Burial Insurance for Veterans: What the VA Pays and What It Does Not

Is there VA burial insurance?

Not in the way most people mean. There is no free burial insurance policy that every veteran gets. When people search for "VA burial insurance," they usually mean one of three things:

• VA burial benefits. A cash allowance for some veterans, plus burial and memorial items. These are benefits, not insurance.
• VA life insurance. Programs like VALife and VGLI. You apply and pay premiums. Not every veteran can get them.
• Private burial insurance. A small whole life insurance policy from a private insurer, also called final expense insurance. Veterans can buy it like anyone else.

Many families use a mix. The rest of this page explains each piece, what it pays, and the gap that is often left over.

VA burial allowance: 2026 amounts

The burial allowance is a flat payment that helps with burial and funeral costs. It can also help with the cost of a plot and with moving the remains. The amount depends on whether the death was service-connected, meaning caused by a condition linked to military service.

The VA updates the non-service-connected amounts each year on October 1. The amount that applies is set by the date of death, not the date you apply. Always check the current figures on the VA burial allowance page before you count on a number.

For a death that was not service-connected, the veteran must also meet at least one VA condition. Examples include dying while in VA care, dying while getting VA compensation or pension, or having a VA compensation or pension claim pending at death. The veteran must not have had a dishonorable discharge.

Transportation. The VA may pay back some or all of the cost of moving the remains in certain cases. Examples include a veteran who was hospitalized by VA or in a VA-contracted nursing home at death, or who died while traveling to VA-authorized care. VA also lists transportation help for burial in a national cemetery in some cases.

Cremation and other choices. VA says burial benefits are available for all legal types of burial, including cremation and burial at sea, and when remains are donated to a medical school.

The VA does not pay this allowance for deaths on active duty, while serving in Congress, or while serving a federal prison sentence.

How and when to apply for the burial allowance

Surviving spouses may be paid automatically. If you are listed as the spouse on the veteran's VA profile, VA says it pays a set amount automatically after it learns of the death. You do not need to file a claim for that payment. You can still file for other amounts you may be owed.

Everyone else files VA Form 21P-530EZ, the Application for Burial Benefits. You can apply online at va.gov or mail it to the VA Pension Intake Center. A spouse, child, parent, executor, other family member, friend or the funeral home may apply, depending on who paid.

• Service-connected death: no time limit to apply.
• Not service-connected: generally apply within 2 years after burial. VA lists exceptions. There is no time limit if the veteran died under VA care, or if you are claiming only the plot or interment allowance or transportation costs.
• Have ready: the death certificate, itemized receipts for any transportation costs, and the veteran's DD214 or other discharge papers.

The allowance is a reimbursement. Many families pay the funeral home first and get the VA money later. Plan for that timing. See how to pay for a funeral for other ways families cover the bill.

Burial in a national or state veterans cemetery

Veterans who did not receive a dishonorable discharge can be buried in a VA national cemetery with available space. So can a spouse or surviving spouse (even one who remarried after the veteran's death), a minor child, and some unmarried adult dependent children. A former spouse who divorced the veteran is not eligible.

An eligible spouse or dependent is buried with the veteran at no cost, and their name and dates are added to the veteran's headstone. VA says an eligible spouse or dependent can be buried there even if they die before the veteran. Cremated remains are buried or placed in a columbarium in the same way as a casket.

VA says burial in a national cemetery includes, at no cost to the family:

• A gravesite in any VA national cemetery with space
• Opening and closing of the grave
• Perpetual care of the grave
• A government headstone, marker or medallion
• A burial flag
• A Presidential Memorial Certificate

State veterans cemeteries. Many states, tribes and territories run veterans cemeteries with VA funding. Their rules, and any fees for spouses, are set locally. You apply through that cemetery's office, not through VA. Arlington National Cemetery is run separately by the Army and has its own application.

Plan ahead with a pre-need decision. You can ask VA to decide now whether you are eligible for national cemetery burial, using VA Form 40-10007. This saves your family a step later. It does not reserve a specific cemetery or plot. If your preferred cemetery has no space at the time of need, VA helps your family pick another one.

