs, which are not included. The HELOC line is the line program’s combined loan-to-value ceiling applied to the same value and balance. Taxes and insurance are editable estimates. The debt-to-income figure is a guideline; residual income decides a VA file. Licensed in sixteen states for consumer mortgages.
Most of the confusion online comes from one question: is this a federal rule or a lender preference? For a VA-to-VA payoff, it is a federal rule. Some pages describe cash-out waiting periods as something each lender decides. That is wrong for this situation. The sections below show where lender preference does enter, and it is a different place.
The VA cash-out refinance program lets a veteran borrow up to 100% of the appraised value, including the financed funding fee, and it can refinance any loan type into a VA loan. Seasoning applies on top of that structure, but only under certain conditions.
Key Terms Defined
Seasoning: The required age and payment record of the loan you are paying off, measured at the new note date.
First payment due date: The date your first monthly payment was scheduled on the old loan. It is not the closing date.
Note date: The date you sign the new loan’s promissory note. The seasoning test is measured on this date.
Consecutive payment: A payment made in full, in the month it is due, as part of an unbroken run of months.
Type I and Type II cash-out: A Type I loan stays at or below the payoff amount. A Type II loan exceeds it, so the borrower takes cash out.
Net tangible benefit: A test that the refinance must leave the borrower measurably better off, not just with a different loan.
The Two Tests: Both Must Be Met
The VA Lenders Handbook, Chapter 6 sets out the seasoning test. For a Type I cash-out, the loan counts as seasoned when two conditions are both true on the new note date:
- The first monthly payment due date was 210 days or more before the new note date.
- Six consecutive, uninterrupted monthly payments have been made.
Neither test substitutes for the other. A borrower who paid extra early does not shorten the 210 days. A borrower who passes 210 days but missed a payment has not met the six-payment count. The later of the two dates is the earliest the new loan can be signed.
“Six payments” also does not mean six calendar months. The first payment on a new loan is often due a month or two after closing, so the 210-day clock usually runs longer than the payment count. In most files, the 210-day test is the one that sets the date.
How to Count the Clock
VA counts from the first payment due date, not from the closing date. Circular 26-19-22 says the first payment due date is used to calculate seasoning. Circular 26-20-16, Exhibit A explains that Public Law 116-33 changed the federal statute so the 210 days start from that due date. Older advice that counts from the date the first payment was made, or from closing, is out of date.
Here is a self-check you can do before you apply:
1. Find the first payment due date on your old closing paperwork, or ask your servicer. 2. Add 210 days to that date. 3. Find the date of your sixth consecutive full, on-time payment. 4. Take whichever of the two dates is later. 5. Your new note date must fall on or after that date.
VA’s own worked example in the Handbook shows how this plays out. The old loan closed March 8, 2023, and the first payment was due May 1, 2023. With six consecutive payments made, the loan became seasoned on November 27, 2023. The closing date is irrelevant to the count. Only the due date and the payment record matter.
Worked Scenarios
Three plain-language situations show how the later clock controls.
A standard purchase loan. A veteran buys with a VA loan and the first payment is due about six weeks after closing. The 210 days run from that due date, so the earliest cash-out date lands roughly seven to eight months after the purchase closing. The payment count is satisfied well before that. The 210-day test controls.
A missed payment. A veteran skips one month and pays it later. The 210 days may pass on schedule, but the run of six consecutive payments in the month due has to restart in that stretch. The payment test can now be the later date. One late payment can push the whole timeline out.
A loan already seasoned. A veteran has held the loan for years and then has one late payment. The Handbook says a later delinquency does not make a seasoned loan season again. Once the loan passes both tests, it stays seasoned. The late payment still matters elsewhere, such as in the credit review, but it does not reset this clock.
When the Rule Applies and When It Does Not
The seasoning test applies to VA-to-VA cash-outs only. It governs a cash-out that pays off an existing VA-guaranteed loan. It does not apply when the cash-out pays off a non-VA loan or other liens of record.
| Loan being paid off | VA seasoning test applies? | Lender waiting period possible? |
|---|---|---|
| VA-guaranteed loan | Yes | Not beyond VA’s rule, usually |
| Conventional loan | No | Some lenders apply their own |
| FHA loan | No | Some lenders apply their own |
| USDA loan | No | Some lenders apply their own |
This is where the “lender preference” confusion has a basis. VA imposes no seasoning on a non-VA payoff. But some lenders and loan-pooling programs apply a waiting period of their own to those payoffs. Across the wholesale programs Lendmire places VA files with, the practical question for a non-VA payoff is not “what does VA require?” but “does the lender I’m working with set its own wait?” Ask that directly before you plan around a date.
Type I vs. Type II Cash-Out
A Type I loan is at or below the payoff amount. A Type II loan exceeds the payoff, which puts cash in the borrower’s hands. Circular 26-20-16 Exhibit A says Type II lenders should follow VA regulation at 38 CFR 36.4306. The Handbook’s seasoning test is written for Type I.
For borrowers, the practical lesson is simple. Seasoning is one gate among several, and the other tests vary by loan type. Net tangible benefit applies. A recoupment test applies to Type I. A VA appraisal is part of the process. Your loan officer can tell you which tests apply to your specific structure.
Late Payments, Forbearance, and Deferrals
One rule is firm. The payment must be made in full, in the month it is due, for the count to work. A partial payment or a payment made after its month does not break a seasoned loan, but it can break an unseasoned one.
Beyond that, treat claims about forbearance with care. Some secondary sources say forbearance months cannot count toward seasoning, but that claim should not be taken as settled. If you have been through forbearance, a deferral, or a modification, do not assume your count. Ask your loan officer to review your servicer’s payment history and confirm how it is treated.
