Free educational tool
IRRRL breakeven, run against VA’s own math.
Before VA will guarantee an IRRRL, the lender certifies to VA that the costs that count recoup within 36 months. Enter both monthly payments — or a balance and a rate quote — to run that same math and see how it reads against the limit.
This site is an independent educational project, not the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Everything except taxes, escrow, and the VA funding fee. Those three are excluded from this number by statute.
VA funding fee on an IRRRL: 0.50% of the loan — shown for context only, not part of the number above.
Enter both monthly payments to run the recoupment math.
The other two gates
Recoupment is one of three tests § 3709 sets for an IRRRL. Seasoning requires the later of 210 days after the first payment due date on the loan being refinanced, or 6 consecutive monthly payments made on it. Net tangible benefit under § 3709(b) (statute verified August 2026) has two parts: the issuer of the refinanced loan provides the borrower with a net tangible benefit test, and the new rate is at least 0.50 percentage points lower, fixed-to-fixed (or 2.00 percentage points lower, fixed-to-ARM). On top of that, 38 CFR § 36.4307(a)(3) (regulation verified August 2026) requires any one of its own listed benefits: a lower principal-and-interest payment, a shorter term, a fixed rate replacing an adjustable one, a payment increase resulting from energy-efficient improvements, or advance approval by the Secretary after a determination that the loan is necessary to prevent imminent foreclosure.
Sources: 38 U.S.C. § 3709(a), (b), (c) — recoupment certification, net tangible benefit, and seasoning — retrieved from uscode.house.gov, checked August 2, 2026. 38 CFR § 36.4307(a)(3), the IRRRL-specific benefit conditions, retrieved from eCFR, amendment date July 28, 2026, checked August 2, 2026. VA funding fee schedule per VA.gov, last reviewed July 10, 2026. Full citations and verified quotes: docs/research/2026-08-02-irrrl-source-verification.md. Educational content only. The numbers above are not a certification, and this tool decides nothing about whether any loan closes.