Family members of veterans can qualify for a broad set of VA benefits, including tax-free monthly payments, health insurance, education assistance, home loans, life insurance, burial help, and caregiver support. What you can receive depends on your relationship to the veteran, whether the veteran is living or deceased, and whether the veteran’s death or disability was connected to military service. This guide walks through the VA benefits available for family members of veterans and how eligibility is set for each one.
Who Counts as a Family Member
Federal law sets the relationships that open the door to these benefits. A spouse qualifies if the marriage was valid where the couple lived at the time of the marriage or when the claim was filed.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 38 USC 101 – Definitions A surviving spouse generally has to have lived with the veteran continuously from the marriage until the veteran’s death, with an exception for separations caused by the veteran’s misconduct.
Remarriage does not automatically shut the door. Remarrying after age 57 preserves most VA benefits, and remarrying after 55 preserves eligibility for Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) and CHAMPVA.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 38 USC 103 – Special Provisions Relating to Marriages A later marriage that ends through death or divorce can restore eligibility.
Children — biological, adopted, or stepchildren — qualify if they are under 18, under 23 and enrolled in an approved school, or became permanently unable to support themselves before turning 18.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 38 USC 101 – Definitions Dependent parents may qualify for certain programs when their income falls below VA thresholds that vary depending on whether one or both parents are living and whether a parent lives with a spouse.
Monthly Cash Payments
Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC)
DIC is a tax-free monthly payment for the surviving spouse, children, or parents of a service member who died in the line of duty or from a service-connected injury or illness. In 2026 the base rate for a surviving spouse is $1,699.36 per month.3Veterans Affairs. Current DIC Rates for Spouses and Dependents
Additional amounts sit on top of the base:
- $421 per month for each dependent child under 18.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 38 USC 1311 – Dependency and Indemnity Compensation to a Surviving Spouse
- A transitional $359 per month during the first two years after the veteran’s death when the surviving spouse has at least one child under 18.
- An aid and attendance amount for a surviving spouse who is housebound or needs daily help with personal care.
Dependent parents can also draw DIC, but the payment shrinks as income rises. A sole surviving parent with yearly income of $1,900 or less receives the top payment, with eligibility phasing out above roughly $11,200 per year. Thresholds are lower when both parents are alive.5Veterans Affairs. Current DIC Rates for Parents
VA Survivors Pension
The Survivors Pension is a separate, needs-based benefit for the low-income surviving spouse or child of a wartime veteran, even when the death was not service-connected. Countable income must fall below the Maximum Annual Pension Rate, and net worth cannot exceed $163,699 as of December 1, 2025.
The 2026 maximums for a surviving spouse are:
- Basic pension: up to $11,699 per year ($974/month) with no dependents, or $15,311 per year ($1,275/month) with a dependent child.
- With aid and attendance: up to $18,697 per year ($1,558/month) with no dependents, or $22,304 per year ($1,858/month) with a dependent child.
The pension is reduced dollar-for-dollar by the survivor’s countable income, so those figures reflect a survivor with no other income. Aid and attendance requires daily help with activities like bathing, dressing, or feeding, or residence in a nursing home.6Veterans Affairs. VA Aid and Attendance Benefits and Housebound Allowance A separate housebound increase exists for survivors who spend most of their time at home due to a permanent disability but do not meet the aid and attendance standard.
Health Coverage
CHAMPVA (the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs) covers family members who are not eligible for TRICARE. You may qualify if you are the spouse or child of a veteran rated permanently and totally disabled from a service-connected condition, or the surviving spouse or child of a veteran who died from a service-connected disability or who held a permanent and total disability rating at the time of death.7Veterans Affairs. CHAMPVA Guidebook Primary family caregivers approved through the VA’s caregiver program who lack other health insurance also qualify.
CHAMPVA is a cost-sharing program. The VA pays a large share of covered care, the beneficiary pays the rest, and the household annual out-of-pocket cap is $3,000. Once you hit that cap, the VA covers 100% of covered services for the rest of the calendar year.8Veterans Affairs. Getting Care Through CHAMPVA
TRICARE is the parallel program for families of active-duty members, National Guard and Reserve members, and military retirees, with plans such as TRICARE Prime and TRICARE Select. The two programs are mutually exclusive: if you qualify for TRICARE, you cannot enroll in CHAMPVA.
Education Assistance
Three programs cover most family situations, and each one fits a different set of facts.
Transferred Post-9/11 GI Bill
A service member who has completed at least six years of service and agrees to serve four more can transfer unused Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits to a spouse or children.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 38 USC 3319 – Authority to Transfer Unused Education Benefits to Family Members The benefit covers in-state tuition and fees at public schools, a monthly housing allowance tied to the school’s location, and up to $1,000 per year for books and supplies.10Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 38 USC Chapter 33 – Post-9/11 Educational Assistance
A spouse can use transferred benefits immediately, whether the service member is on active duty or has separated, but does not receive the monthly housing allowance while the member is still on active duty. A dependent child must wait until the service member has completed at least 10 years of service, and must use the benefit between age 18 (or high school graduation) and age 26. Children do receive the housing allowance during the member’s active-duty service.11Veterans Affairs. Transfer Post-9/11 GI Bill Benefits
Fry Scholarship
The Marine Gunnery Sergeant John David Fry Scholarship gives Post-9/11 GI Bill-level benefits to children and surviving spouses of service members who died in the line of duty on or after September 11, 2001. Recipients get up to 36 months of tuition, a housing allowance, and a books stipend. Children can start using the benefit at 18 or after high school graduation; eligibility ends at age 33 for parents who died before January 1, 2013, and no age cap applies for later deaths.12Veterans Affairs. Fry Scholarship
Surviving spouses keep Fry eligibility after remarrying. A spouse whose unused benefits previously expired may have them restored for use any time after January 2, 2025. A surviving spouse receiving DIC can collect those payments while using the Fry Scholarship.
