Burial & Memorial Benefits for Veterans
Veterans and eligible family members may qualify for burial, cemetery, memorial, and financial benefits. Understanding what the Department of Veterans Affairs provides—and what families may still need to arrange—can make planning much easier.
Burial & Memorial Benefits for Veterans
Veterans and eligible family members may qualify for burial, cemetery, memorial, and financial benefits. Understanding what the Department of Veterans Affairs provides—and what families may still need to arrange—can make planning much easier.
Start With Eligibility and a Clear Plan
VA burial benefits can be valuable, but they do not replace every service a family may need. Benefits depend on the veteran’s service history, discharge status, chosen cemetery, cause of death, and other circumstances.
The best first step is to confirm eligibility in advance. A pre-need decision can reduce uncertainty and give family members documentation they can use when arrangements must be made.
Eligibility Must Be Confirmed
Military service alone does not guarantee every VA burial benefit. Eligibility depends on service history, discharge status, family relationship, and the benefit being requested.
Confirm Eligibility Before It Is Needed
Eligibility depends on the person’s military service and discharge history. Different rules may apply to active-duty service members, veterans, members of the Reserve or National Guard, spouses, surviving spouses, and dependent children.
Do not rely only on family recollections or assume that possession of a military discharge document guarantees a particular benefit. Ask the VA to make an official eligibility determination.
Apply for a Pre-Need Decision
A veteran, spouse, or other eligible person may apply before death for a VA determination of eligibility for burial in a national cemetery.
The VA reviews the applicant’s military and personal information and issues a written decision. Keep that decision with other end-of-life and military records.
Gather Service Records
A DD Form 214 or another separation document can help the VA verify service and discharge information.
An application may still be submitted without the document, but providing available records may help the VA process the request more efficiently.
Keep the Decision Accessible
Give a copy of the eligibility decision to the person who will handle arrangements. Store another copy with the veteran’s discharge papers, advance planning documents, and funeral or cemetery information.
A pre-need decision confirms eligibility. It does not reserve a specific gravesite.
What the VA May Provide
- Gravesite in an open VA national cemetery
- Opening and closing of the grave
- Grave liner when required
- Perpetual cemetery care
- Government headstone, marker, or niche cover
- Burial flag for an eligible veteran
- Presidential Memorial Certificate
Understand What May Still Cost Money
VA cemetery and memorial benefits do not usually cover every part of a funeral or cremation. Families may still need to purchase services provided before the burial or placement.
Some survivors or other eligible applicants may qualify for a VA burial allowance or transportation reimbursement. Eligibility and payment amounts depend on the circumstances and should not be treated as full payment for funeral expenses.
Ask for an Itemized Estimate
Have the funeral provider separate VA-provided cemetery benefits from the goods and services the family must purchase.
Choose the Right Cemetery or Placement
VA benefits differ depending on whether burial or placement occurs in a VA national cemetery, a state or tribal veterans cemetery, or a private cemetery. Confirm both eligibility and the individual cemetery’s requirements before making a purchase.
VA National Cemeteries
Eligible veterans and family members may be buried in an open VA national cemetery. Available benefits can include the gravesite or niche, opening and closing, perpetual care, and an official marker or niche cover.
A pre-need eligibility decision does not reserve a particular location. The family or funeral director must contact the National Cemetery Scheduling Office after the death.
State, Territorial or Tribal Cemeteries
Many states, territories, and tribal governments operate veterans cemeteries supported by VA grants.
Eligibility rules, residency requirements, spouse fees, and pre-need procedures may differ from those of VA national cemeteries. Contact the individual cemetery before relying on a particular benefit.
Private Cemeteries
An eligible veteran buried in a private cemetery may qualify for a government headstone, marker, or medallion. Other memorial items or financial assistance may also be available.
The private cemetery may charge for installation, placement, foundations, maintenance, or other services. Ask for those charges in writing before choosing a marker.
Military Burial at Sea
The U.S. Navy operates a burial-at-sea program for eligible active-duty members, retirees, veterans, certain civilian personnel, and eligible dependents.
The family is generally responsible for arranging preparation of the remains and delivering them to the designated military facility. Procedures depend on whether the remains are cremated or casketed and on the port or command handling the committal.
Information to Gather in Advance
Keep these records together and tell the person handling arrangements where they are stored.
Store these records where the person responsible for arrangements can find them. Consider giving that person a copy of the VA eligibility decision and the veteran’s discharge document in advance.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the VA pay for the entire funeral?
Usually not. VA benefits may cover eligible cemetery and memorial services, and some applicants may qualify for a burial allowance or transportation reimbursement.
Families commonly remain responsible for funeral home services, cremation, a casket or urn, transportation, ceremonies, and other arrangements made outside the cemetery.
Does a pre-need decision reserve a gravesite?
No. It confirms eligibility for burial in a VA national cemetery but does not reserve a specific grave, niche, cemetery, or burial date.
At the time of death, the family or funeral director must contact the National Cemetery Scheduling Office to request burial.
Can a spouse be buried in a veterans cemetery?
A spouse, surviving spouse, or dependent child may qualify based on the veteran’s service and the applicable cemetery rules. In some circumstances, an eligible spouse or child may be buried before the veteran.
Divorced former spouses generally do not qualify based solely on the former marriage.
Can a veteran receive a VA marker in a private cemetery?
An eligible veteran may qualify for a government-furnished headstone, marker, or medallion in a private cemetery.
Although the memorial item may be provided without charge, the cemetery may charge for installation, placement, foundations, maintenance, or other services.
What happens if no one applied in advance?
The family may still request a determination after the death. A pre-need application is helpful, but it is not required for an otherwise eligible person to receive benefits.
For burial in a VA national cemetery, the family or funeral director should contact the National Cemetery Scheduling Office.
Is Arlington National Cemetery part of the regular VA process?
No. Arlington National Cemetery has its own eligibility rules, application procedures, and scheduling process. A VA pre-need determination does not establish eligibility for Arlington.
Anyone considering Arlington should review its requirements directly rather than relying on the general VA national cemetery process.
Read more on the Arlington Eligibility page.
Related Topics
Confirm Eligibility Before Your Family Needs It
A pre-need decision can answer an important question now and give your family a clear document to use later.