Does the VA pay for funerals?
Short answer
Partly, and only for some veterans. For a service-connected death on or after September 11, 2001, the VA pays up to $2,000 toward burial. For a non-service-connected death on or after October 1, 2026, it pays up to $1,032 for burial plus $1,032 for a plot, but only if the veteran was getting VA compensation or pension, died in VA care, or meets another listed condition. Free national cemetery burial is a separate, broader benefit.
The VA does help with funeral costs, but less often and with less money than most families expect. Whether you get anything depends on how the veteran died and whether they were already connected to VA benefits.
The current amounts
These are the maximums from the VA’s burial allowance page. The non-service-connected amounts change every October 1.
| Type of death | Burial allowance | Plot or interment allowance |
|---|---|---|
| Service-connected, died on or after Sept. 11, 2001 | Up to $2,000 | — |
| Service-connected, died before Sept. 11, 2001 | Up to $1,500 | — |
| Non-service-connected, died on or after Oct. 1, 2026 | $1,032 | $1,032 |
| Non-service-connected, died Oct. 1, 2025 – Sept. 30, 2026 | $1,002 | $1,002 |
The allowance applies to every legal type of burial, including cremation and burial at sea. The VA may also reimburse the cost of moving the veteran’s remains to a national cemetery.
Who actually qualifies
The veteran can’t have a dishonorable discharge, and one of these has to be true:
- They died from a service-connected disability.
- They died while getting VA care at a VA facility or a VA-contracted facility.
- They died while traveling at VA expense to or from authorized care.
- They had a compensation or pension claim pending and would have been entitled before death.
- They were receiving VA pension or compensation.
- They were eligible for compensation or pension but took full military retirement or disability pay instead.
If none of those apply, there’s usually no cash burial allowance. A plot allowance can still be paid in a few other cases, such as a veteran discharged for a disability incurred in the line of duty. It’s only paid when the burial isn’t in a national cemetery, because that plot is already free. The VA doesn’t pay burial allowances for deaths on active duty, while serving in Congress, or while serving a federal prison sentence.
How to claim it
- Surviving spouses listed on the veteran’s VA profile don’t need to file. The VA pays automatically once it learns of the death.
- Everyone else files VA Form 21P-530EZ online or by mail. You must have paid the costs yourself, without being reimbursed by an employer or another agency.
- Deadlines: a service-connected claim has no time limit. A non-service-connected claim must be filed within 2 years of burial, unless the veteran died in VA care or you’re claiming only the plot or transportation allowance.
Have the death certificate (with cause of death) ready, plus the DD214 if you can find it.
What it doesn’t cover
Even at the maximum, the allowance pays a small share of what a funeral actually costs, and many families get nothing at all. The bigger VA benefit is free burial in a national cemetery with a government headstone. Funeral home charges stay with the family.
That gap is why many veterans pair their VA benefits with a small final expense policy that pays their family in cash. We’re an independent agency in Troy, Michigan, and we’re not affiliated with the VA. Check your options or call 586-343-1505.
Sources: VA — Veterans burial allowance and transportation benefits · 38 CFR 3.1707 — plot or interment allowances (eCFR) · VA National Cemetery Administration — burial benefits
Updated October 11, 2026. General information, not legal, tax or financial advice. United Eagles Financial is an independent life insurance agency, not an insurance carrier; coverage depends on carrier underwriting and state availability.