National Cemetery Burial

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Spouse

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The spouse or surviving spouse of an eligible Veteran is eligible for interment in a national cemetery even if that Veteran is not buried or memorialized in a national cemetery. In addition, the spouse or surviving spouse of a member of the Armed Forces of the United States whose remains are unavailable for burial is also eligible for burial.

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The surviving spouse of an eligible Veteran who had a subsequent remarriage to a non-Veteran and whose death occurred on or after January 1, 2000, is eligible for burial in a national cemetery, based on his or her marriage to the eligible Veteran.

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Minor children of an eligible Veteran.

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For purpose of burial in a national cemetery, a minor child is a child who is unmarried and:

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• Who is under 21 years of age; or,

• Who is under 23 years of age and pursuing a full-time course of instruction at an approved educational institution.

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The unmarried adult child of an eligible Veteran.

For purposes of burial in a national cemetery, an unmarried adult child is of any age who became permanently physically or mentally disabled and incapable of self-support before reaching 21 years of age, or before reaching 23 years of age if pursuing a full-time course of instruction at an approved educational institution. Proper supporting documentation must be provided.

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CHAMPVA

Click HERE for information on CHAMPVA.

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Continuance of Claim (accrued benefits)

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This benefit falls under: 38 CFR § 3.1000 - Entitlement under 38 U.S.C. 5121 to benefits due and unpaid upon death of a beneficiary.

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If the Veteran at the time of their death had a pending VA disability claim OR had yet to initiate an appeal of a claim decision, the Veteran's surviving spouse, children, dependent parents, or (in some cases) surviving relatives may continue the claim or file an appeal in the Veteran's place.

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Time Limits

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• Pending Disability Claim

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An eligible dependent must act within one year after the Veteran's death.

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• Initiate Appeal of a Claim Decision

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An eligible dependent must act within one year of the claim's decision.

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Disbursement

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Regardless of which eligible dependent takes over the claim, the disbursement will be made in the following order:

 

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Beneficiary Priority:                Amount paid

Spouse                                    Full

Children                                  Equal shares
Parents                                    Equal shares    
Sole parent                             Full     

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NOTES:

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• In the event any dependent of higher order refuses to accept the money. The money will NOT pass down to the lower tiers.

• In the event any equal tier dependent refuses to accept the money. The money will NOT be returned to the pool to give the remaining dependents a larger share.

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How to File

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It is strongly recommended that the dependent utilize a VSO to help them through this process.

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Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC)

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If you’re the surviving spouse, child, or parent of a Servicemember who died in the line of duty, or the survivor of a Veteran who died from a service-related injury or illness, you may be able to get a tax-free monetary benefit

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Am I eligible for VA DIC?

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Spouse

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You may be eligible for Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) for surviving spouses if you meet the requirements listed below. You’ll also need to provide evidence with your claim showing that one of the descriptions below is true for the Veteran or Servicemember. Evidence may include documents like military service records, doctor’s reports, and medical test results.

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ONE of these must be true:

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• Married the Veteran or Servicemember before January 1, 1957, or

• Married the Veteran or Servicemember within 15 years of their discharge from the period of military service during which the qualifying illness or injury started or got worse, or

• Were married to the Veteran or Servicemember for at least 1 year, or

• Had a child with the Veteran or Servicemember, aren’t currently remarried, and either lived with the Veteran or Servicemember without a break until their death or, if separated, weren’t at fault for the separation. Separation is thought of in a marital nature; you lived with the Veteran continuously until death if they were in a nursing home but you were not. Don't confuse physical separation for marital separation.

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Note:

• If you remarried on or after December 16, 2003, and you were 57 years of age or older at the time you remarried, you can still continue to receive DIC.

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You’ll also need to provide evidence showing that **ONE of these descriptions are true for the Veteran or Servicemember:**

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• The Servicemember died while on active duty, active duty for training, or inactive-duty training; or

• The Veteran died from a service-connected illness or injury; or

• The Veteran didn’t die from a service-connected illness or injury, but was eligible to receive VA compensation for a service-connected disability rated as totally disabling for a certain period of time.

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NOTE:

• Payments at the 100% rate based on Temporary Disability/Individual Unemployment (TDIU) are NOT considered to be rated 100% at death.

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If the Veteran’s eligibility was due to a rating of totally disabling, they must have had this rating:

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• For at least 10 years before their death; or

• Since their release from active duty and for at least 5 years immediately before their death; or

• For at least 1 year before their death if they were a Former prisoner of war who died after September 30, 1999.

