
From the U.S. Code Online via GPO Access
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[Laws in effect as of January 23, 2000]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
  January 23, 2000 and December 4, 2001]
[CITE: 38USC1912]

 
                      TITLE 38--VETERANS' BENEFITS
 
                        PART II--GENERAL BENEFITS
 
                          CHAPTER 19--INSURANCE
 
              SUBCHAPTER I--NATIONAL SERVICE LIFE INSURANCE
 
Sec. 1912. Total disability waiver

    (a) Upon application by the insured and under such regulations as 
the Secretary may promulgate, payment of premiums on insurance may be 
waived during the continuous total disability of the insured, which 
continues or has continued for six or more consecutive months, if such 
disability began (1) after the date of the insured's application for 
insurance, (2) while the insurance was in force under premium-paying 
conditions, and (3) before the insured's sixty-fifth birthday. 
Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, in any case in 
which the total disability of the insured commenced on or after the 
insured's sixtieth birthday but before the insured's sixty-fifth 
birthday, the Secretary shall not grant waiver of any premium becoming 
due prior to January 1, 1965.
    (b) The Secretary, upon any application made after August 1, 1947, 
shall not grant waiver of any premium becoming due more than one year 
before the receipt by the Secretary of application for the same, except 
as provided in this section. Any premiums paid for months during which 
waiver is effective shall be refunded. The Secretary shall provide by 
regulations for examination or reexamination of an insured claiming 
benefits under this section, and may deny benefits for failure to 
cooperate. If it is found that an insured is no longer totally disabled, 
the waiver of premiums shall cease as of the date of such finding and 
the policy of insurance may be continued by payment of premiums as 
provided in said policy. In any case in which the Secretary finds that 
the insured's failure to make timely application for waiver of premiums 
or the insured's failure to submit satisfactory evidence of the 
existence or continuance of total disability was due to circumstances 
beyond the insured's control, the Secretary may grant waiver or 
continuance of waiver of premiums.
    (c) If the insured dies without filing application for waiver, the 
beneficiary, within one year after the death of the insured, or, if the 
beneficiary is insane or a minor, within one year after removal of such 
legal disability, may file application for waiver with evidence of the 
insured's right to waiver under this section. Premium rates shall be 
calculated without charge for the cost of waiver of premiums provided in 
this section and no deduction from benefits otherwise payable shall be 
made on account thereof.
    (d) In any case in which an insured has been denied or would have 
been denied premium waiver under section 602(n) of the National Service 
Life Insurance Act of 1940 or this section solely because the insured 
became totally disabled between the date of valid application for 
insurance and the subsequent effective date thereof, and in which it is 
shown that (1) the total disability was incurred in line of duty between 
October 8, 1940, and July 31, 1946, inclusive, or June 27, 1950, and 
April 30, 1951, inclusive, and (2) the insured remained continuously so 
totally disabled to the date of death or June 8, 1960, whichever is 
earlier, the Secretary may grant waiver of premiums from the beginning 
of and during the continuous total disability of such insured. 
Application for waiver of premiums under this subsection must be filed 
by the insured or, in the event of the insured's death, by the 
beneficiary within two years after June 8, 1960, except that if the 
insured or the beneficiary be insane or a minor within the two-year 
period, application for such waiver may be filed within two years after 
removal of such legal disability, or if an insane insured shall die 
before the removal of the disability, application may be filed by the 
beneficiary within two years after the insured's death. No insurance 
shall be placed in force under this subsection in any case in which 
there was an award of benefits under the Servicemen's Indemnity Act of 
1951 or of gratuitous insurance under section 1922(b) of this title. The 
amount of insurance placed in force hereunder together with any other 
United States Government life insurance or national service life 
insurance in force at the time of death, or at the time of the insured's 
application for waiver hereunder, may not exceed $10,000 and shall be 
reduced by the amount of any gratuitous insurance awarded under the 
National Service Life Insurance Act of 1940. Waiver of premiums under 
this subsection shall render the insurance nonparticipating during the 
period such premium waiver is in effect. The cost of waiver of premium 
and death benefits paid as a result of this subsection shall be borne by 
the United States.

