VA Bathroom Remodel in San Antonio: Using the HISA Grant and SAH

For many veterans, the bathroom is the room that decides whether home still works. A high tub wall, a narrow door or a toilet without support can turn a daily routine into a risk. VA has programs that help pay for bathroom changes, but the names, limits and paperwork confuse a lot of families. This guide explains what a VA bathroom remodel looks like in San Antonio, which program fits, what VA asks for and how to plan a bathroom that actually works for the person using it. For a deeper look at both programs, read our VA SAH and HISA grant guide.

Which VA program fits a bathroom remodel in San Antonio

There are two separate VA routes, run by different parts of VA:

• HISA (Home Improvements and Structural Alterations): a VA health care benefit managed by the Prosthetic and Sensory Aids Service. It pays for medically necessary changes to your primary residence, and it is the program most bathroom projects use.
• SAH (Specially Adapted Housing) and SHA (Special Home Adaptation): housing grants for veterans with specific service-connected disabilities, used to buy, build or change a permanent home. They are much larger than HISA but have narrower eligibility.

VA decides eligibility for each program separately, so treat this guide as a map, not a ruling, and ask your VA contact which route fits your situation.

HISA grant amounts and who qualifies

VA's Prosthetic and Sensory Aids Service lists two HISA lifetime limits:

• $6,800 for a service-connected condition, a condition treated as if it were service-connected, or a non-service-connected condition if the veteran has a service-connected rating of at least 50 percent.
• $2,000 for veterans whose condition doesn't fall in the higher tier.

Because HISA is a lifetime limit, think about how you'll use it. Spending it on one well-planned bathroom project usually goes further than several small changes made at different times.

SAH and SHA grants for larger bathroom remodels

VA lists fiscal year 2026 maximums of up to $126,526 for SAH and up to $25,350 for SHA. SAH generally applies to veterans with serious service-connected disabilities such as loss or loss of use of more than one limb. SHA applies to qualifying disabilities such as loss or loss of use of both hands, certain severe burns or certain respiratory injuries. VA says eligible veterans can use the grant up to six times over a lifetime, so a bathroom remodel doesn't have to use the whole amount. Housing grant applications go through VA's housing assistance process, not the prosthetics office.

What the HISA grant covers in a bathroom

VA's HISA page lists these examples of covered work:

• Essential lavatory and sanitary facilities, such as roll-in showers
• Making sinks or counters accessible, such as by lowering them
• Entrance to and exit from the home
• Plumbing or electrical upgrades needed for home medical equipment
• Permanent ramping on entrance paths or driveways near the home

VA also lists what HISA does not cover, including spas, hot tubs and Jacuzzis, new construction, removable equipment such as portable ramps and stair glides, and routine maintenance such as replacing roofs or air conditioners. Upgrades that aren't medically necessary, such as decorative tile or a larger vanity, may need to be paid separately. Ask your VA contact how to handle a project that mixes covered and personal-choice work, and make sure the estimate separates them.

HISA paperwork: what VA asks for

VA's HISA page lists the documents for an application:

1. A prescription from a VA physician, or one a VA physician approves, with your name, address and phone number, a description of the project and alternatives, and the diagnosis and medical justification.
2. A completed and signed VA Form 10-0103. If you need an advance payment, request it on the application.
3. For renters, a signed and notarized statement from the property owner authorizing the work.
4. A written, itemized estimate covering labor, materials, permits and inspections.
5. A color photo of the area before work.

VA may also inspect the site. In San Antonio, start with your VA health care team or the prosthetics service at the Audie L. Murphy Memorial Veterans' Hospital on Merton Minter Boulevard. Keep copies of everything you submit, and do not let anyone start demolition before VA approves the request in writing.

Designing a VA-funded bathroom that works

The prescription describes the medical need, but the layout makes or breaks the result. The 2010 ADA Standards don't apply to private homes, yet the U.S. Access Board's guide to them gives tested dimensions that are a good starting point:

• Roll-in shower: at least 30 inches deep by 60 inches wide, with a threshold no higher than half an inch.
• Transfer shower: 36 by 36 inches with a seat, for someone who transfers from a wheelchair to a bench.
• Shower seat: 17 to 19 inches high. In a roll-in shower, a seat should fold up out of the way.
• Hand-held shower: a hose at least 59 inches long, with water temperature limited to 120°F.
• Toilet: seat 17 to 19 inches high, centerline 16 to 18 inches from the side wall.
• Grab bars: 33 to 36 inches high to the top of the gripping surface, with a side bar at least 42 inches long and a rear bar at least 36 inches long beside the toilet.
• Turning space: a 60-inch circle or T-shaped space so a wheelchair can turn around.
• Controls: usable with one hand, without tight grasping or twisting.

Adjust these to the actual person. A veteran who walks with a cane needs something different from one who uses a power chair. Our ADA accessible bathroom remodel guide walks through each fixture, and our tub to shower conversion guide explains how the shower itself is built.

Permits and timing for a VA bathroom remodel in San Antonio

Accessible bathrooms usually involve moving a drain, replacing a valve or adding circuits, which is permitted plumbing and electrical work in San Antonio. The City's Development Services Department says licensed trade contractors should handle new electrical, plumbing and HVAC components. Because VA asks for an estimate that includes permits and inspections, your contractor should price them up front rather than leave them as an exclusion.

Timing has two clocks: VA's review of your request and the construction schedule. Ask VA what it needs and when, and ask your contractor for a written schedule that starts after approval. If you live outside city limits, in Helotes, Cibolo or New Braunfels for example, that city's building department handles permits.

What 214 Veteran Solutions does on a VA bathroom remodel

214 Veteran Solutions is a veteran-owned general contractor in San Antonio. We are not part of VA, and we don't decide eligibility or approve grants. What we do:

• Talk through your needs and the program you're considering.
• Measure the bathroom and prepare a written scope of work and an itemized estimate.
• Provide the construction documents your program asks for, such as the scope, estimate and contractor information.
• Build the project and coordinate licensed trades and any required permits and inspections.

Our accessible bathroom work includes roll-in or walk-in showers, grab bars, roll-under sinks, wider doorways and slip-resistant flooring. Electrical, plumbing and HVAC work is performed by licensed trade contractors. See our VA construction and renovation services and bathroom remodeling page for more.

Ready to plan a bathroom that works for you? Call (210) 796-3695, text (210) 429-7396 or book a free on-site consultation. We'll measure the room and give you an itemized estimate you can take to VA.