H.R. 9105 — SAFEGUARD Veterans Act of 2026

This section imposes penalties for charging unauthorized fees for preparing, presenting, or prosecuting claims for VA benefits, including fines or up to one year imprisonment and bars from VA recognition for one year after a first violation and 10 years after each subsequent violation. It requires any person assisting with such claims to be recognized by the Secretary or act under direct supervision of a recognized agent or attorney. It supersedes state laws on recognition and fee agreements, directs the VA General Counsel to initiate rulemaking within 90 days, and requires the Secretary to submit detailed staffing and funding estimates for chapter 59 administration with each annual budget request.

This section requires the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, upon receipt of an initial claim from an unrepresented claimant, to provide notice of the online tool listing accredited persons and the website for reporting non-accredited persons charging fees. It directs the Secretary to maintain a quarterly-updated online searchable list of accredited, suspended, or excluded persons; to include fee warnings with links on all claim-filing portals; and to submit a report to the House and Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committees within 180 days on improving recognition processes under section 5904.

This section requires the Department of Veterans Affairs to display warnings on every public-facing website and online tool about predatory practices by agents and attorneys for veterans claims, including those lacking recognition by the Secretary, and to add a message discouraging veterans from sharing Department or bank account login credentials. The Secretary must implement these requirements through the Chief Veterans Experience Officer, effective 180 days after enactment.

This section requires the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to ensure that every Department of Veterans Affairs form used to accept a claim for benefits includes a question on whether the claimant was charged for assistance or coaching when gathering information or filing the claim, and an option to name the person who provided such assistance or coaching.

This section directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish an accreditation system for agents and attorneys under chapter 59 of title 38, United States Code. The system must maintain 99.9 percent uptime, enable certification of recognition requirements, allow clients to file complaints and report violations under sections 5904(b) and 5905(b), and integrate with systems administering section 3 of this Act.

This section prohibits calls to any telephone number assigned to a federal department or agency when made using equipment that can, without further human intervention after initial activation, make repeated calls to that number and provide and receive information during the calls, if the equipment is operated by any person or entity other than the one to whom the information relates.