Am I eligible for VA Aid and Attendance or Housebound benefits as a Veteran or survivor?
VA Aid and Attendance eligibility
If you haven’t remarried after the Veteran’s death, and if the deceased Veteran didn’t receive a dishonorable discharge and their service meets at least one of the requirements listed below, you may be eligible for this benefit.

At least one of these must be true:
◾You need another person to help you perform daily activities, like bathing, feeding, and dressing, or
◾You have to stay in bed—or spend a large portion of the day in bed—because of illness, or
◾You are a patient in a nursing home due to the loss of mental or physical abilities related to a disability, or
◾Your eyesight is limited (even with glasses or contact lenses you have only 5/200 or less in both eyes; or concentric contraction of the visual field to 5 degrees or less)

Housebound benefits eligibility
If you get a VA pension and you spend most of your time in your home because of a permanent disability (a disability that doesn’t go away), you may be eligible for this benefit.

WARTIME PERIODS

◾Mexican Border period (May 9, 1916, to April 5, 1917, for Veterans who served in Mexico, on its borders, or in adjacent waters)
◾World War I (April 6, 1917, to November 11, 1918)
◾World War II (December 7, 1941, to December 31, 1946)
◾Korean conflict (June 27, 1950, to January 31, 1955)
◾Vietnam War era (November 1, 1955, to May 7, 1975, for Veterans who served in the Republic of Vietnam during that period. August 5, 1964, to May 7, 1975, for Veterans who served outside the Republic of Vietnam.)
◾Gulf War (August 2, 1990, through a future date to be set by law or presidential proclamation)

Note: You cannot get Aid and Attendance benefits and Housebound benefits at the same time.

Am I eligible for a VA Survivors Pension as a surviving spouse?
If you haven’t remarried after the Veteran’s death, and if the deceased Veteran didn’t receive a dishonorable discharge and their service meets at least one of the requirements listed below, you may be eligible for this benefit.

At least one of these must be true. The Veteran:
◾Entered active duty on or before September 7, 1980, and served at least 90 days on active military service, with at least 1 day during a wartime period, or
◾Entered active duty after September 7, 1980, and served at least 24 months or the full period for which they were called or ordered to active duty (with some exceptions), with at least 1 day during a wartime period or
◾Was an officer and started on active duty after October 16, 1981, and hadn’t previously served on active duty for at least 24 months

Am I eligible for a VA Survivors Pension as the child of a deceased wartime Veteran?
If you’re unmarried and you meet at least one of the requirements listed below, you may be eligible for this benefit.

At least one of these must be true:
◾You’re under age 18, or
◾You’re under age 23 and attending a VA-approved school, or
◾You’re unable to care for yourself due to a disability that happened before age 18

WARTIME PERIODS

◾Mexican Border period (May 9, 1916, to April 5, 1917, for Veterans who served in Mexico, on its borders, or in adjacent waters)
◾World War I (April 6, 1917, to November 11, 1918)
◾World War II (December 7, 1941, to December 31, 1946)
◾Korean conflict (June 27, 1950, to January 31, 1955)
◾Vietnam War era (November 1, 1955, to May 7, 1975, for Veterans who served in the Republic of Vietnam during that period. August 5, 1964, to May 7, 1975, for Veterans who served outside the Republic of Vietnam.)
◾Gulf War (August 2, 1990, through a future date to be set by law or presidential proclamation)

Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) is a tax free monetary benefit paid to eligible survivors of military Servicemembers who died in the line of duty or eligible survivors of Veterans whose death resulted from a service-related injury of disease.

Eligibility (Surviving Spouse)

To qualify for DIC, a surviving spouse must meet the requirements below.

The surviving spouse was:

• Married to a Servicemember who died on active duty, active duty for training, or inactive duty training,  OR
• Validly married the Veterans before January 1, 1957, OR
• Married the Veteran within 15 years of discharge from the period of military services in which the disease of injury that caused the Veteran's death began or was aggravated, OR
• Was married to the Veteran for at least one year, OR
• Had a child with the Veterans, AND
• Cohabited with the Veteran continuously until the Veteran's death or, if separated, was not at fault for the separation, AND
• Is not currently remarried

Note: A surviving spouse who remarries on or after December 16, 2003, and on or after attaining age 57, is entitled to continue to receive DIC.

 Eligibility (Surviving Child)

• Not included on the surviving spouse's DIC, AND
• Unmarried, AND
• Under age 18, or between the age of 18 and 23 and attending school.

Note: A child adopted out of the Veteran's family may be eligible for DIC if all other eligibility criteria are met.

Evidence Required

Listed below are the evidence requirements for the benefit:

• The Servicemember died while on active duty, active duty for training, or inactive duty training, OR
• The Veteran died from an injury or disease deemed to be related to military services, OR
• The Veteran died from a non service-related injury or disease, but was receiving, OR was entitled to receive, VA Compensation for services-connected disability  that was rated as totally disabling for at least 10 years immediately before death, OR
• Since the Veterans release from active duty and for a least 5 years immediately preceding death, OR
• For at least 1 year before death if the Veteran was a former prisoner of war who died after September 30, 1999