Headstone, flag, certificate and funeral honors

• Headstone or marker (VA Form 40-1330): VA can provide a government headstone or marker for an eligible veteran's grave in a national, state, tribal, military or private cemetery. In a private cemetery, a veteran who died on or after Nov. 1, 1990 can get one even if the grave already has a privately bought headstone. Spouses and children buried in a private cemetery do not get their own, but may be added as an inscription on the veteran's headstone.
• Medallion (VA Form 40-1330M): instead of a headstone, VA can provide a medallion to attach to a privately bought headstone in a private cemetery.
• Burial flag (VA Form 27-2008): the next of kin or a close friend can get a U.S. flag to drape the casket or honor the veteran. Get the form at a funeral home, VA regional office or many post offices. VA cannot replace a flag that is lost or stolen.
• Presidential Memorial Certificate (VA Form 40-0247): a certificate signed by the current president. Next of kin receive one at a national cemetery burial. Others can apply, and VA accepts requests for more than one copy.
• Military funeral honors: provided by the military branches under the Department of Defense, not VA. By law, an eligible veteran's family can request at least two uniformed service members, the folding and presentation of the flag, and the playing of Taps. The funeral director usually requests honors, ideally 48 to 72 hours ahead.

VA life insurance: VALife, VGLI and SGLI

This is often what people mean by "VA burial insurance." These are real insurance policies with premiums. The payout goes to the beneficiaries you name, who can use it for a funeral or anything else.

The VALife waiting period. If the insured dies in the first 2 years, VALife pays back the premiums plus interest instead of the full amount. VA lists the interest rate as 4.23% for a death in 2026. After 2 years, it pays the full policy amount. Many private guaranteed issue policies work in a similar way. See burial insurance with no waiting period for how private policies compare.

Who is left out. If you have no service-connected rating and did not sign up for VGLI soon after leaving the military, neither program is open to you. For many older veterans, private final expense insurance is the main insurance option.

What VA does not pay for: an example

VA is clear that anything bought from a funeral home or cremation provider is the family's expense. That often includes:

• Funeral home service fees, embalming and viewing
• A casket or urn (VA provides a headstone or marker, not the casket)
• Cremation
• A private cemetery plot above the plot allowance, and cemetery fees
• Obituaries, flowers, printed programs and a reception
• Travel costs for family members

To see how these add up where you live, try our funeral cost calculator or read our guide to funeral costs.

Example (hypothetical, round numbers, not real prices). Frank is a veteran who gets VA disability compensation for an old injury. He dies in November 2026 from a heart attack that VA does not link to his service. His funeral home services and casket cost $7,000.

Even with every VA benefit, Frank's family still pays several thousand dollars. Burial insurance, savings or other ways to pay for a funeral can help cover that gap. The Social Security $255 lump-sum death payment may help a surviving spouse or child a little more.

Does a veteran still need burial insurance?

It depends on what you want and what you already have. VA benefits lower the cost, sometimes a lot. They rarely cover everything.

Private burial insurance may make sense if:

• You want a funeral home service, viewing or local private cemetery
• You are not eligible for the allowance, or the gap in the example above is more than your family has set aside
• You cannot get VALife because you have no service-connected rating
• You want your family to have cash available before any VA payment arrives

It may not be right for you if:

• You have savings set aside that cover the likely gap
• You already have enough life insurance, including VALife or VGLI
• You plan a basic burial in a national cemetery and your family can cover the funeral home bill
• Premiums would not fit your monthly budget

Do not assume a private policy has a veteran discount. Ask. Prices depend on age, health, state and the insurer. See burial insurance for seniors and is burial insurance worth it? to weigh it up.

What to ask a Licensed Insurance Agent

Check your VA benefits first. Then ask a Licensed Insurance Agent:

1. I am a veteran. Have you asked whether I have a service-connected rating that would let me get VALife?
2. How much should I plan for, after VA burial benefits and national cemetery burial?
3. Is this whole life insurance with a premium that never goes up?
4. Is there a waiting period or graded benefit? What is paid if I die in the first 2 years?
5. Does the price change if I answer health questions instead of taking a guaranteed issue policy?
6. How long does a claim usually take to be paid, and what does my family need to file it?
7. How are you paid for selling this policy?

You can request more information or take our short policy quiz. Read how we make money to see how BurialFacts is paid.