VA compensation and pension payments are paid in arrears — the deposit that lands in a given month covers the month before. When a veteran receiving one of these benefits dies, that final payment is often still owed to them. VA treats it as an accrued benefit, and families researching it usually search for a simpler term: the month-of-death payment.
What Is the Month-of-Death Payment, Exactly?
An accrued benefit is money VA already owed a veteran — based on an existing award or evidence already in the veteran's claims file — that hadn't been paid out before the veteran died, according to VA's Accrued Benefits FAQ. The most common version of this is the payment for the last month the veteran was alive. Because compensation and pension run a month behind, the deposit due the month after death frequently covers a month the veteran was still living, and that money doesn't disappear when the veteran dies — it becomes an accrued benefit owed to a survivor.
VA has said it has worked to proactively identify and pay eligible surviving spouses this final month's benefit without requiring a separate claim, according to the VA Office of Survivors Assistance FAQs. That outreach doesn't reach every household, so it's worth understanding the rule yourself rather than assuming a check will show up.
Who Qualifies for It?
The rule is narrow. Per VA, "this benefit is only payable to surviving spouses of Veterans who were receiving VA compensation or pension benefits at the time of their death." Two things have to both be true:
- The veteran was actually receiving VA disability compensation or VA pension when they died — not just eligible for it, but drawing payments.
- The survivor was the veteran's legal spouse at the time of death.
If the veteran wasn't yet receiving payments — for example, a disability claim was still pending — there's no month-of-death accrued payment to collect. A surviving spouse may still be able to continue that pending claim under a separate process called substitution, but that isn't the same benefit and isn't limited to one month's payment.
It's worth keeping this one-time accrued amount separate in your head from Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) or Survivors Pension. DIC and Survivors Pension are ongoing monthly benefits a surviving spouse or dependent may qualify for going forward, based on their own eligibility rules, and they're paid month after month once approved. The month-of-death payment is different: it's a single, backward-looking payment covering the last period the veteran was alive, owed regardless of whether the survivor later qualifies for DIC or pension at all. A spouse can be entitled to the month-of-death payment and have no DIC eligibility, or the reverse.
Who Gets Paid If There's No Surviving Spouse?
When there's no surviving spouse, or the amount owed is larger than what a spouse claim covers, VA pays accrued amounts in a fixed order of priority, per VA's Accrued Benefits FAQ:
| Who's entitled | How it's paid |
|---|---|
| Surviving spouse | Full amount, paid first |
| Children | Equal shares, if there's no surviving spouse |
| Dependent parents | Equal shares, if there's no spouse or children, and only if they were financially dependent on the veteran |
| Person who paid final expenses | Reimbursed up to the amount they actually paid, only if no one in the categories above is eligible |
This same order applies any time there's an accrued amount larger than one month's check — for instance, when a disability rating increase was approved but the retroactive payment hadn't gone out before the veteran died.
How Do You Request It?
If you're a spouse, child, or dependent parent, use VA Form 21P-534EZ, "Application for Dependency and Indemnity Compensation, Death Pension and Accrued Benefits." It covers DIC, Survivors Pension, and accrued benefits in a single filing, so you generally don't need a separate form just for the month-of-death amount.
If you're not a relative but personally paid for the veteran's last illness or burial, and no eligible family member is filing, VA's Accrued Benefits FAQ points to VA Form 21P-601, "Application for Accrued Amounts Due a Deceased Beneficiary," instead.
Don't assume VA's automatic outreach already found you. Filing the form yourself starts a clock VA has to act on, and it creates a record if the payment gets lost between systems after a death is reported.
Is There a Deadline?
Yes. VA must receive an accrued benefits claim within one year of the beneficiary's death, or within one year of the date VA notified the claimant of the benefit, according to the Accrued Benefits FAQ. Miss that window and the accrued payment — including the month-of-death amount — is generally no longer collectible.
What to Do About It
- Confirm the veteran was actually receiving VA compensation or pension at death — check the most recent award letter or bank deposit.
- Gather the death certificate and, if you're the spouse, your marriage certificate.
- File VA Form 21P-534EZ (or 21P-601 if you're seeking reimbursement rather than filing as a relative) instead of waiting to see if VA pays it without a claim.
- Write the one-year deadline on a calendar the day you learn about this benefit — don't rely on a notice from VA to remind you.
- Handle this alongside the rest of the survivor paperwork. See What Survivor Benefits Does a Veteran's Spouse Get? and Who Notifies the VA When a Veteran Dies? for the surrounding steps, and What Documents Does a Family Need When a Veteran Dies? for the paperwork checklist.