Veterans who earned education benefits while serving separate stints in the U.S. military could be eligible for up to 12 additional months under a new program announced Friday by the Department of Veterans Affairs.

The move, unveiled Friday in Colorado by VA Secretary Denis McDonough before the Student Veterans of America’s national conference, follows a U.S. Supreme Court decision in April favoring a veteran who sued the government over eligibility under the separate Montgomery and Post-9/11 GI Bill programs.

According to the announcement, veterans who served at least two separate periods of military service and met standards for either GI Bill program could receive up to 12 additional months of benefits, depending on their time served.

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Under the previous policy, veterans who served in separate periods were eligible for up to 36 months of education benefits under one program or the other. The U.S. Supreme Court, in a 7-2 decision, ruled that veterans were eligible for up to 48 months of benefits under both programs if the veteran had been enrolled in both.

The VA said the change could affect 1.04 million veterans, although attorneys for the veteran who sued the VA, James Rudisill, said in legal arguments that 1.7 million veterans could be eligible.

“This policy will not only help veterans who apply for GI Bill benefits in the future — it will also allow VA to provide additional benefits to many veterans who used GI Bill benefits in the past,” Under Secretary for Benefits Joshua Jacobs said in a statement Friday. “Under this new policy, many veterans will get [an] additional 12 months of GI Bill benefits.”

VA officials said they will automatically adjudicate claims for 660,000 veterans known to be eligible and will reach out to other eligible veterans directly to notify them of the additional benefits.

Veterans who paid into the Montgomery GI Bill, served at least two years and received an honorable discharge were eligible for education benefits worth up to $2,400 a month.

The Post-9/11 GI Bill, introduced in 2008 with a requirement that service members agreed to serve an additional four years and had served at least three years on active duty after September 2001, greatly expanded education benefits, increasing coverage for tuition, fees, housing and books, and allowed for transferability to dependents.

The VA also announced Friday that it has extended the expiration dates for using GI Bill benefits under the new policy. According to the department, for each veteran with multiple periods of service who chose the Post-9/11 GI Bill over the Montgomery GI Bill, the VA will reinstate the time they had remaining at the time of their election plus 90 days.

For example, according to the department, if a veteran chose to use the Post-9/11 GI Bill at a time when they had five years left to use the Montgomery GI Bill, they would be given five years plus 90 days to use any additional Montgomery GI Bill benefits.

To receive an expiration date extension, applications must be submitted by Oct. 1, 2030.

The VA has established a web page on the Supreme Court’s decision, its impact on veterans, and how to apply for the additional education benefits.

According to the department, the VA has paid $143 billion to date in Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits to 2.7 million beneficiaries.

Related: Supreme Court Hears Arguments on Education Entitlements Under Different GI Bills

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