 

Dependent

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You may be able to get compensation as a surviving child if you meet the requirements listed below. You’ll also need to provide evidence with your claim showing that one of the descriptions below is true for the Veteran or Servicemember. Evidence may include documents like military service records, doctor’s reports, and medical test results.

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All of these must be true. You:

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• Aren’t married, and

• Aren’t included on the surviving spouse’s compensation, and

• Are under the age of 18 (or under the age of 23 if attending school).

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Note:

• If you were adopted out of the Veteran’s or Servicemember’s family, but meet all other eligibility criteria, you still qualify for compensation.

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You’ll also need to provide evidence that one of these descriptions is true for the Veteran or Servicemember:

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• The Servicemember died while on active duty, active duty for training, or inactive-duty training, or

• The Veteran died from a service-connected illness or injury, or

• The Veteran didn’t die from a service-connected illness or injury, but was eligible to receive VA compensation for a service-connected disability that was rated as totally disabling for a certain period of time.

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If the Veteran’s eligibility is due to a service-connected disability rated as totally disabling, they must have had this rating:

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• For at least 10 years before their death, or

• Since their release from active duty and for at least 5 years immediately before their death, or

• For at least 1 year before their death if they were a former prisoner of war who died after September 30, 1999.

 

Parent

You may be able to get compensation as a surviving parent if both of the descriptions below are true for you. You’ll also need to provide evidence with your claim showing that one of the descriptions below is true for the Veteran or Servicemember. Evidence may include documents like military service records, doctor’s reports, and medical test results.

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Both of these must be true:

• You’re the biological, adoptive, or foster parent of the Veteran or Servicemember, and

• Your income is below a certain amount. View the parents DIC rate table

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Note:

• A foster parent is someone who served in the role of a parent to the Veteran or Servicemember before their last entry into active service.

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You’ll also need to provide evidence that one of these descriptions is true for the Veteran or Servicemember:

• The Servicemember died from an injury or illness while on active duty or in the line of duty while on active duty for training, or

• The Servicemember died from an injury or certain illnesses in the line of duty while on inactive training, or

• The Veteran died from a service-connected illness or injury.

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What kind of benefits can I get?

If you qualify, you can get tax-free monetary benefits. The amount you receive depends on the type of survivor you are.

DIC benefit rates for surviving spouses and children

DIC benefits for surviving parents

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How do I apply for compensation?

First you’ll need to fill out an application for benefits. The application you fill out will depend on your survivor status.

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If you’re the surviving spouse or child of a Servicemember who died while on active duty, your military casualty assistance officer will help you to complete an Application for DIC, Death Pension, and/or Accrued Benefits by a Surviving Spouse or Child (VA Form 21P-534a). The officer will help you mail the form to the correct VA regional office.

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If you’re the surviving spouse or child of a Veteran, fill out an Application for DIC, Death Pension, and/or Accrued Benefits (VA Form 21P-534EZ).

If you’re a surviving parent, fill out an Application for Dependency and Indemnity Compensation by Parent(s) (VA Form 21P-535).

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You can apply for this benefit in any of these ways:

• Mail the form to the Pension Management Center (PMC) for your state.

• Work with an Accredited representative.

• Go to a VA regional office and get help from a VA employee.

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Chapter 35 (Dependents’ Educational Assistance - DEA)

The Dependents’ Educational Assistance program provides education benefits for the spouse and dependent children of a Veteran or Servicemember who meets one of the following criteria:

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Eligibility

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• Veteran is Permanently and totally disabled from service-connected causes, or

• Died in service, or

• Died of service connected causes, or

• Is currently missing in action or captured in the line of duty.

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Benefit

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This benefit may be used for pursuit of an undergraduate or graduate degree, courses leading to a certificate or diploma from business, technical or vocational schools, apprenticeship, and on-the-job training programs. Benefits for correspondence courses are available to spouses only. The program provides up to 45 months of education or training for beneficiaries who used their Chapter 35 benefits before August 1, 2018 and 36 months of education or training for beneficiaries who use their Chapter 35 benefits on or after August 1, 2018.

The benefit is paid directly to the dependent. To see the amount of their payment click HERE

Remedial, deficiency, and refresher courses may be approved under certain circumstances.

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Rules for Dependent Children

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Children must be between the ages of 18 - 26 to get this benefit. In certain cases, it is possible to begin before age 18 and to continue after age 26. Getting married does NOT end your eligibility.

The child CANNOT get this benefit while on active duty. The VA can extend the child's period of eligibility by the number of months and days equal to the time spent on active duty. However, this extension CANNOT go past their 31st birthday.

