Summary
This position is in the Veterans Benefits Administration, Regional Office (VARO), in one of the several Fiduciary Hubs. The Veterans Service Representative/Fiduciary Accounting Representative (FAR) is responsible for making determinations involved in the administration of all types of beneficiary estates, the protection of their benefit rights, the routine handling of legal matters, and the identification of legal questions.
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Duties
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This position is in the Veterans Benefits Administration, Regional Office (VARO), in one of the several Fiduciary Hubs. The Veterans Service Representative/Fiduciary Accounting Representative (FAR) is responsible for making determinations involved in the administration of all types of beneficiary estates, the protection of their benefit rights, the routine handling of legal matters, and the identification of legal questions.
Specific duties are as follows:
- Initiates contacts and receives incoming calls and communication with fiduciaries and beneficiaries under the supervision of the Fiduciary Program, to explain the full range of VA benefits and all related programs and entitlements, in addition to, federal, state, and local assistance programs.
- Advises fiduciaries, trust officers, banking officials, attorneys and court officials of regulations, necessary documentation and other factors which impact the VA fiduciary oversight of the beneficiary.
- Reviews records to ensure that all beneficiaries and dependents are accounted for in award actions (i.e. dependent parents, children living with other relatives, etc.).
- Identifies and audits the records for possible fraud, embezzlements, misappropriations, or misuse by fiduciaries.
- Conducts in-depth analysis, quasi-legal examinations, investigations, and financial assessments of inquiries pertaining to allegations of misuse.
- Protects the VA beneficiary and their estate by initiating actions to generate payment suspensions, resumptions, or terminations for appropriate situations (successor fiduciary appointment, failure of fiduciary to account, unauthorized expenditures, death, alleged misuse or whereabouts unknown).
- Initiates the appropriate actions/steps (misuse allegation, request a field examination, complete the misuse investigation) and forward misuse determination for management concurrence.
- Audits and reviews fiduciary's annual accounting or fund usage to include receipts or other documentation and works with the fiduciary to correct and clarify, in accordance with regulatory guidance, any expenditures that are questionable.
- Reviews surety bonds to determine their adequacy and informs the fiduciary when the bonds are found to be deficient or substantially greater that necessary so the appropriate increase or decrease can be accomplished.
- Refers information regarding misuse of funds to the appropriate agency to include the court of jurisdiction, Office of Inspector General (OIG) and/or District Counsel.
- Maintains system databases and records to include establishing and updating beneficiary and fiduciary profiles, changes of fiduciaries, changes of name, address, or direct deposit information.
Promotion Potential: The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory, qualification, and performance requirements are met. Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level. The grade progression for this position is GS-07/09/10.
Work Schedule: Full time, Monday through Friday 08:00-16:30
Compressed/Flexible: Available
Telework: This position is eligible for situational (ad hoc) telework only. The selectee is required to report to the official duty station each scheduled workday. Telework may be approved only on a case-by-case basis with supervisory approval. Routine or recurring telework is not authorized for this position.
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Position Description/PD#: Veterans Service Representative, 39715A, 39714A, 39713A
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Financial Disclosure Report: Not required
Bargaining Unit: 1272/AFGE
Requirements
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Conditions of employment
As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:
- your performance and conduct;
- the needs and interests of the Agency;
- whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the Agency or the Government; and
- whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.
Upon completion of your probationary period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.
Additional Conditions of Employment are as follows:
- You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
- Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
- You may be required to serve a probationary or trial period
- Subject to background/security investigation
- Required to attend an 8 week training session, which may require travel.
- Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements I-9 Acceptable Documents.
- Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
Qualifications
To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement:07/27/2026.
TIME-IN-GRADE REQUIREMENT: As a current Federal, GS employee you must meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement.
- For a GS-07 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-05 level.
- For a GS-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07 level.
- For a GS-10 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-09 level.
The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade.
MINIMUM QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS: You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below:
GS-07 Grade Level:
Specialized Experience: To qualify, applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade (GS-05) in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Specialized experience is defined as work that involves: using various computer systems for data entry and maintaining/monitoring case files; reviewing documents submitted by others for completeness, accuracy, and validity; communicating with customers of varying and diverse backgrounds.
OR
Education Substitution: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education you must have:
- One (1) full year of graduate level education. Graduate level education must demonstrate the competencies necessary to do the work of the position;
OR
- A Bachelor's degree with Superior Academic Achievement (3.0 GPA or higher). Superior Academic Achievement (SAA) is based on: 1) class standing, 2) grade point average or 3) honor society membership. For more information on calculating SAA please visit www.opm.gov.
GS-09 Grade Level:
Specialized Experience: To qualify, applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade (GS-07) in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Specialized experience is defined as work that involves: using various computer systems for data entry and maintaining/monitoring case files; preparing various types of written correspondence; gathering and analyzing evidence in order to make sound recommendations and/or referrals; AND communicating with customers of varying and diverse backgrounds.
OR
Education Substitution: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education you must have:
- A master's or equivalent graduate degree in an accredited or pre-accredited college or university;
OR
- 2 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree; or possession of an LL.B. or J.D degree, if related. Graduate-level education must demonstrate the competencies necessary to do the work of the position.
GS-10 Grade Level:
Specialized Experience: To qualify, applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade (GS-09) in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Specialized experience is defined as experience: using various computer systems for data entry and maintaining/monitoring case files; preparing various types of written correspondence; gathering and analyzing evidence in order to make sound recommendations and/or referrals; AND, reviewing financial, benefit, or legal documents and statements to identify any misrepresentation, fraud or illegal activity.
OR
Education Substitution: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education you must have:
- Two and a half years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree. Graduate-level education must demonstrate the competencies necessary to do the work of the position.
Combining Education & Experience: If you do not fully meet the length of experience and education described for a specific grade level (e.g. have six months of experience and some coursework but not a degree), the two can be combined to total 100% of the requirement. Click here for more information.
Volunteer Experience: Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.
Full vs. Part-Time Employment: Full-time employment is considered to be at least 35 hours per week. Part-time experience will be credited on a pro-rated basis; when including part-time employment in your resume you must specify the average hours worked per week.
Physical Requirements:The work normally involves mental rather than physical exertion. The work is mostly sedentary; however, there may be some walking, standing, and carrying of light items.
For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at http://://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.
Education
A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.
Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education to be credited towards qualifications. Provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.All education claimed by applicants will be verified upon appointment. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript to receive credit.
Note: You may submit unofficial transcripts when applying. However, if you are selected for the position, you will be required to provide an official transcript or a statement from the institution (e.g., from the registrar, dean, or other appropriate official) or equivalent documentation prior to the start date.
Additional information
VA supports the use of telework as a way to help attract and retain talented individuals in public service, increase worker productivity, and better prepare the agency to operate during emergencies. This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process.
The
Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified (have a final rating of 85 or more) for this vacancy. Information about CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.
Placement Policy: The posting of this announcement does not obligate management to fil
