Veterans' Funeral & Burial Benefits: What the VA Covers

Veterans have earned meaningful funeral and burial benefits — yet many families never claim them, often simply because no one told them the benefits existed. If you're arranging a service for a veteran, here's what the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) provides and how to claim it. It can save a family thousands of dollars.

What a veteran is entitled to

• Burial in a VA national cemetery at no cost — this covers the grave, its opening and closing, a burial vault or liner, a headstone or marker, and perpetual care. Eligible spouses and dependents can be buried there too.
• A government headstone, marker, or medallion — provided free even for a veteran buried in a private cemetery.
• A United States burial flag to drape the casket or accompany the urn, which the family keeps.
• Military funeral honors — at minimum the folding and presentation of the flag and the playing of Taps, by at least two uniformed service members. This is free and arranged through the funeral home.
• A Presidential Memorial Certificate honoring the veteran's service.

Cash burial allowances

The VA also pays a burial allowance toward funeral and burial costs. The amount depends on the circumstances of the death:

• Service-connected death (the veteran died from a service-related condition): a substantially higher allowance — historically around $2,000.
• Non-service-connected death: a smaller burial-and-funeral allowance, plus a separate plot allowance if the veteran isn't buried in a national cemetery.

The VA sets these amounts and adjusts them periodically, so treat any figure as a ballpark and confirm the current allowances at VA.gov before you rely on them.

Who's eligible

Most veterans who served on active duty and received a discharge other than dishonorable qualify, as do many members of the Reserves and National Guard who completed qualifying active service. Spouses and certain dependents are generally eligible for burial in a national cemetery alongside the veteran. The rules have specifics, so it's worth confirming eligibility in advance.

How to claim the benefits

• Tell the funeral home the deceased was a veteran. Funeral directors arrange military honors and national-cemetery burials routinely and can walk you through it.
• Have the discharge papers ready (form DD-214) — they establish eligibility for nearly everything above.
• File for the burial allowance using VA Form 21P-530, or apply online at VA.gov.
• Consider applying in advance. The VA offers a pre-need eligibility determination, so a veteran can confirm national-cemetery eligibility while still living — sparing the family that step later.

What it doesn't cover

A national-cemetery burial is free, but there may not be one near you, and choosing a private cemetery means those costs are still yours. The cash allowances help but rarely cover a full funeral. So veterans' benefits are best combined with the rest of your plan — see how families cover the remainder in our how to pay for a funeralguide, and compare cremation, which many veterans' families choose, on our cremation costs by state pages.

The bottom line

If you're arranging a funeral for a veteran, don't leave these benefits unclaimed. Start by telling the funeral home and locating the DD-214 — between a free grave, a headstone, honors, a flag, and a cash allowance, the savings for the family are real.