What To Know About Veterans Burial Benefits

Table of contents

• Benefits overview
• Military funerals and burials
• Flags and honors for funerals and memorials
• Burial and cemetery allowance amounts
• Work with a Dignity Memorial^® provider to secure benefits

VA burial benefits: a quick overview

When a veteran dies, who pays for the funeral? A lot of people think the U.S. government pays for all funeral expenses. Others think a veteran gets a free casket or cremation. However, only under certain circumstances, such as when a serviceman or servicewoman is killed in the line of duty, does the VA pay all costs for a funeral or cremation. There are other cases when certain monetary, recognition and service benefits may be available. They include:

• when a veteran dies because of a service-related disability.
• when a veteran was receiving or was entitled to receive a VA pension or compensation at the time of death.
• when a veteran dies while receiving care at a VA hospital or a facility under contract with the VA to provide care.

Some VA burial benefits do apply to all veterans discharged as other than dishonorable, and some veterans may be eligible for allowances that will help with funeral and burial costs. However, even under the most generous circumstances, the allowances fall far short of the actual costs of a funeral or cremation service, and the family needs to make up the difference. This is why planning and funding final arrangements ahead of time can be very beneficial.

It's important to also understand that VA burial benefits are not automatic. Before VA burial benefits are provided, a veteran’s family must request and present proper documentation. In most cases, the VA will need to see the Report of Separation or Discharge Papers (generally called Form DD214) to verify eligibility. Often, families don’t have these papers or know where they are. In that case, a Dignity Memorial provider can help secure them. 

Additionally, a family must request all of the benefits for which their loved one is eligible. (The Dignity Memorial Veterans Planning Guide includes those request forms.)

In most cases, claims for allowances for a death not related to service must be filed within two years of the veteran’s funeral or cremation. The Presidential Memorial Certificate, however, is a benefit with no time limitation. There’s also no time limit to file for a service-connected funeral, cremation or burial allowance.

Military funerals and burials 

Eligible veterans, their spouses and, in most cases, their dependent children can be buried in one of the 138 national VA cemeteries or any state veterans cemetery with space available for veterans and their spouses. Benefits for a veteran who chooses to be buried in one of those cemeteries also include a burial liner, grave opening and closing costs, a grave marker or headstone, and perpetual care. These benefits apply to both casket burial and cremation memorialization.

Regardless of where a veteran is buried in the world—in a national VA cemetery, state veterans cemetery or private cemetery—the family can request a government headstone, marker or medallion. Upright headstones are available in granite or marble, and flat markers are available in granite, marble or bronze.

Bronze medallions in several sizes are available for placement on existing privately purchased headstones or markers. VA burial benefits do not cover the cost of affixing the medallion to the headstone or marker—that cost is the responsibility of the veteran's family. Niche markers for cremation cemetery memorials are also available.

Don't live close to a VA cemetery? A veteran can be transferred to any national cemetery with space at the family's expense. Some state VA cemeteries, however, require the veteran to have been a resident of that state at the time of death or have other rules around eligibility. State veterans cemeteries are run solely by the states, and you will need to contact the cemetery directly for information.

You can check the National Cemetery Administration burial benefits page to determine eligibility requirements for national and private cemetery burial funding. Your Dignity Memorial provider can help you select either a VA national cemetery, a state veterans cemetery or a private cemetery anywhere in the United States and plan a fitting tribute.

Veterans burial benefits do not usually include a casket or urn.

Many military families think any honorably discharged veteran who dies gets a free casket or urn as part of veterans burial benefits. This isn’t true. Only a serviceman or servicewoman who dies on active duty receives a casket or urn as part of VA burial benefits.

Flags and honors for funerals and memorials

The U.S. Department of Defense provides, at no cost, the rendering of military funeral honors for an eligible veteran if requested by the family. The ceremony will include the folding and presentation of the American flag to the next of kin and the playing of Taps, either by a bugler or by official electronic recording.

Families can request funeral honors through their funeral director, who is responsible for arranging the details. To verify eligibility, use Form DD214.

Veterans receive U.S. flags at their funerals.

As part of military funeral honors, the Department of Veterans Affairs provides the U.S. flag to each veteran’s family. An active-duty member of the deceased veteran's military branch of service usually presents it to the next of kin or a designated friend or family member during the funeral.

