Growing older

Veterans Pension is a monthly payment for wartime veterans who are 65 or older, have a permanent and total disability, live in a nursing home for long-term care because of a disability, or get Social Security Disability Insurance or Supplemental Security Income. VA bases the payment on the difference between yearly income for VA purposes and the Maximum Annual Pension Rate (MAPR), the most VA pays. Paid medical expenses that insurance does not cover can lower that income, counting only the amount above 5% of the MAPR. The net worth limit counts assets and income, but not the primary home or car, and it is $163,699 from December 1, 2025, to November 30, 2026.

Burial allowances help cover some burial, funeral, and plot costs when a veteran's death meets VA's conditions, such as death from a service-connected disability, death while getting VA care, or death while receiving VA pension or compensation. VA automatically pays a set amount to an eligible surviving spouse who is listed as the spouse on the veteran's VA profile. When a claim is filed, VA pays the first living person to file from this list, in order: surviving spouse, surviving partner from a legal union, children of any age, parents, then the executor or administrator of the estate. For a death that was not service connected on or after October 1, 2026, VA pays a $1,032 burial allowance and $1,032 for a plot.

Increased pension rate for veterans who need the regular aid of another person for daily activities, or who are substantially confined to the home due to a permanent disability.