Virginia households have until Friday, November 13 to apply for the state’s fuel assistance this winter, and crisis help for broken heating equipment opens November 1. The Virginia Department of Social Services sets the fuel assistance window from the second Tuesday in October through the second Friday in November, which in 2026 runs October 13 to November 13.
For a household on a fixed income, the practical question is which of the program’s separate pieces fits a problem that is happening now. Fuel assistance is the main program and closes November 13. A furnace that quits in November falls under crisis equipment help, which opens November 1 and is a different application with its own funding. Norfolk’s city page lists the same October 13 to November 13 dates.
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Three kinds of Virginia heating help, three calendars
The state’s energy assistance information sheet lays out each piece on its own dates. Fuel assistance takes applications from October 13 to November 13. Crisis help for heating equipment and heat security deposits runs from November 1 through March 15, one time only. Crisis help with heating fuel and heat bills starts on the first workday in January and also ends March 15.
Cooling assistance, which the state runs on a separate schedule from June 15 through August 15, is not open now. The state says crisis help is meant for emergency heating needs when no other resource is available, and that all of it is based on the availability of funds.
Who can apply
The state says an applicant must live in the locality where the application is made and must be responsible for a heating or cooling expense. Monthly gross income cannot exceed a limit that rises with household size. The state publishes that table on its information sheet, and local departments of social services apply it, so a household near the line should confirm the current figure with its own office before assuming it is in or out.
Cooling assistance has an added rule, requiring a household member who is age 60 or over, living with a disability, or under age 6. That rule applies to cooling only, not to the heating programs open this fall.
Three ways to apply
Applicants can apply online at CommonHelp, call the Enterprise Customer Service Center at (855) 635-4370, or go in person to the local department of social services. The state’s energy assistance page carries the program windows for each season.
A household that applies for fuel assistance should expect to wait a while for an answer. The state says benefits are determined and vendor authorizations for fuel deliveries or service are sent in December. Authorization goes to the vendor, such as the company that delivers the fuel, rather than arriving as cash to the household.
What happens after November 13
The state describes fuel assistance as a closed seasonal window, so a household that misses November 13 is left with the crisis programs. Crisis equipment help stays open through March 15, and crisis fuel and heat bill help opens on the first workday in January. Both depend on funds, and the state does not give a payment timeline for them beyond that.
The dates are firm even where the dollar amounts are not. The state publishes no benefit amounts for fuel assistance, so a household learns what it will receive only when the December authorization goes out. Anyone with a heating system already failing has a separate route that opens November 1, and the Enterprise Customer Service Center at (855) 635-4370 can say which application fits.
Applying for Virginia fuel assistance by November 13?
A deadline missed by a day leaves a household with only the crisis programs, which depend on funds and run on different dates. A paper trail of what was filed, when and with which office is the thing that keeps a December decision from turning into a guessing game.
The Senior Property Tax & Home-Cost Relief Kit covers heating, cooling and home-repair help, and its application log and renewal calendar track what was filed with whom and when the next window opens. Part 5, Utilities and Home Costs, is where the heating-help material sits.
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- The New $6,000 Senior Deduction and 14 More Tax Moves for Retirees
This article was produced with AI assistance and edited for accuracy against the sources linked above.
