republic-os/legal/us/code/title-38/chapter-19/section-1981.md

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LegalText	38 U.S.C. § 1981	Replacement of surrendered and expired insurance	us	united_states_code	code_section	38	VETERANS’ BENEFITS	19	INSURANCE	1981	38 U.S.C. § 1981	current	119-100	2026-06-26	official	https://uscode.house.gov/download/releasepoints/us/pl/119/100/xml_usc38@119-100.zip	/us/usc/t38/s1981	data/legal/raw/us/code/title-38/usc38.xml	f6d0b2ce402e70bd216e9ee9d605d9ce65e37f8bc6b830eb15e15e18b16b48cd	372998691b72ade88787dfa7633dbda4954bd1b037ec7926c5e06e9b1d17fc66	caec13ec261b17e356ba7edafd12299ff74ccf228d811b8bd3004013ad144761	2026-07-04	official	legal us-code

38 U.S.C. § 1981 - Replacement of surrendered and expired insurance

Text

(a) Any person who surrendered a policy of National Service Life Insurance or United States Government life insurance on a permanent plan for its cash value while in the active service after April 24, 1951, and before January 1, 1957, who was entitled on December 31, 1958, to reinstate or replace such insurance under section 623 of the National Service Life Insurance Act of 1940, may, upon application in writing made while on continuous active duty which began before January 1, 1959, or within one hundred and twenty days after separation therefrom, be granted, without medical examination, permanent plan insurance on the same plan not in excess of the amount surrendered for cash, or may reinstate such surrendered insurance upon payment of the required reserve and the premium for the current month. Waiver of premiums and total disability income benefits otherwise authorized under this chapter shall not be denied in any case of issue or reinstatement of insurance on a permanent plan under this section or the prior corresponding provision of law in which it is shown to the satisfaction of the Secretary that total disability of the applicant began before the date of application. The cost of the premiums waived and total disability income benefits paid by virtue of the preceding sentence and the excess mortality cost in any case where the insurance matures by death from such total disability shall be borne by the United States and the Secretary shall transfer from time to time from the National Service Life Insurance appropriation to the National Service Life Insurance Fund and from the military and naval insurance appropriation to the United States Government Life Insurance Fund such sums as may be necessary to reimburse the funds for such costs.

(b) Any person who had United States Government life insurance or National Service Life Insurance on the five-year level premium term plan, the term of which expired while such person was in the active service after April 25, 1951, or within one hundred and twenty days after separation from such active service, and in either case before January 1, 1957, who was entitled on December 31, 1958, to replace such insurance under section 623 of the National Service Life Insurance Act of 1940, shall, upon application made while on continuous active duty which began before January 1, 1959, or within one hundred and twenty days after separation therefrom, payment of premiums and evidence of good health satisfactory to the Secretary, be granted an equivalent amount of insurance on the five-year level premium term plan at the premium rate for such person’s then attained age.

(Pub. L. 85–857, Sept. 2, 1958, 72 Stat. 1164, § 781; Pub. L. 99–576, title VII, § 701(44), Oct. 28, 1986, 100 Stat. 3294; renumbered § 1981 and amended Pub. L. 102–83, §§ 4(b)(1), (2)(E), 5(a), Aug. 6, 1991, 105 Stat. 404–406.)

Notes

Editorial Notes

References in TextSection 623 of the National Service Life Insurance Act of 1940, referred to in subsecs. (a) and (b), is section 623 of act Oct. 8, 1940, ch. 757, title VI, pt. I, as added Aug. 1, 1956, ch. 837, title V, § 501(a)(4), 70 Stat. 880, which enacted section 824 of former Title 38, Pensions, Bonuses, and Veterans’ Relief, and which was repealed and the provisions thereof reenacted as this section by Pub. L. 85–857, Sept. 2, 1958, 72 Stat. 1105.

Amendments1991—Pub. L. 102–83 renumbered section 781 of this title as this section and substituted “Secretary” for “Administrator” wherever appearing. 1986—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 99–576 substituted “such person” for “he” and “such person’s” for “his”.