How a Lender Confirms Seasoning
The lender must certify to VA, when requesting the loan guaranty certificate, that six or more consecutive payments were made on the loan being paid off. In practice that means the file needs a payment history. Gather these before you apply:
- Your old closing paperwork showing the first payment due date.
- A payment history from your servicer, especially if the servicer changed.
- Any letters about deferrals, modifications, or transfers.
What If You Are a Few Weeks Short?
The date cannot be waived or negotiated. Circular 26-19-22 says remedial action is not possible when the refinanced loan was not properly seasoned. A lender cannot close early and fix it afterward. The only fix is to wait. Because the note date is the measuring point, moving the signing date to just after the seasoning date is the standard approach.
Be careful with mail offers. Refinance solicitations can arrive before you are eligible, so an invitation to refinance is not proof that you meet the test.
Seasoning Is Not the Only Gate
Passing the seasoning test does not make a file eligible. Across the wholesale programs Lendmire works with, other items decide most files:
- Certificate of eligibility: VA’s COE decides eligibility, and service requirements are VA’s rules.
- Credit: VA sets no minimum score. The wholesale programs Lendmire places VA loans with start at a 580 decision score.
- Residual income: This is the controlling underwriting test. The 41% debt-to-income figure is a guideline, not a cap, but a higher ratio needs residual income well above the table.
- Net tangible benefit: The refinance has to leave you better off.
- Appraisal: The cash-out reaches 100% of the appraised value, including the financed fee.
Subject to lender guidelines and full file review, a file that clears every one of these can move forward. Seasoning is simply the one with a hard calendar date.
The Funding Fee
The VA funding fee on a cash-out refinance is 2.15% for first use and 3.3% after first use, per VA’s funding fee page. It does not change with a down payment. It can be financed into the loan, and it is waived for veterans receiving compensation for a service-connected disability and the other exempt groups. VA mortgages carry no monthly mortgage insurance.
Common Mistakes
- Counting from closing. VA counts from the first payment due date.
- Assuming 210 days is enough. Six consecutive full payments are also required.
- Assuming early payments help. Paying ahead does not shorten either test.
- Trusting “six to twelve months.” That vague figure comes from lender-preference talk, not VA’s test.
- Assuming a late payment resets the clock. On a seasoned loan it does not.
- Applying the rule to every payoff. It covers VA-to-VA only.
Your Decision in Practice
If you are paying off a VA loan, work out your seasoning date first. It decides when you can close, not whether you qualify. If you are paying off a conventional, FHA, or USDA loan, VA imposes no seasoning, but ask the lender about its own waiting period.
For more detail, see VA cash-out refinance requirements for cap, seasoning and fee and how a cash-out works when tax returns understate your income.
Tax treatment can depend on your situation; borrowers should speak with a qualified tax professional before relying on any deduction or credit.
If you are weighing a cash-out refinance against keeping the loan you have, Lendmire can help you compare the programs and the equity each one reaches.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the seasoning rule apply if I’m refinancing a conventional loan into a VA cash-out?
No, VA’s seasoning test applies only when the loan being paid off is VA-guaranteed. Some lenders set a waiting period of their own on non-VA payoffs, so ask the lender before you plan a date.
Which date does the clock start from?
The first monthly payment due date on the old loan. It does not start at closing and it does not start when you made your first payment. The 210 days run from that due date to your new note date.
If I pass 210 days, am I automatically eligible?
No. You also need six consecutive, full, on-time payments. The later of the two dates controls, and neither test replaces the other.
Does a late payment reset the clock?
It depends on whether the loan was already seasoned. On an unseasoned loan, a missed or late payment breaks the run of consecutive payments. Once a loan is seasoned, a later delinquency does not make it season again.
Can the seasoning date be waived if I’m only a few weeks short?
No. VA says remedial action is not possible when the refinanced loan was not properly seasoned. The only fix is to wait and sign the new note on or after the seasoning date.
For your own numbers, request a scenario review with Lendmire.
About Lendmire
As a mortgage broker (NMLS# 2371349), Lendmire helps homeowners and home buyers in 16 states with FHA, VA, conventional and jumbo purchase and refinance loans arranged through wholesale lenders. Lendmire is never the lender; program terms are set by the lender and the agency guidelines. Scotsman Guide named Lendmire a Top Mortgage Workplace in both 2025 and 2026.
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References
2. VA Lenders Handbook (VA Pamphlet 26-7), Chapter 6
3. VA Circular 26-20-16, Exhibit A
4. VA Funding Fee and Closing Costs
This article is part of Lendmire’s VA cash-out refinance program — full qualification details, guidelines, and scenarios live on the program page.
Related reading: How to Refinance an Existing VA Loan Into a 15-Year Term · Refinance vs Assumption on a VA Loan to Remove a Co-Borrower · How Much a VA Loan Refinance Costs to Close and Roll In
Brandon Miller
Founder & CEO, Mortgage Loan Originator, Lendmire LLC
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Important disclosures. Lendmire (NMLS# 2371349) is a licensed mortgage brokerage. Lendmire is not a direct lender, depository institution, or financial advisor. All loan inquiries are subject to lender underwriting; this article does not constitute a commitment to lend. Rates, terms, and program guidelines are subject to change without notice and vary by borrower profile, property type, and state. Information in this article is general in nature and is not financial, legal, or tax advice. Equal Housing Opportunity. NMLS Consumer Access: nmlsconsumeraccess.org.