Veteran and survivor VA burial, memorial, other benefits

Editor’s Note: This article is the first in a series of four.

By Larry Dandridge

This article is the first in a series of four articles that will cover VA benefits designed to aid veterans and their families in planning for the veteran’s death and the benefits available to the veteran’s survivors. Specifically, this article will summarize the following fifteen benefits available to veterans and their families and provide the references they should read before the veteran’s or survivor’s death.

The following 15 broad categories of benefits are available to veterans and their families:

1. Pre-need eligibility for National Cemetery burial or memorialization;

2. Memorial or burial flags;

3. Government headstones or markers;

4. Cemetery medallions;

5. Presidential Memorial certificates;

6. Burial benefits and burial automatic payments;

7. Dependency and indemnity compensation;

8. Dependents’ Educational Assistance Program;

9. Marine Gunnery Sergeant John David Fry Scholarship;

10. Survivors pension;

11. Special monthly pension benefits;

12. The Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs;

13. Home loans;

14. Veterans’ month of death benefits;

15. VA life insurance.

Veterans and their families should learn all they can about their hard-earned federal and state benefits before they need them, apply for them, and use them. Reading the information in the Planning Your Legacy (VA Survivors and Burial Benefits) Kit, the 20 paragraphs below, and the referenced web pages will prepare you to understand your benefits better. Reading this information will also help you know why you should use a VA-accredited Veterans Service Officer (VSO) to apply for federal and state benefits.

1. Planning Your Legacy (VA Survivors and Burial Benefits) Kit, VA Pamphlet 27-18-1, February 2024, P96888, https://bit.ly/4mDj7yB.

2. Find out how to apply in advance for an eligibility determination regarding your eligibility for burial in a VA National Cemetery on the VA web page “Pre-need Eligibility for Burial in a VA Cemetery” at https://bit.ly/3KoGeul.

3. Find the eligibility requirements for burial in a VA national cemetery at the VA web page “Eligibility for Burial in a VA National Cemetery” at https://bit.ly/3mhoBop.

4. Find eligibility information for burial in a VA National Cemetery for the following specific groups at https://bit.ly/3mhoBop:

U.S. Citizens who served in the Armed Forces of any government allied with the USA during a war.
Members of Reserve components or Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (National Guard and Reserve).
Commissioned Officers of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Commissioned Officers of the Public Health Service.
World War II Merchant Mariners.
Philippine Armed Forces Veterans.
Hmong Individuals (For more information, visit the NCA Hmong Facts page) at https://bit.ly/43GE4zY for more details.

5. Learn about specific groups who are not eligible for burial in a VA National Cemetery (Certain family members, People drafted but never entered military service, Veterans with a particular character of discharge, Veterans found guilty of a capital crime, Veterans convicted of certain sex offenses, and veterans convicted of subversive activities) at https://bit.ly/3mhoBop.

6. Find out what happens at a military funeral for a veteran or service member at “Military Funeral Honors and the Committal Service” at https://bit.ly/41uGor0.

7. Find out how to make burial plans for a veteran, spouse, or dependent family member at “Schedule a Burial for a Veteran or Family Member” at https://bit.ly/3KRhRpg.

8. Find the answers to 13 FAQs (see below) about veterans’ burial benefits at “National Cemetery Administration FAQ” at https://bit.ly/3ZbvXdj.

13 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. Does the VA pay for cremation or burial expenses?

2. What are my burial benefits?

3. What can I do now to prepare for burial in a national cemetery?

4. I do not have my military discharge, how can I get a copy?

5. Am I eligible for a burial flag and how do I get one?

6. What is a Presidential Memorial Certificate?

7. How can I order a headstone, marker, or medallion for placement in a private cemetery?

8. Is my mother, who is not a Veteran, entitled to a Government marker in a private cemetery?

9. Can I be buried at Arlington National Cemetery?

10. How can I find out the status of a headstone order?

11. What do I do if the headstone inscription is incorrect?

12. What is the proper way to clean a government headstone or marker?

13. Can VA provide burial at sea?

9. Find out about Veterans’ headstones, markers, medallions, plaques, and urns at the VA web page at https://bit.ly/4dLU4W3.

10. Find answers to specific questions about government headstones and markers at the VA webpage titled “Government Headstones and Markers FAQs” at https://bit.ly/43M9Ag1.

11. Learn about the burial benefits available to a Veteran buried in a private cemetery at https://bit.ly/45yjZhB.

12. Learn how to get Veterans burial allowances (sometimes called “veterans death benefits”) to help cover burial, funeral, and transportation costs at “Veterans Burial Allowance and Transportation Benefits” at https://bit.ly/3dKZkyx.

13. Learn how to request a copy of a veteran’s military service records (DD214, other separation documents, military personnel records, military medical records, awards, qualifications-licenses-certificates, etc.) at the VA web page titled “Request your military service records (including DD214)” at https://bit.ly/41ydmaU and the National Archives “Request Military Service Records” at https://bit.ly/41ydmaU and https://bit.ly/3ZbMSMM.

14. Learn about bereavement counseling for surviving spouse, child, or parent of a service member or veteran at “Bereavement Counseling” https://bit.ly/3Aa2UtK.

15. Learn about VA Vet Centers at “Vet Centers (Readjustment Counseling at https://bit.ly/4jq6bJn.

16. Find a VA Cemetery at the VA’s “Find VA Locations” locator at https://bit.ly/3ZbMVbq. This site lists each cemetery’s locations, phone numbers, directions, and burial status (open, closed, memorial wall, etc.).

17. Learn about the Veterans Legacy Program (VLP) at the NCA “VLP” at https://bit.ly/4kJfbdD.

18. Find the eligibility requirements for burial and inurnment at Arlington National Cemetery at https://bit.ly/3Fzk8XD and the VA webpage titled “Can I be Buried in Arlington National Cemetery?” at https://bit.ly/40okPay. The VA cannot determine eligibility for burial in Arlington National Cemetery because the U.S. Army maintains this cemetery. Work with your funeral home director to contact Arlington National Cemetery at 877-907-8585 for their eligibility information.

19. Find out what happens at a military funeral at Arlington National Cemetery at the Arlington National Cemetery “Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) web page at https://bit.ly/3Fzk5uV.

20. Download the 2025 “Federal Benefits for Veterans, Dependents, and Survivors Handbook which includes information from A to Z on veterans’ benefits and services and key phone numbers at https://bit.ly/3SstPdn.

Continued next week.

Larry Dandridge is a Vietnam War wounded warrior, a combat and service-connected 100% disabled veteran, an ex-Enlisted Infantryman, an ex-Warrant Officer Pilot, and a retired Lt. Colonel. His over 250 articles on veterans’ benefits, leadership, logistics, hospice, law enforcement, and aeronautics have been published in over 20 magazines and newspapers in the USA, Germany, and England. Larry is a former Veterans Service Officer, a Patient Adviser at his local VA Hospital, a Fisher House Charleston Goodwill Ambassador, and the past Vice President for Veteran Affairs for his local Association of the US Army (AUSA) and Military Officers Association (MOAA) Chapters. He is currently the VFW Post 7378 Service Officer, the author of the award-winning and popular (over 250 five-star reviews) Blades of Thunder (Book One), and a contributing freelance writer with the Island News. Contact him at LDandridge@earthlink.net or 843-276-7164.