VA burial benefits for veterans

What VA burial benefits cover

The VA offers several distinct burial-related benefits for eligible veterans. These programs exist separately — applying for one does not automatically grant the others. Most families claim only the benefits they already know about and miss the rest.

The main programs are:

• Burial allowance — a reimbursement for funeral and burial expenses
• Plot allowance — a reimbursement for the cost of a burial plot in a private cemetery
• United States burial flag — a flag presented to the family at no cost
• Presidential Memorial Certificate — a signed presidential tribute to the veteran's service
• National cemetery burial — free burial for eligible veterans in a national cemetery

All programs require the veteran's DD-214 to verify service. Gather this document early — it's needed for nearly every benefit.

Does the VA reimburse cremation costs?

Yes, if the Veteran and the person applying meet VA's criteria. VA provides burial benefits for all legal burial types, including cremation and burial at sea. Cremation costs can be claimed toward the burial allowance with VA Form 21P-530EZ. The person who paid may apply: a spouse, child, parent, executor, other family member or friend, or a funeral home.

You can apply online at VA.gov or by mail. Mail the completed Application for Burial Benefits (VA Form 21P-530EZ) and copies of supporting documents to: Department of Veterans Affairs, Pension Intake Center, PO Box 5365, Janesville, WI 53547-5365. Include the death certificate with the cause of death and, if you paid transportation costs, an itemized receipt. VA recommends including the DD214 or other separation documents.

Cremated remains can also be buried or inurned in a VA national cemetery with the same honors as a casket burial.

How much is the VA burial allowance?

The VA burial allowance helps cover some of the costs of the loved one's burial, funeral, and plot or interment. VA may also pay back the cost of transporting their remains. The amount depends on whether the death was service-connected and on the date of death.

Who is eligible for the burial allowance?

You may be eligible if you paid the burial and funeral costs, you won't be reimbursed by another organization (such as another government agency or the Veteran's employer), and you are the Veteran's surviving spouse or legal-union partner, child, parent, estate executor or administrator, another family member or friend, or a representative of a funeral home, cemetery, or other organization.

The Veteran must not have received a dishonorable discharge, and one of these must be true:

• They died as a result of a service-connected disability.
• They died while getting VA care, at a VA facility or a facility contracted by VA.
• They died while traveling, with proper authorization and at VA's expense, to or from a facility for an exam, treatment, or care.
• They had an original or reopened claim for VA compensation or pension pending when they died, and would have been entitled to benefits before their death.
• They were receiving a VA pension or compensation when they died.
• They were eligible for VA compensation or pension but received full military retirement or disability pay instead.

Deaths on active duty: VA does not pay burial allowances for someone who died on active duty. See the box below.

*VA's table labels this row "on or after October 1, 2025" with no end date. The October 1, 2026 row above supersedes it. For earlier dates of death, see VA's full table.

Transportation: VA may also pay back some or all of the cost of moving the loved one's remains if they were hospitalized or in a VA-contracted nursing home when they died, or if they died while traveling to VA-authorized care. VA also reimburses transportation for burial in a VA national cemetery. To be paid back for costs you paid directly, you need a receipt in your name.

When to file

• Service-connected death: There's no time limit to claim the burial or transportation allowance.
• Non-service-connected death: File within 2 years after the burial, unless one of these applies:
  • The loved one died under VA care, at a VA health facility or a facility contracted by VA. In that case there's no time limit.
  • You're claiming the plot or interment allowance, or transportation. There's no time limit for those.
• If VA changed the discharge status after death from dishonorable to another status, file within 2 years after that change.

How long does it take to get VA burial benefits?

VA's burial allowance page doesn't list a standard processing time, so we don't give one either. After you apply, you can check the claim's status on VA.gov. Some surviving spouses don't need to file: VA automatically pays a set amount when it learns of the death. National cemetery burials are scheduled through VA's scheduling office.

• Check status: Sign in to VA.gov's claim status tool, which covers the "burial allowance to help pay for a Veteran's burial and funeral expenses."
• Automatic payment to surviving spouses: If the loved one's VA profile lists you as their spouse, you don't need to file a claim for this payment. When VA receives notice of the death, it automatically pays a set amount to eligible surviving spouses toward the plot, interment, or transportation of the remains.
• Scheduling a national cemetery burial: You or the funeral director can call the National Cemetery Scheduling Office at 800-535-1117 (TTY: 711), Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. ET. Fax discharge papers to 866-900-6417, or email them to NCA.Scheduling@va.gov with the loved one's name in the subject line. National cemeteries hold burials Monday through Friday. If you can't find discharge papers, ask for help when you call; VA notes it may take several days to check eligibility without them.
• Active-duty deaths: VA says to contact the national cemetery directly to schedule the burial of an active-duty service member.

