Veterans Benefits in Virginia

Last verified: APR 22, 2026

Virginia veterans are eligible for 17 state and federal benefit programs, including Healthcare, Education, Housing, and more. Most state programs require state residency and a VA-issued disability rating; eligibility thresholds vary by program. This page lists every benefit with source URLs, application paths, and 2026 verification status.

What healthcare benefits does Virginia offer to veterans?

Virginia Veteran and Family Support (VVFS) Program

Free behavioral health support, peer counseling, and care coordination

Statewide behavioral health support, peer counseling, care coordination, and crisis intervention for veterans, Guard/Reserve members, and their families. Covers combat stress, PTSD, military sexual trauma, TBI, substance use treatment, housing assistance, and benefits counseling.

Agency: Virginia Department of Veterans Services

Note: Serves veterans of any era. No disability rating or honorable discharge required. Includes couples workshops and family retreats. Contact: 855-4VA-VETS.

Apply →Source

Virginia Veterans Care Centers

Long-term skilled nursing and rehabilitative care (VA pays up to 70% for service-connected)

Virginia operates state veterans care centers providing in-patient skilled nursing care, Alzheimer's/memory care, and short-term rehabilitative care. Facilities in Roanoke (Sitter & Barfoot), Richmond, Virginia Beach, and Fauquier County (Puller Center).

Agency: Virginia Department of Veterans Services

Note: Four state veterans care centers across Virginia. Accepts VA per diem, Medicaid, Medicare, and private pay. Priority given to veterans with service-connected disabilities.

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Which education benefits are available to Virginia veterans?

Virginia Military Survivors and Dependents Education Program (VMSDEP)

Full tuition and fees waiver for up to 8 semesters ($40,000-$120,000+ total value)

Provides up to eight semesters of tuition-free education at Virginia public colleges, universities, and Eastern Virginia Medical School for children (ages 16-29) and spouses of veterans rated 90%+ permanently disabled or killed/MIA/POW due to military service. Covers all tuition and mandatory fees.

Agency: Virginia Department of Veterans Services

Note: Virginia must be the service member's home of record for at least 5 years before application. Contact: vmsdep@dvs.virginia.gov or (804) 225-2083.

Apply →Source

Virginia National Guard State Tuition Assistance Program (STAP)

Up to $8,000 per year in tuition assistance

Provides conditional grants each semester to eligible Virginia National Guard members enrolled at accredited public or nonprofit private institutions of higher education in Virginia. Schools bill the Department of Military Affairs directly.

Agency: Virginia Department of Military Affairs

Note: Requires minimum 2-year remaining obligation to Virginia National Guard. Must have completed BCT/BMT or ROTC Advanced Camp. Incurs 2-year Guard commitment upon completion of last assisted term.

Apply →Source

Virginia Military Benefits for Higher Education

Full tuition and fee waiver

Waives tuition and fees at Virginia public colleges for children and surviving spouses of veterans who are totally and permanently disabled or at least 90% permanently disabled due to military service, or who were killed, are missing in action, or taken prisoner. For dependents of qualifying veterans only.

Agency: Virginia Department of Veterans Services

Note: For dependents/survivors only. Veteran must be 90%+ P&T disabled, KIA, MIA, or POW. VMSDEP (Virginia Military Survivors and Dependents Education Program) provides tuition waiver + stipend at VA public institutions.

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Which housing benefits does Virginia offer to veterans?

Virginia Housing Granting Freedom Accessibility Modification Grants

Up to $6,000 per residence for accessibility modifications

Virginia Housing (VHDA) provides grants of up to $6,000 to help Virginia veterans and service members disabled by line-of-duty injuries make their homes more accessible. Funds can be used for ramps, grab bars, widened doorways, roll-in showers, and other accessibility modifications.

Agency: Virginia Housing (VHDA)

Note: Must have disability resulting from line-of-duty injury. Virginia Housing also offers closing cost assistance grants for VA-guaranteed loans.

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Which employment benefits does Virginia offer to veterans?