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Rules for Dependent Spouses

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If you are a spouse, benefits end 10 years from the date VA finds you eligible or from the date of death of the Veteran. However, if you are a surviving spouse of a Servicemember who died on active duty, your benefits end 20 years from the date of death. If you divorce the Veteran your benefits end on the date of divorce. If you remarry before age 57 your eligibility ends on the date of remarriage.

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Special Circumstance: Dual Eligibility

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In the event a dependent is eligible for Chapter 35 under both parents, they may draw Chapter 35 benefits from both parents at the same time!

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SPECIAL NOTES:

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• You are still subject to the maximum terms of this benefit (36 or 45 months). Meaning, if your maximum benefit is 36 months and you used 32 months from your father's Chapter 35 already. Your using your mother's source of entitlement does NOT give you another 36 months, you could only get 4 months of double payments.

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• To provide another example: If you have eligibility based on both parents and have NOT started to use the benefit. You are able to draw double Chapter 35 stipends at the same time for a total of your maximum benefit (36 or 45 months)!

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Free Tuition

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Depending upon the state you or your children live in or want to go to school in, you may be entitled to free tuition. For more information click HERE.

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Educational and Career Counseling (VA Chapter 36)

Chapter 36 is a program that helps dependents find employment.

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Eligibility

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• Be the dependent of a Veteran, and

• Be eligible for any VA education benefit.

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What it offers:

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• Exploring your abilities and interests to help you choose a career,

• Mapping out a path to employment, and

• Planning on the best ways to use your VA benefits.

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How to apply

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• Online - Go to eBenefits.

• Mail - Print and complete VA Form 28-8832 then mail to the nearest VA Regional Office, addressed Attn:Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment.

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Federal Civil Service Preference

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Derived Preference is a method where you, as the spouse, widow/widower, or parent of a Veteran may be eligible to claim Veterans' preference when the Veteran is unable to use it. You will be given XP Preference (10 points) in appointment if you meet the eligibility criteria.

Both a parent and a spouse (including widow or widower) may be entitled to preference on the basis of the same Veteran's service if each meets the requirements applicable to a parent and a spouse, respectively.

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Spouses

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As a spouse of a Veteran, you will be eligible for derived preference if the Veteran has been unable to qualify for a federal position along the general lines of his or her usual occupation because of a service-connected disability.

• Such a disqualification may be presumed when the Veteran is unemployed and is rated by appropriate military or Department of Veterans Affairs authorities to be 100 percent disabled and/or unemployable; OR

• has retired, been separated, or resigned from a civil service position on the basis of a disability that is service-connected in origin; OR

• has attempted to obtain a civil service position or other position along the lines of his or her usual occupation and has failed to qualify because of a service-connected disability.

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Widows/Widowers

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As a widow or widower of a Veteran, you will be eligible if you and the Veteran did not divorce, you have not remarried, or any remarriage was annulled, and the Veteran

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• served during a war or during the period April 28, 1952, through July 1, 1955, or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign medal has been authorized; OR

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• died while on active duty that included service described immediately above under conditions that would not have been the basis for other than an honorable or general discharge.

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Parent of a Deceased Veteran

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As the parent of a Veteran, you will be eligible if your son or daughter lost his or her life under honorable conditions while serving in the armed forces during a war, or during the period April 28, 1952, through July 1, 1955, or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign medal has been authorized; AND

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• Your own spouse is totally and permanently disabled; OR

• At the time, when preference is claimed, you are unmarried or, if married, legally separated from your spouse.

 

Parent of a Disabled Veteran

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Alternatively, you will be eligible if your son or daughter was separated with an honorable or general discharge from active duty, including training service in the Reserves or National Guard, and is permanently and totally disabled from a service-connected injury or illness; AND

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• Your own spouse is totally and permanently disabled; OR

• At the time when preference is claimed, you are unmarried or, if married, legally separated from your spouse.

 

Life Insurance

Click HERE.

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Nomination of Children to a Service Academy

 

If the Veteran died due to a service connected disability their children can be nominated to the following service academies:

• Air Force

• Army (West Point)

• Navy.

 

Survivor Benefit Plan/Reserve Component Benefit Plan (SBP)/(RCSBP)

The Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) allows a retiree to ensure, after death, a continuous lifetime annuity for their dependents. The annuity which is based on a percentage of retired pay is called SBP and is paid to an eligible beneficiary. It pays your eligible survivors an inflation-adjusted monthly income.