(Pub. L. 85-857, Sept. 2, 1958, 72 Stat. 1150, Sec. 712; Pub. L. 86-497, 
June 8, 1960, 74 Stat. 164; Pub. L. 88-364, July 7, 1964, 78 Stat. 302; 
Pub. L. 97-295, Sec. 4(23), Oct. 12, 1982, 96 Stat. 1306; Pub. L. 99-
576, title VII, Sec. 701(25), Oct. 28, 1986, 100 Stat. 3292; renumbered 
Sec. 1912 and amended Pub. L. 102-83, Secs. 4(a)(2)(C)(ii), (b)(1), 
(2)(E), 5(a), (c)(1), Aug. 6, 1991, 105 Stat. 404-406.)

                       References in Text

    The Servicemen's Indemnity Act of 1951, referred to in subsec. (d), 
is act Apr. 25, 1951, ch. 39, pt. I, 65 Stat. 33, as amended, which was 
classified generally to subchapter II (Sec. 851 et seq.) of chapter 13 
of former Title 38, Pensions, Bonuses, and Veterans' Relief, and was 
repealed by act Aug. 1, 1956, ch. 873, title V, Sec. 502(9), 70 Stat. 
886.
    The National Service Life Insurance Act of 1940, referred to in 
subsec. (d), is act Oct. 8, 1940, ch. 757, title VI, pt. I, Secs. 601 to 
623, 54 Stat. 1008, as amended, which was classified generally to 
subchapter I (Secs. 801 to 824) of chapter 13 of former Title 38, 
Pensions, Bonuses, and Veterans' Relief, and which was repealed by Pub. 
L. 85-857, Sec. 14(75), Sept. 2, 1958, 72 Stat. 1272, and the provisions 
thereof reenacted generally as this subchapter by the first section of 
Pub. L. 85-857 which enacted Title 38, Veterans' Benefits. Section 
602(n) of the 1940 Act, also referred to in subsec. (d), is covered by 
this section.


                               Amendments

    1991--Pub. L. 102-83, Sec. 5(a), renumbered section 712 of this 
title as this section.
    Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 102-83, Sec. 4(b)(1), (2)(E), substituted 
``Secretary'' for ``Administrator'' in two places.
    Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 102-83, Sec. 4(b)(1), (2)(E), substituted 
``Secretary'' for ``Administrator'' in four places.
    Pub. L. 102-83, Sec. 4(a)(2)(C)(ii), substituted ``by the 
Secretary'' for ``in the Veterans' Administration''.
    Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 102-83, Sec. 5(c)(1), substituted ``1922(b)'' 
for ``722(b)''.
    Pub. L. 102-83, Sec. 4(b)(1), (2)(E), substituted ``Secretary'' for 
``Administrator''.
    1986--Subsecs. (a), (b), (d). Pub. L. 99-576 substituted ``the 
insured's'' for ``his'' wherever appearing, and ``the insured'' for 
``he'' in first sentence of subsec. (d).
    1982--Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 97-295 substituted ``June 8, 1960'' for 
``the date of enactment of this subsection'' in two places.
    1964--Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 88-364 extended from age 60 to age 65 the 
age before which a person must become totally disabled to be eligible 
for waiver of premiums, and provided that where total disability 
commenced on or after the 60th birthday but before the 65th, the 
Administrator shall not waive premiums becoming due prior to Jan. 1, 
1965.
    1960--Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 86-497 added subsec. (d).


                    Effective Date of 1964 Amendment

    Pub. L. 88-364 provided that the amendment made by Pub. L. 88-364 is 
effective Jan. 1, 1965.

                  Section Referred to in Other Sections

    This section is referred to in sections 1904, 1913, 1922, 1922A of 
this title.