Virginia Values Veterans (V3) Employment Program

Free career services; employer hiring incentives up to $10,000

Free Commonwealth training and certification program connecting veterans with employment. Provides resume support, career coaching, job placement, and SkillBridge access. Certified V3 employers with fewer than 300 employees may receive grants of up to $1,000 per veteran hired (up to $10,000 total).

Agency: Virginia Department of Veterans Services

Note: Over 1,700 certified V3 employers statewide. Includes SkillBridge programs and on-the-job training.

Apply →Source

How does Virginia handle veteran property tax exemptions?

Virginia Disabled Veteran Vehicle Sales and Use Tax Exemption

Exemption from 4.15% motor vehicle sales tax (savings varies by vehicle price)

Veterans with a 100% service-connected permanent and total disability are exempt from the Virginia motor vehicle sales and use tax (SUT) on the purchase of one passenger car or pickup/panel truck for personal use.

Agency: Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles

Note: Only one vehicle at a time may carry the exemption. Submit SUT2 and SUT3 forms with VA benefit summary letter.

Apply →Source

Virginia Military Retirement Pay Income Tax Subtraction

Up to $40,000 state income tax subtraction (uncapped starting 2026)

Virginia allows military retirees to subtract up to $40,000 of military retirement pay from Virginia taxable income for the 2025 tax year. Starting in 2026, the cap is fully removed and all military retirement pay is exempt from Virginia state income tax. Applies to Armed Forces retirement pay and Survivor Benefit Plan annuities. TSP distributions and non-military federal retirement do not qualify.

Agency: Virginia Department of Taxation

Note: Applies to all military retirees regardless of age or disability rating. The $40,000 cap for 2025 is fully eliminated for tax year 2026 and beyond.

Apply →Source

Virginia Disabled Veteran Personal Property Tax Exemption

Full personal property tax exemption on one vehicle (typically $500-$2,000+/year)

Virginia exempts one automobile or pickup truck owned and used personally by a 100% service-connected permanently and totally disabled veteran from local personal property taxation. The surviving unremarried spouse also qualifies.

Agency: Local Commissioner of the Revenue

Note: Must be rated 100% permanent and total by the VA. Apply through your local Commissioner of the Revenue. Covers automobiles and pickup trucks only.

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Virginia 100% Disabled Veterans Property Tax Exemption

Full property tax exemption

Veterans with a 100% permanent and total service-connected disability are fully exempt from real property taxes on their primary residence in Virginia.

Agency: Virginia Department of Taxation / Local Commissioner of the Revenue

Note: Must be 100% P&T (permanent and total). Apply with local Commissioner of Revenue. Effective January 1, 2011. Surviving spouses qualify if they continue to occupy as primary residence and do not remarry.

Apply →Source

Which transportation benefits does Virginia offer to veterans?

Virginia Disabled Veteran License Plates

Free license plates and registration ($50-$100+/year savings for qualifying veterans)

Special DV license plates for veterans with any VA service-connected disability. Veterans who are 100% permanently and totally disabled, have lost use of a limb, or are blind receive one free set of DV plates with no annual registration fee. Surviving unremarried spouses also qualify.

Agency: Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles

Note: Any service-connected disability qualifies for DV plates ($10 fee). Free plates with no registration fee for 100% P&T, loss of limb, or blindness.

Apply →Source

Virginia Veterans Vehicle License Fee Exemption

Annual vehicle license fee savings

Veterans with a 100% service-connected disability are exempt from state vehicle license fees for one vehicle registered in their name.

Agency: Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV)

Note: Covers one vehicle only. Must be registered in veteran's name. Apply at local DMV office with VA disability documentation.

Apply →Source

Which recreation benefits does Virginia offer to veterans?

Virginia Disabled Veteran State Parks Passport

Free state park entry and parking; 50% discount on camping and amenities

Free entry and parking at all Virginia state parks plus a 50% discount on camping fees, swimming fees, picnic shelter rentals, and equipment rentals. Available to veterans with a 100% service-connected disability rating.

