Will VHA employees receive a bonus in 2025 or 2026?

1. State-level bonus: Virginia approved a 1.5% one‑time payment — who got it

Virginia’s amended budget and related agency notices show the Commonwealth authorized a one‑time bonus equal to 1.5% of base pay to eligible state employees to be paid June 16, 2025; eligibility tied to being employed by February 25, 2025, remaining employed through May 25, 2025, and other agency rules ^{[2] [5] [6]}. Multiple institutional notices — university HR bulletins and news outlets — repeated the same terms and payment date, and the Virginia Department of Human Resource Management issued FAQs explaining calculation and timing ^{[6] [5] [7]}.

2. Raises in Virginia extend into 2026 — raises vs. one‑time bonuses

The Virginia budget also funded 3% salary increases for classified employees in both fiscal years 2025 and 2026; VGEA and budget summaries describe these as base pay increases distinct from the 1.5% one‑time bonus ^{[8] [1]}. Institutions (e.g., universities) clarified that the bonus was separate from merit and scheduled pay increases, with the bonus appearing on June 16, 2025 payrolls and raises taking effect on specified later dates ^{[6] [9]}.

3. Federal VA (including VHA) — the incentives landscape is fragmented

At the Department of Veterans Affairs level, available reporting documents a complex, occupation‑specific incentive regime rather than a single universal “VHA employee bonus” for 2025–2026. The PACT Act and other authorities enabled critical‑skills incentives and special salary rates for certain hard‑to‑fill roles (HR, IT, law enforcement, housekeeping), which produced large payouts and special salary raises for targeted groups — for example, nearly 8,000 HR specialists received a roughly 15% special salary rate at one point ^{[10] [11]}. These were targeted, statutory or programmatic incentives, not a universal across‑the‑board bonus for all VHA employees ^{[10] [11]}.

4. Watchdog findings and congressional response: limits on executive awards

Investigations and inspector‑general reports found improper incentive awards and large payouts to senior executives: the VA OIG reported improper bonuses to senior executives and VA leadership rescinded delegations and sought recoupments ^[3]. In response, Senate legislation was advanced to ban VA executives from receiving bonuses intended for rank‑and‑file employees — an explicit congressional move to prevent executive enrichment from incentive pools intended for frontline staff ^[4].

5. Recent federal actions have cut or rescinded some pay programs

Reporting shows the VA canceled or rescinded some incentive authorities and special pay rates: for instance, a Special Salary Rate that had provided roughly 15% increases to nearly 10,000 HR employees was later axed, and VA budget and personnel plans for FY2026 included workforce reductions and program adjustments ^[11]. These actions mean prior incentive patterns may not persist into 2026 and that some groups who received targeted boosts in 2023–2024 might not see the same payments going forward ^{[11] [10]}.

6. What this means for a VHA employee wondering “will I get a bonus?”

If you are a Virginia state employee (state government or state‑supported local), your agency’s published materials show you were eligible for a 1.5% one‑time bonus in June 2025 and 3% raises in 2025 and 2026 if you met the stated employment and performance conditions ^{[1] [5] [6]}. If you are a VHA employee covered by federal VA pay rules, available reporting shows bonuses and special pay were and are highly targeted — tied to critical‑skills incentives or special salary rates — and federal oversight and congressional limits have curtailed some prior executive and special‑pay practices; no source here describes a new, department‑wide VHA bonus for all employees in 2025–2026 ^{[10] [3] [4]}. Available sources do not mention whether any additional universal VHA bonus will be authorized for 2026 beyond the targeted incentives already described (not found in current reporting).

Limitations and competing viewpoints: my summary relies solely on the provided reporting. State documents and advocacy groups (VGEA) emphasize the gains for Commonwealth employees and list concrete payout dates ^{[1] [6]}. Federal reporting emphasizes improper uses of incentives and Congress’s push to prevent executive capture of funds ^{[3] [4]}. Where sources are silent about a universal VHA bonus in 2025–2026, I state that absence rather than asserting a negative (not found in current reporting).