How to apply for VA burial benefits

Here is a quick reference for each benefit's application process:

• Burial allowance: VA Form 21P-530EZ (Application for Burial Benefits). Time limits depend on the type of death. See When to file above. Submit to your regional VA office or online at VA.gov.
• Plot allowance: Included on VA Form 21P-530EZ. Claimed at the same time as the burial allowance.
• Burial flag: Request at any VA regional office or U.S. Post Office with the DD-214. Funeral homes often do this for the family.
• Presidential Memorial Certificate: VA Form 40-0247 at VA.gov or by mail. No deadline. No cost.
• National cemetery burial: Call the National Cemetery Scheduling Office at 800-535-1117 before the burial date. Have DD-214 and death certificate ready.

Burial flag

A United States flag is provided to honor the memory of a veteran's military service. It is presented — folded, as at a military funeral — to the next of kin or a close friend at the time of burial.

• Available at no cost to the family
• Can be obtained from any VA regional office or from a U.S. Post Office — present the DD-214 or other proof of service
• Funeral homes familiar with military burials typically request the flag on the family's behalf
• One flag per veteran — it cannot be replaced if lost or damaged

Fill out VA Form 27-2008 (Application for United States Flag for Burial Purposes) and bring it to a funeral director, a VA regional office, or a U.S. post office. Call the post office ahead, since not all have flags.

The burial flag can be requested whether or not the veteran is buried in a national cemetery, and regardless of whether a burial allowance is also being claimed.

Presidential Memorial Certificate

The Presidential Memorial Certificate is an engraved, paper certificate signed by the sitting President of the United States, expressing the country's gratitude for the veteran's military service. It is a meaningful keepsake for the family — and one that most families never know to request.

• Free — there is absolutely no charge for the certificate
• No deadline — it can be requested at any time after the veteran's death, even years later
• Multiple copies can be requested for immediate family members
• If it's been more than 4 months and the certificate hasn't arrived, VA asks you to call rather than send a second application.
• If the loved one is buried in a national cemetery, VA automatically presents a PMC to the next of kin at the burial.

How to request

• Online: at VA.gov, search "Presidential Memorial Certificate"
• By mail: complete VA Form 40-0247 and mail it with copies of the death certificate and DD214 to NCA FP Evidence Intake Center, PO Box 5237, Janesville, WI 53547. Don't send originals.
• In person: at any VA regional office

National cemetery burial

Eligible veterans may be buried in one of the VA's 155+ national cemeteries across the country. Burial in a national cemetery is provided at no cost to the family. The VA covers:

• Opening and closing of the grave
• A concrete grave liner or outer burial container
• government-furnished upright headstone, flat grave marker, or niche cover
• Perpetual care and maintenance of the gravesite — the family has no ongoing cemetery responsibilities

The family is responsible for costs before the burial — funeral home services, embalming, casket or urn, transportation to the cemetery, and any memorial services.

Eligibility for national cemetery burial

• Veterans who were discharged under conditions other than dishonorable
• Active-duty service members who die in service
• National Guard and Reserve members who were activated under federal orders and who die while on active duty or who have met service requirements
• Spouses and dependent children of eligible veterans — even if the veteran is still living and is buried later

How to schedule

Call the National Cemetery Scheduling Office at 800-535-1117 to schedule burial. The office is open Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. ET (TTY: 711). Have the veteran's DD-214 and death certificate ready. The cemetery will work with the funeral home to coordinate the burial date.

Common mistakes

• Not knowing the burial allowance exists. Many families pay thousands of dollars in funeral costs without realizing the VA reimburses a portion. The allowance is modest, but it is money the veteran's service earned — and it requires a specific application.
• Missing the 2-year limit on a non-service-connected claim. If the death wasn't service-connected and the loved one wasn't under VA care, the burial allowance must be claimed within 2 years after the burial. Plot, interment, and transportation claims, and claims for service-connected deaths, have no time limit.
• Not requesting the Presidential Memorial Certificate. Because there is no deadline, families sometimes discover this program years after the veteran's death. It can still be requested, but many families never learn about it at all. Request it during the initial benefit-filing period so it isn't forgotten.
• Assuming national cemetery burial requires complicated coordination. It is a single phone call to 800-535-1117. The cemetery works directly with the funeral home. Many families who might have chosen a national cemetery don't realize how accessible the process is.
• Not checking state veterans cemeteries. National cemeteries are sometimes far from where the family lives. Every state operates at least one state veterans cemetery, which may be closer and offer similar benefits. Contact your state's veterans affairs department — or use the military families state selector — to find options near you.

Frequently asked questions