Agency: Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation

Note: Virginia residency NOT required. Submit application and VA Benefit Summary Letter to resvs@dcr.virginia.gov.

Apply →Source

Virginia Disabled Veteran Lifetime Hunting and Fishing License

Free lifetime license for 100% disabled ($100+ value); discounted for lower ratings

Free lifetime hunting and freshwater fishing license for resident veterans with a 100% service-connected disability. Veterans with lower ratings receive discounted licenses scaled to their disability percentage.

Agency: Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources

Note: Pricing based on disability percentage. 100% disabled veterans get free lifetime combined license. Nonresident disabled veterans also eligible for discounts.

Apply →Source

Which additional benefits does Virginia offer to veterans?

Virginia Veterans Treatment Dockets

Alternative to incarceration with treatment and support services

Alternative to traditional criminal case processing for justice-involved veterans with substance use disorders or mental illness. Offers structured treatment programs, peer support, and connections to VA and community resources as alternatives to incarceration.

Agency: Virginia Supreme Court / Virginia Department of Veterans Services

Note: VVFS Veteran Justice Specialists provide resource connections for justice-involved veterans. Contact: (804) 225-4734 or justice.vvfs@dvs.virginia.gov.

Apply →Source

Virginia State Veterans Cemeteries

No-cost burial, headstone/marker, and military honors

Virginia operates three state veterans cemeteries in Amelia, Suffolk (Albert G. Horton Jr. Memorial), and Dublin (Southwest Virginia Veterans Cemetery). All accommodate casketed burial, cremation inurnment, and columbarium at no cost to eligible veterans and dependents. Includes government headstone/marker and military funeral honors.

Agency: Virginia Department of Veterans Services

Note: Eligible: veterans with honorable discharge, Guard/Reservists, spouses, and minor/disabled children. Military honors through DoD program. Contact: 855-4VA-VETS.

Apply →Source
“Must have disability resulting from line-of-duty injury. Virginia Housing also offers closing cost assistance grants for VA-guaranteed loans.”

Frequently asked questions

What benefits does Virginia offer to disabled veterans?

Virginia offers 17 veteran benefit programs spanning Healthcare, Education, Housing, Employment, Tax, Transportation, Recreation, Other. Eligibility requirements vary by program — most require a VA-issued disability rating and state residency.

Do I need a specific disability rating to qualify for Virginia veteran benefits?

Many Virginia benefit programs require a minimum VA disability rating — commonly 10%, 50%, or 100%. Some programs, such as education assistance or employment preference, have no rating requirement. Check each benefit listing on this page for the specific threshold.

Do I need to be a Virginia resident to claim state veteran benefits?

Most Virginia state benefits require current state residency. Some programs require continuous residency for one or more years. Federal VA benefits are available to all eligible veterans regardless of state of residence.

Can I stack Virginia benefits with federal VA benefits?

Yes — in most cases, state and federal veteran benefits are stackable. For example, a property tax exemption from Virginia does not reduce your federal VA disability compensation. Some federal needs-based programs may offset certain state payments; review each program's terms.

Where do I apply for Virginia veteran benefits?

Applications for Virginia state benefits are typically submitted through the Virginia Department of Veterans Affairs or the administering state agency. Application links are listed directly on each benefit card on this page. Federal VA benefits are applied for at VA.gov.

Does Virginia offer a property tax exemption for disabled veterans?

Yes — Virginia has at least one property tax benefit listed for veterans. Eligibility typically requires a minimum disability rating and state residency. See the Tax section on this page for the current threshold and application link.

Does Virginia have a veteran tuition waiver or education assistance program?

Yes — Virginia offers education benefits for veterans. These may include tuition waivers, National Guard tuition assistance, or supplemental GI Bill top-ups. See the Education section on this page for current programs and eligibility.

Is an honorable discharge required to qualify for Virginia veteran benefits?

Most Virginia state benefit programs and all federal VA benefit programs require an honorable or general (under honorable conditions) discharge. Veterans with other-than-honorable discharges may still qualify for some programs; consult a VSO or accredited claims agent for individual eligibility.

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