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A military retiree pays premiums for SBP coverage upon retiring. Premiums are paid from gross retired pay, so they don't count as income. This means less tax and less out-of-pocket costs for SBP recipients. The premiums are partially funded by the government and the costs of operating the program are absorbed by the government, so the average premiums are well below the cost for a conventional insurance policy. For most retirees, SBP is a good choice, but the government contribution is based on assumptions for average cases and may not apply equally to every situation.

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The maximum SBP annuity for a spouse is based on 55 percent of the member's retired pay (or in the case of a member who retires under REDUX, the retired pay the member would have received if under the high-three retirement system). However, a smaller amount may be elected.

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Eligible children may also be SBP beneficiaries, either alone or added to spouse coverage. In the latter case, the children receive benefits only if the spouse dies or otherwise becomes ineligible to receive the annuity. Eligible children equally divide a benefit that is 55 percent of the member's elected base amount. Child coverage is relatively inexpensive because children get benefits only while they are considered eligible dependents.

Coverage is also available for a former spouse or, if the retiree has no spouse or children, for an "insurable interest" (such as a business partner or parent).

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Survivors Pension

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A VA Survivors Pension offers Monthly payments to qualified surviving spouses and unmarried dependent children of wartime Veterans who meet certain income and net worth limits set by Congress.

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Am I eligible for a VA Survivors Pension as a surviving spouse?

If you haven’t remarried after the Veteran’s death, and if the deceased Veteran didn’t receive a dishonorable discharge and their service meets at least one of the requirements listed below, you may be eligible for this benefit.

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At least one of these must be true. The Veteran:

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• Entered active duty on or before September 7, 1980, and served at least 90 days on active military service, with at least 1 day during a covered wartime period, or

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• Entered active duty after September 7, 1980, and served at least 24 months or the full period for which they were called or ordered to active duty (with some exceptions), with at least 1 day during a covered wartime period or

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• Was an officer and started on active duty after October 16, 1981, and hadn’t previously served on active duty for at least 24 months.

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And this must be true for you:

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Your yearly family income and net worth meets certain limits set by Congress. Your net worth for VA purposes is the value of everything you own (except your house, your car, and most home furnishings), plus the value of any financial holdings (IRAs, checking/savings accounts) minus your Continuing Medical Expenses (CMEs) on an annualized basis.

 

This adjusted number must be less than the Federal-level Community Spouse Resource Allowance (CSRA) for Medicaid, which is $130,380. This number rises at the same percentage as the Social Security Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA).

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Am I eligible for a VA Survivors Pension as the child of a deceased wartime Veteran?

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If you’re unmarried and you meet at least one of the requirements listed below, you may be eligible for this benefit.

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At least one of these must be true:

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• You’re under age 18, or

• You’re under age 23 and attending a VA-approved school, or

• You’re unable to care for yourself (permanently incapable of self-support) due to a disability that happened before age 18.

 

What wartime periods do you recognize for pension benefits?

 

Under current law, we recognize these wartime periods to decide eligibility for pension benefits:

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• Mexican Border period (May 9, 1916, to April 5, 1917, for Veterans who served in Mexico, on its borders, or in adjacent waters)

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• World War I (April 6, 1917, to November 11, 1918)

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• World War II (December 7, 1941, to December 31, 1946)

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• Korean conflict (June 27, 1950, to January 31, 1955)

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• Vietnam War era (February 1, 1955, to May 7, 1975, for Veterans who served 'boots on the ground' in the Republic of Vietnam during that period, or August 5, 1964, to May 7, 1975, for Veterans who served outside of the Republic of Vietnam.)

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• Gulf War (August 2, 1990, through a future date to be set by law or Presidential Proclamation).

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How do I apply for a VA Survivors Pension?

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• By mail

Fill out an Application for DIC, Death Pension, and/or Accrued Benefits (VA Form 21-534EZ).

Mail it to: Department of Veterans Affairs Pension Intake Center PO Box 5365 Janesville, WI 53547-5365

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• In person

Bring your application to a VA regional office near you.

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• With the help of a trained professional

You can work with a trained professional called an Accredited representative to get help applying for VA survivors pension benefits. You may have to pay a fee for this service.

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VA Home Loan

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Click HERE for more information.

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References

• 38 CFR § 3.1000 - Entitlement under 38 U.S.C. 5121 to benefits due and unpaid upon death of a beneficiary

• 38 CFR § 3.1702 - Persons who may receive burial benefits; priority of payments

• 38 CFR § 3.5 - Dependency and indemnity compensation

• 38 CFR Subpart C - Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance Under 38 U.S.C. Chapter 35

• Part 4, Award Issues. Chapter 3 - Duplication of Benefits