FAMILYVA program
Military Family Life Counselors (MFLC)
Free, confidential, short-term counseling for service members, their families, and non-remarried surviving spouses, on or off the installation, in person, by phone, or by video. Available for individuals, couples, and children. Counseling is not reported to the command, with exceptions such as a duty to warn or suspected family maltreatment.
Available to service members, including the National Guard and reserves, their families, and non-remarried surviving spouses
Step-by-step guide
What you get
Free, short-term, confidential counseling from licensed counselors trained to work with the military community, on or off the installation, in person, by phone, or by video. For service members, their families, and surviving spouses who have not remarried.
Who MFLCs serve
- Part of the military community MFLCs serveMilitary OneSource lists service members, including the National Guard and reserves, their families, and surviving spouses who have not remarried. Counselors work at installation Military and Family Support Centers or are embedded with units.
Source: Military OneSource: Military and Family Life Counseling program (opens in new tab); Military OneSource: Military and Family Life Counseling (opens in new tab)
Who is the counseling for?
- Service members, spouses, and couples
Adult MFLCs counsel service members, spouses, military couples, and surviving spouses who have not remarried. They help with relationships at home and work, stress, deployment and PCS moves, parenting, and grief or loss, one on one, as a couple, or in a group.
Source: Military OneSource: Military and Family Life Counseling program (opens in new tab); Military OneSource: Military and Family Life Counseling (opens in new tab)
- Children and youth
Child and youth behavioral MFLCs work at child development centers, War Department schools, local schools, youth centers, camps for military children, and military pediatric clinics. They help with topics such as anger, bullying, conflict, divorce, feelings, self-esteem, separation, and family relationships.
- Written consent from a parent, under 18Children under 18 need written parental consent to receive support from a child and youth behavioral MFLC.
Source: Military OneSource: Military and Family Life Counseling program (opens in new tab); Military OneSource: MFLC locator (opens in new tab)
- After you leave service
The MFLC pages do not list veterans who have left service. For the 365 days after separation, Military OneSource counseling, a related free, short-term, confidential service, covers service members and their immediate family listed in DEERS. Past that, Military OneSource points veterans to VA, and VA.gov lists Vet Centers among the places to call or walk in.
- Within 365 days of leaving service, or another group Military OneSource servesRetired or honorably discharged members and their immediate family, listed in DEERS, until 365 days after the end of service. Medically discharged members and their immediate family while enrolled in their service branch program for wounded, seriously ill, or injured warriors. Surviving spouses who have not remarried, and surviving children, of an active duty, Guard, Coast Guard, or reserve member who died.
Source: Military OneSource: Military OneSource counseling (opens in new tab); Military OneSource: who can use its services (opens in new tab); VA.gov: VA mental health services (opens in new tab)
What to gather, and what it shows VA
| Document | What it shows | How VA gets it | Have it? |
|---|---|---|---|
| What you want help with In your own words, what is going on, such as stress, a move or deployment, a relationship, parenting, or grief. | Where the counseling starts | You tell the counselor directly, in person, by phone, or by video. It does not go to BeneVets. | |
| Written parental consent Written consent from a parent for a child under 18 to see a child and youth behavioral MFLC. | That a parent agreed to the counseling | A parent gives it in writing before the child is seen. | |
| DEERS listing Your listing, and your family listing, in DEERS. | Who Military OneSource counseling covers after separation | Military OneSource counseling covers people listed in DEERS for the 365 days after separation, and surviving spouses and children listed in DEERS. |
MFLC counseling is confidential and is not reported to the command, with a few exceptions such as a duty to warn or suspected abuse. BeneVets does not ask you about it.
Steps, in order
- Find your MFLC
Use the MFLC Locator on Military OneSource: pick a country, enter an installation or state, and filter by branch or counselor type. Each phone number listed is an individual MFLC you can call.
Source: Military OneSource: MFLC locator (opens in new tab); Military OneSource: Military and Family Life Counseling program (opens in new tab)
- Or start at your Military and Family Support Center
You can also contact your installation Military and Family Support Center to get started.
Source: Military OneSource: Military and Family Life Counseling program (opens in new tab)
- For a child, give written consent
A parent gives written consent before a child under 18 meets a child and youth behavioral MFLC. These counselors work in child development centers, schools, and youth centers.
Source: Military OneSource: Military and Family Life Counseling program (opens in new tab); Military OneSource: MFLC locator (opens in new tab)
- After separation, call Military OneSource
For the 365 days after separation, call Military OneSource at 800-342-9647, any time, to set up Military OneSource counseling in person, by phone, by secure chat, or by video. Phone and chat counseling are for adults 18 and older, and Military OneSource says it cannot promise the privacy of chat or video sessions.
Source: Military OneSource: Military OneSource counseling (opens in new tab)
- Not sure where to start? Call Military OneSource
Call Military OneSource at 800-342-9647, any time, to talk with a consultant about counseling options.
Source: Military OneSource: Military OneSource counseling (opens in new tab); Military OneSource: MFLC locator (opens in new tab)
- Free help with VA claims
MFLC counseling is not a VA claim. Military OneSource points veterans who are past the 365 days to VA for benefits and services. For a VA claim, an accredited VSO helps at no cost. Free help: an accredited VSO can file this with you. Find one near you in the BeneVets VSO directory at Find an accredited VSO near you.
Source: VA.gov: accredited representatives (opens in new tab); Military OneSource: who can use its services (opens in new tab)
Good to know
MFLC services are confidential, are not reported to the command, and do not affect a security clearance. The exceptions include a duty to warn, suspected family maltreatment such as domestic violence or child abuse or neglect, harm to self or others, and illegal activity.
Source: Military OneSource: Military and Family Life Counseling program (opens in new tab)
Call 988 and press 1 for the Military and Veterans Crisis Line, any time. For active suicidal or homicidal thoughts, sexual assault, child abuse, domestic violence, alcohol and substance use, or mental health conditions such as depression, Military OneSource points to the crisis line rather than to its short-term counseling.
Source: Military OneSource: Military OneSource counseling (opens in new tab)
Military OneSource counseling is short term and solution focused. It does not diagnose or treat mental health conditions and is not suited to someone already in therapy with another practitioner. VA mental health care is a separate service for veterans.
Source: Military OneSource: Military OneSource counseling (opens in new tab); VA.gov: VA mental health services (opens in new tab)
Leaders can ask MFLCs for unit briefings on topics such as stress, deployment, reintegration, anger, and grief, and for grief counseling when a unit has a loss or another difficult event.
Source: Military OneSource: Military and Family Life Counseling program (opens in new tab)
BeneVets is informational and is not an accredited representative. Free help: an accredited VSO can work through VA benefits with you at no cost. Find an accredited VSO near you
Sources checked October 16, 2026: Military OneSource: Military and Family Life Counseling (opens in new tab), Military OneSource: Military and Family Life Counseling program (opens in new tab), Military OneSource: MFLC locator (opens in new tab), Military OneSource: Military OneSource counseling (opens in new tab), Military OneSource: who can use its services (opens in new tab), VA.gov: VA mental health services (opens in new tab), VA.gov: accredited representatives (opens in new tab)