Survivors’ and Dependents’ Educational Assistance (DEA)
DEA provides monthly payments to the spouse, child, or stepchild of a veteran who is permanently and totally disabled from a service-connected condition or who died from a service-connected cause.13Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 38 USC Chapter 35 – Survivors’ and Dependents’ Educational Assistance For the 2025–2026 academic year, the full-time monthly payment is $1,574, paid directly to the student.14Veterans Affairs. Chapter 35 Rates for Survivors and Dependents It applies to degree programs, certificates, apprenticeships, or on-the-job training.
Most recipients have up to 36 months of eligibility; those who began using DEA before August 1, 2018, may have up to 45. Many states also offer separate tuition waivers at public universities for dependents of disabled or deceased veterans, and these can cover full tuition and fees at state-funded schools.
Home Loans for Surviving Spouses
Surviving spouses of veterans who died in the line of duty or from a service-connected disability may qualify for a VA-backed home loan with no down payment and no private mortgage insurance. You need a Certificate of Eligibility from the VA to apply. Eligibility generally requires that you have not remarried, but a surviving spouse who remarried on or after age 57 may still qualify.15Veterans Affairs. Home Loans for Surviving Spouses
A surviving spouse receiving DIC is exempt from the VA funding fee, a one-time closing cost other VA borrowers pay.16Veterans Affairs. VA Funding Fee and Loan Closing Costs That exemption can save thousands at closing, and the loan itself usually carries a lower interest rate than a conventional mortgage.
Family Life Insurance (FSGLI)
Family Servicemembers’ Group Life Insurance lets an active-duty member buy spousal coverage in $10,000 increments up to $100,000, capped at the member’s own SGLI amount. Each dependent child is automatically covered for $10,000 at no cost.17Veterans Affairs. Family Servicemembers’ Group Life Insurance (FSGLI) Spousal premiums scale with the spouse’s age and the amount of coverage, ranging from $0.40 per month at the low end to $40.00 per month at the high end. Premiums come out of the service member’s pay along with their own SGLI.
Burial Benefits
The VA pays a burial allowance when a veteran dies, and the amount depends on whether the death was service-connected:
- Service-connected death (on or after September 11, 2001): up to $2,000 toward burial expenses.18Department of Veterans Affairs. Veterans Burial Allowance and Transportation Benefits
- Non-service-connected death (on or after October 1, 2025): $1,002 for burial and $1,002 for a plot.
Eligible veterans can also be buried in a national cemetery at no cost to the family. The VA provides a headstone or marker and a burial flag, and national cemeteries provide perpetual care of the gravesite.
Caregiver Support
Two VA programs support family members caring for a disabled veteran, and which one you qualify for depends on the severity of the veteran’s condition.
Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers
PCAFC is available when the veteran has a combined service-connected rating of 70% or higher and needs hands-on personal care for at least six continuous months. The veteran must be unable to perform a daily activity such as bathing, feeding, or dressing without help every time, or need daily supervision for personal safety.19Veterans Affairs. Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers Eligibility Criteria Fact Sheet
An approved primary family caregiver receives a monthly stipend calculated from the GS-4, Step 1 rate for the veteran’s local area. Level 1 caregivers receive roughly 62.5% of that monthly figure; Level 2 caregivers, for veterans who cannot live independently, receive the full amount.20Veterans Affairs. PCAFC Monthly Stipend Fact Sheet Locality pay makes the exact dollar amount vary by region. A primary family caregiver without other health insurance also becomes eligible for CHAMPVA.
Program of General Caregiver Support Services
Caregivers who do not meet the 70% threshold can still use PGCSS, which offers peer support mentoring, skills training, coaching, telephone support, and referrals to community resources. There is no stipend.21Veterans Affairs. The Program of General Caregiver Support Services The VA Caregiver Support Line at 855-260-3274 handles questions about either program on weekdays.
How to File a Claim
Pull together the key documents first: the veteran’s DD-214 discharge paperwork, a marriage certificate for spousal claims, birth certificates for dependent children, and a death certificate for survivor benefits.22National Archives. DD Form 214 Discharge Papers and Separation Documents
For DIC, Survivors Pension, or accrued benefits, use VA Form 21P-534EZ. Filing as a Fully Developed Claim, with all supporting evidence submitted at the same time, generally moves the case faster.23Veterans Affairs. Fully Developed Claims FAQ You can file online at VA.gov, by mail to the VA’s Evidence Intake Center, or in person at a VA regional office. Online filing usually processes fastest.
If you use a representative, confirm they are accredited by the VA’s Office of General Counsel — accreditation covers Veterans Service Organization representatives, attorneys, and claims agents.24Veterans Affairs. VA Accredited Representative FAQs Unaccredited individuals cannot legally help with a VA benefit claim, and the VA maintains an online search tool to verify accreditation.
If Your Claim Is Denied
You have three review options after a denial or an unfavorable decision:25Veterans Affairs. VA Decision Reviews and Appeals
- Supplemental Claim: submit new and relevant evidence the VA did not have. You can file at any time, but filing within one year of the decision preserves your original effective date.
- Higher-Level Review: a more senior reviewer re-examines the existing record; no new evidence.
- Board Appeal: a Veterans Law Judge at the Board of Veterans’ Appeals reviews the case, generally within one year of the decision letter.
If more than a year has passed, a Supplemental Claim with new evidence is the only remaining route.26Veterans Affairs. Decision Reviews FAQs The decision letter states the exact deadline for each option, and some benefit types carry shorter windows.