Arizona Military Family Relief Fund
What is the Military Family Relief Fund?
The Military Family Relief Fund (MFRF) is an Arizona program under statute to financially assists military families, veterans, and service members that were injured or killed while deployed in active duty.
MFRF assistance may be used in multiple ways. For example, family members may want to travel to the location where the service member is hospitalized for treatment. When injuries cause permanent disabilities or require extensive rehabilitation, the military family may need financial support to pay for relocation, paying bills, or modifying their home to accommodate for a disability.
Which expenses may the Military Family Relief Fund be applied to?
MFRF was designed to help with basic living expenses that have become difficult to pay because of unexpected circumstances. Basic living expenses include:
- Mortgage/rental assistance,
- Vehicle payments,
- Utility assistance,
- Travel expenses,
- Hotel fees,
- Childcare expenses,
- Day-to-day bills, or
- Other appropriate expenses as determined by the advisory committee.
MFRF does NOT assist with:
- VA (Veterans Affairs) debts,
- Education,
- Child support,
- Credit cards, or
- Legal fees.
Who is eligible for Arizona Military Family Relief Fund?
1. Deployment
2. Financial Hardships (one must apply)
For veterans & service members: Show that current or past military service caused financial hardship.
For family members of a service member: Show that a financial hardship was caused by the service member’s military service.
For surviving families: The family member had a service members or veteran who died or was injured in active duty and the family member needs assistance with travel and living expenses.
The spouse, or a dependent child applying to financial assistance due to the passing of a service member or veteran is only eligible if the military member died in a combat zone or a zone where the person was receiving hazardous duty pay.
3. Arizona Residency (one must apply)
- Claimed Arizona as home of record, or
- Member of the Arizona National Guard at time of deployment, or
- Deployed from an Arizona military installation, or
- Established residency in Arizona and provided documentation of continuous presence in Arizona for at least 12 months prior to submitting application.
These are acceptable documents to submit as evidence of continuous physical presence in the state:
- DES (Department of Economic Security) benefit summary,
- Lease or mortgage statements,
- VA (Veterans Affairs) blue button appointment report,
- Utility bills, (water, electric, gas),
- 3- or 5-year state motor vehicle record fees,
- Employment history report,
- State income tax returns,
- Property titles,
- Health or medical records showing consistent appointments,
- College verification of enrolment verification, or
- Community service organization letter.
How much money can the Arizona Military Family Relief Fund help with?
Financial assistance is determined by the MFRF advisory committees, which are made up of 12 members appointed by the Governor and the Arizona Department of Veterans’ Services (ADVS) Director. The MFRF has two advisory committees with the same roles: the pre-9/11 and post-9/11 advisory committees.
Each committee has a $20,000 lifetime limit per family and may provide one-time emergency assistance of up to $3,000. Emergency assistance is only available for first-time applicants.
How do I apply for Arizona Military Family Relief Fund assistance?
If eligibility is met, are completed online.
The following documents are required to submit an eligible application:
- DD-214 form,
- Two months of bank statements,
- Two months of pay stubs,
- Past due/future bills of requested financial assistance,
- VA (Veterans Affairs) decision letter and ratings, and
- Proof of relationship with service member or veteran (if applicable)
Missing documentation will result in an application not being processed.
ADVS’s “” gives step-by-step instructions for how to apply online.
What does the application review process look like for Arizona Military Family Relief Fund assistance?
Advisory committee meetings are typically held every 3rd Tuesday of the month. Applications received will be reviewed and considered at the next advisory committee meeting.
To find the next advisory committee meeting date and the application submission cut-off date for each meeting check out:
Approved applications will get a check issued within 7-12 business days and be mailed out to vendors by ADVS on behalf of the applicant.
How long does the Military Family Relief Fund one-time emergency take to process?
From members of the advisory committees, 5 of them are selected to make up an emergency committee.
This committee will do a one-time review of an application to provide a faster response for emergency financial needs. Once an emergency application is submitted, the emergency committee has 5 business days to vote on the application.
Emergency funds can only be used once, if a person applies again, that application will be reviewed by the full MFRF advisory committee.
If an application is approved, checks are issued within 5-10 business days and will be mailed out to the vendors by ADVS on behalf of the applicant.
Where can I talk to someone about my application in person?
The Arizona Department of Veterans’ Services is open Monday – Friday from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm, except legal holidays.
Address:
3839 North 3rd Street - Suite 209
Phoenix, AZ 85012
Phone:
602-255-3373
Advisory committee agendas can also be or in person at this location at least 24 hours in advance of the meetings. MFRF and its committee meetings are open to the public.