The government offers benefits for military funeral honors for veterans discharged anything other than dishonorable.

Servicemen and servicewomen who die on active duty, military retirees, members and former members of the Selected Reserve, and eligible U.S. veterans who were separated under any condition other than dishonorable are eligible for a military funeral honors ceremony. These honors must be requested by a funeral director on behalf of the family and include: 

• Folding and presenting the U.S. flag by an honor guard of two or more uniformed military members (at least one will be from the branch of service of the deceased veteran).
• Taps played by a live bugler or recording. 

The U.S. Department of Defense can provide more information about military funeral honors. If you need help requesting them, contact a planning advisor.

The family of an eligible veteran can request a Presidential Memorial Certificate or replacement of service medals, awards and decorations.

The Presidential Memorial Certificate is an engraved paper certificate, signed by the current U.S. president, honoring the memory of an eligible veteran after death. Eligible recipients, including the veteran’s next of kin and loved ones, can request the certificate in person at any VA regional office or by U.S. mail. Your Dignity Memorial provider can assist your family in obtaining this certificate.

It is also common for service recognition awards (generally military medals earned while on active duty) to be lost or misplaced. If a veteran or a family member has the veteran's signed authorization, they may request a replacement for a living veteran. The next of kin of a deceased veteran can request replacements in writing using Standard Form 180 (SF 180). There is usually no charge for medal or award replacements.

For more information or the mailing address of the military branch office where you can submit your request, call 1-866-272-6272 or go to the National Personnel Records Center website. If your family needs SF 180, a Dignity Memorial provider can get one for you.

Veteran burial allowance amounts 

According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs website, maximum allowances for VA funeral benefits vary according to how and where a veteran passes. Below are the most recent allowances. See the allowances for previous years at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

Maximum allowances for a service-connected death:

• If the veteran died on or after September 11, 2001: $2,000
• If the veteran died before September 11, 2001: $1,500
• If the veteran is buried in a VA national cemetery, the family may be reimbursed for some or all of the costs of relocating their loved one.

Maximum allowances for a death unrelated to service:

• If the veteran died on or after October 1, 2024: $978 burial allowance and $978 for a cemetery plot

Maximum allowances for a death unrelated to service if the veteran was hospitalized by the VA at the time of death:

• If the veteran died on or after October 1, 2024: $978 burial allowance and $978 for a cemetery plot
• The family may be reimbursed some or all of the transportation costs to the place of interment if their loved one was hospitalized or in a VA-contracted nursing home at the time of death or passed while traveling to VA-authorized care.

Maximum headstone or marker allowance:

• If the veteran died on or after October 1, 2021: $231
• If a veteran is cremated and the family does not want the government-furnished headstone, marker or medallion, the family can apply for a commemorative plaque or urn for their loved one.

According to the National Funeral Directors Association, the average funeral cost in the United States was around $8,300 in 2023; the average cremation cost nearly $6,280. It's easy to see how VA funeral and burial allowance amounts fall far short of actual costs.

Who receives veterans burial benefits? 

Any member of the U.S. Armed Forces who dies while on active duty or any veteran who was discharged under conditions other than dishonorable is entitled to burial in a VA national cemetery. Under certain conditions, the surviving spouse and minor children of an eligible person may also be entitled to this benefit. The spouse, surviving spouse or dependent of an eligible veteran or member of the Armed Forces may be eligible for interment in a national cemetery even if that veteran is not buried or memorialized in a national cemetery.  

The spouses and children of eligible veterans qualify to be buried in a veterans cemetery.

Spouses and minor dependents will qualify to be buried in a national VA cemetery or state veterans cemetery, even if they pass away before the eligible veterans. However, spouses and children are not eligible for monetary burial benefits or military honors.

A Dignity Memorial provider can help your family secure military burial benefits.

We are the exclusive provider of funerals and cremations for members of the Veterans of Foreign Wars and certain State Departments of the American Legion. What’s more, many years of planning funerals for thousands of veterans from all branches of service have given us experience in planning every detail of a veteran's funeral and ensuring they receive the respect and honor they have earned.

If you are a veteran or a spouse, parent or loved one planning a funeral service for a living veteran or one who recently passed, we can help you understand the VA burial benefits that may be available to you—and guide you through the process of filing the required forms. Dignity Memorial providers also offer special pricing and benefits to eligible veterans, as well as a 100% service guarantee.