Veterans Benefits in U.S. Virgin Islands

Note: USE THE v2 POLICY, NOT THE 2020 ORIGINAL. Policy Letter #3 (v2), revised August 1 2022, DROPPED the original requirement that the veteran be no more than 40 percent service-connected for off-network travel; a stale copy of the 2020 letter will wrongly turn away veterans rated above 40 percent. In-network reimbursement requires the appointment be referred by the local VA CBOC and be a NON-service-connected appointment, because service-connected travel is funded by the CBOC. Keep appointment slips, boarding passes and ticket receipts. Veterans aged 70 or older get a companion ticket reimbursed automatically. Off-network requires WRITTEN pre-approval before booking; attendants are not reimbursed.

Note: CRITICAL SCOPE LIMIT: this sits under benefits for Virgin Islands Veterans only, defined as veterans who were VI domiciliaries and ENTERED the armed services in the Virgin Islands. A veteran who relocates to the USVI after separating is likely NOT eligible. At UVI proper tuition is waived but all fees are paid by the veteran; UVI CELL carries no fee. The waiver form requires the veteran to certify they are NOT entitled to have tuition paid by federal funds, so it does not stack with GI Bill tuition for the same course. Valid only with the VIOVA Director's signature. Statutory basis 17 V.I.C. ch. 33 sec. 471.

Note: VERIFY THE TERMS BEFORE RELYING ON THEM. The $220,000 / 3.5 percent figures appear only in the VIOVA summary; VIHFA publishes no veteran-specific loan terms and its own veteran-loan page returns 404. Availability is episodic, conditioned on funds being available. Obtain a Veteran Housing Finance Authority Eligibility Form signed by the VIOVA Director first (Policy Letter #7). Limited to Virgin Islands Veterans, meaning those who entered service from the territory. INTERACTION WARNING: VIHFA states that individuals who qualify for a VA or Rural Development loan are not eligible for Homestead and Home Loan Fund programs, so confirm whether using this forecloses the federal VA home loan guaranty.

Note: The 0-percent threshold is the most useful detail here: a veteran with a 0 percent service-connected rating gets the full 15 points, not 10, so it is worth telling any USVI veteran with ANY rating at all. Unlike the tuition and burial benefits this is listed for veterans residing in the USVI, so it does not appear to require having entered service from the territory. Whether the points apply only to a passing score, and whether preference extends beyond exams into appointment or retention, is UNCONFIRMED; the Division of Personnel site was unreachable.

Note: HARD DEADLINE: the application is due to the Office of the Tax Assessor by March 1, and permanent USVI residency is required as of January 1 of the claim year. The form allows only ONE credit in addition to the homestead exemption, so this $650 veteran credit cannot be stacked with the $500 senior credit or the $500 SSA-disability credit; a veteran over 60 or on SSDI must choose. Attach a copy of the DD-214. Does not apply to vacant land, and only one principal residence may be claimed. No VA disability rating is required.

Note: Per VIOVA Policy Letter #6 the veteran must first obtain a Veteran Tax Exemption Eligibility Form signed by the Director of Veterans Affairs before filing with the Tax Assessor. The source conditions this on a rating entitling the veteran to compensation for PERMANENT AND TOTAL disability, which is narrower than a 100 percent schedular rating alone; whether TDIU-based P&T qualifies is UNRESOLVED. The territorial discharge standard is other than dishonorable, broader than strictly honorable. Distinct from, and more valuable than, the $650 homestead credit.

Note: The BMV will NOT register veterans plates without a Veteran Eligibility Form issued by VIOVA, so start at VIOVA. The plates are free but the BMV registration process fee still applies. QUANTITY DISCREPANCY: Policy Letter #1 (2020) authorizes two sets per veteran while the March 2025 summary says up to three; treat the 2025 figure as current. The disabled plate is capped at one and requires a VA Benefit Summary Letter identifying the veteran as permanently and totally disabled, so no rating is needed for the standard plate but P&T status is required for the disabled variant.

Note: Statutory basis 3 V.I.C. ch. 1 sec. 8b(c) per VIOVA Policy Letter #4. SOURCE CONFLICT, unresolved: the 2025 summary groups the free plot under veterans RESIDING in the USVI, while Policy Letter #4 restricts the veterans' burial section to those who were bona fide residents when drafted or enlisted. A veteran who moved to the USVI after service may therefore not qualify for the plot. Discharge standard is explicitly other than dishonorable. If a surviving spouse of an eligible veteran remarries and that remarriage ends by death or divorce, eligibility for the veterans' section is restored. Separate from federal VA burial allowances, headstones and flags.