Veterans Benefits in Northern Mariana Islands

Note: IMPLEMENTATION WARNING, READ BEFORE RELYING ON THIS. The statutory entitlement is unambiguous (3 CMC 1371-1374, enacted by PL 22-16 in 2022), but the waiver is NOT published anywhere on NMC's own website: NMC's tuition page lists only senior-citizen and employee waivers and states that only one waiver type applies at a time. A veteran pursuing this should cite PL 22-16 and 3 CMC 1372 directly to the Office of Admissions and Records. The waiver pays SECOND to federal and local tuition-only benefits, covering whatever balance remains after the GI Bill. Applications are due no later than the last class date of the term. It does not cover courses dropped after the withdrawal period or failed courses.

Note: Note the point values are much SMALLER than the federal 5-and-10-point system. 1 CMC 8701-8703, enacted by PL 23-05 in 2023, defines preference eligible by direct reference to 5 U.S.C. 2108(3)-(4), so federal preference categories govern who qualifies. The preference applies only to ENTRANCE into the civil service, not to promotions. No minimum disability percentage is specified. Whether the Office of Personnel Management has actually promulgated the implementing regulations 1 CMC 8703 requires is UNCONFIRMED, so verify the current process before relying on it.

Note: DISCHARGE STANDARD IS BROADER THAN HONORABLE: 9 CMC 2116(a) requires only discharge or release under conditions OTHER THAN DISHONORABLE. The base 25 percent discount carries no rating requirement; the Disabled Veteran plate legend requires certification of at least 10 percent service-connected disability; the full fee waiver requires 100 percent permanent and total. Proof is a DD214, a certification from the Military and Veterans Affairs Office, or a VA Veteran Identification Card. For the full waiver, furnish the VA decision letter to BOTH Public Safety and Finance. Limited to non-commercial passenger vehicles and motorcycles, not transferable, though a survivor may keep the front plate as a memorial.

Note: Fares took effect 1 January 2025. The discounted tier is shared with senior citizens, students, persons with disabilities and active military, and it explicitly extends to veterans' FAMILIES, not just the veteran. The published requirement is only to present valid ID: no disability rating, discharge standard or residency test is stated, which is why the eligibility flags here are permissive. Call-A-Ride reservations require two days notice via (670) 236-2682. Note the fare schedule lives in a dated news post rather than a standing fares page, so re-check before relying on the exact amounts.

Note: SUBSTANTIALLY A FEDERAL-BENEFITS LIAISON, but with real territory-level gatekeeping value: it certifies eligibility for the CNMI license plate discount and Gold Star plates and determines burial eligibility for the CNMI Veterans Cemetery, so a CNMI veteran generally must go through it to reach the territory's own benefits. Established by PL 13-34, codified at 1 CMC 20121-20125. Reachable at 670-664-2650, 2651 or 2652. There is NO dedicated website: the domain dva.gov.mp does not resolve. Current operating status, staffing and hours are UNCONFIRMED.

Note: Family members pay a cost-recovery interment fee that excludes the value of the plot; the veteran does not. Full eligibility at 1 CMC 20127 also covers those who died on active duty, US citizens who served honorably with allied forces in a US war, reservists and Guard members entitled to retired pay, and unmarried children under 21 (or under 23 and in school). All graves get a uniform flat marker furnished by the VA. No space reservations are allowed and three working days notice is required. SATELLITE SITES ARE NOT YET BUILT: 1 CMC 20132 and 20133 only direct designation of future sites on Rota and Tinian, so do NOT tell a Rota or Tinian veteran a local cemetery exists.