Veterans' Death and Burial Benefits

What death and burial benefits does the VA offer veterans?

When a veteran dies, the VA and the National Cemetery Administration offer a set of separate benefits — you generally claim the ones that fit rather than receiving a single package. Eligibility usually depends on the veteran's service and type of discharge. The main benefits are:

• Burial in a VA national cemetery, at no cost to the family, for eligible veterans.
• A government headstone, marker, or medallion, even for burial in a private cemetery.
• A United States burial flag to drape the casket or accompany the urn.
• Military funeral honors — the folding and presentation of the flag and the playing of Taps.
• Monetary burial allowances, in certain situations, toward burial and plot costs.
• A Presidential Memorial Certificate honoring the veteran's service.

Because these are claimed and not granted automatically, the practical question after a death is which ones apply and how to request each.

Burial in a VA national cemetery

Eligible veterans can be buried in a VA national cemetery at no cost to the family. That generally includes the gravesite, opening and closing of the grave, a government headstone or marker, a burial flag, and perpetual care of the grounds. Spouses and certain dependents may also be eligible for burial in a national cemetery, sometimes even if they die before the veteran does.

You do not pre-purchase a national-cemetery gravesite the way you would a commercial plot; eligibility is verified at the time of need, and the burial is scheduled through the cemetery and the funeral home. Families who want certainty ahead of time can apply for a pre-need eligibility decision, which spares survivors that question during an already hard week.

Headstones, markers, medallions, and the burial flag

The VA provides a government headstone, grave marker, or bronze medallion for an eligible veteran's grave — including graves in private cemeteries, not only national ones. The family chooses an available type and inscription within the VA's options, and there is no charge for the marker itself, though a private cemetery may charge to set it in place.

The VA also furnishes a United States flag to drape the casket or accompany the urn; after the service it is given to the next of kin as a keepsake. Funeral directors usually help request both the marker and the flag, and you will need proof of the veteran's service to do it. These are among the simplest benefits to claim and among the most meaningful to families.

Military funeral honors

Eligible veterans are entitled to military funeral honors: at minimum, the folding and presentation of the United States flag to the family and the playing of Taps, performed by a detail of at least two uniformed service members. These honors are provided by the military, not the funeral home, and are typically requested through the funeral director once a service is planned.

Many communities add more through veterans' organizations and volunteer honor guards. Hospices that take part in the We Honor Veterans program often help arrange recognition and honors for veterans in their care, so if the veteran was on hospice, it is worth asking whether that partnership can help coordinate a fuller send-off.

Monetary burial allowances

In some situations the VA pays a monetary burial allowance to help offset burial, funeral, and plot costs. The amount and eligibility depend on the circumstances — whether the death was connected to the veteran's military service, whether it occurred in a VA facility, and whether the veteran was receiving certain VA benefits at the time. A service-connected death generally qualifies for a larger allowance than a non-service-connected one.

These allowances usually reimburse the person who paid the costs, so keeping receipts matters. Because the rules and amounts are specific and change over time, the reliable move is to confirm current figures and eligibility directly with the VA rather than assume — which is why this article does not list dollar amounts.

What you'll need, and how to apply

The single most important document is the veteran's discharge paperwork — commonly the DD Form 214 — which proves the character and dates of service that most benefits hinge on. If you cannot find it, the National Archives can provide a copy to eligible next of kin. You will also want several certified death certificate copies, since the VA and other institutions each want their own original.

Funeral homes handle much of this routinely and will often file for the flag, the headstone, and honors on your behalf. Monetary allowances and some other benefits are claimed directly from the VA. None of it is automatic, so the practical rule is to ask early what applies and to be clear about who is filing each request.

If the veteran was on hospice

Many veterans die on hospice, and for eligible veterans the VA covers hospice care — so death and burial benefits often sit alongside that care rather than replacing it. Hospice is team-based end-of-life care that supports the family, not only the patient 1Ref 1MedlinePlus, U.S. National Library of Medicine (2024).Hospice Care.That hospice is team-based end-of-life care that supports the family, not only the patient., and many hospices offer bereavement support to families for a period after the death 2Ref 2Peer-reviewed systematic review (see article) (2020).The Impacts and Effectiveness of Support for People Bereaved Through Advanced Illness: A Systematic Review and Thematic Synthesis.That many hospices provide bereavement support to families for a period after a death, with benefits for grief resolution.. Hospice does not, however, pay for a funeral or burial. The hospice benefit covers medical care — not room and board, and not the costs of the service itself 3Ref 3Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (2024).Hospice Care Coverage.That the Medicare hospice benefit covers care and generally does not cover room and board..

That gap is exactly where veteran burial benefits come in: the VA's cemetery, marker, flag, honors, and allowances are separate from anything hospice or these va hospice benefits provide. A hospice that serves veterans can often help the family connect the two, so the honors and the paperwork do not fall entirely on you in the first days.

Burial or cremation, and other benefits to check

VA burial benefits apply whether a family chooses casketed burial or cremation, so the burial vs cremation decision does not, by itself, forfeit a veteran's entitlements — national-cemetery interment, a marker, honors, and a flag are available either way. Families drawn to a simpler or more natural option can also explore green burial, though what a given cemetery allows varies.

Burial benefits are also only one layer of what may be available after a veteran's death. Social Security survivor benefits, any VA survivor pension, life insurance, and employer benefits are claimed separately, each on its own timeline. Working through them slowly, with the funeral director and the VA helping where they can, is normal and expected — no family is meant to know all of this by heart.