When a veteran dies, the family is handling two things at once: the same practical funeral arrangements any family faces, and a separate set of veteran-specific steps that unlock burial in a national cemetery, a headstone, a burial flag, and a cash allowance toward costs. None of the veteran benefits happen automatically — someone has to ask for each one, and a couple of them work better if you ask fast. Here's the order that actually works.
What do you do in the first 24 hours?
If the death happens at home under hospice care, the hospice nurse or agency handles the pronouncement and calls the funeral home for you. If it happens in a hospital, the hospital notifies the funeral home directly once you've chosen one. If there's no hospice or hospital involved, call 911 — a medical examiner may need to be involved before a funeral home can take custody of the body.
Once a funeral home is involved, they typically start the death certificate process, which everything else depends on. Order more certified copies than you think you'll need — banks, insurance companies, the VA, and Social Security may each want an original. Understanding what a funeral home actually charges for before you sign anything helps you avoid add-ons you don't need during a week when you're not in a position to negotiate carefully.
Where do you find the veteran's DD-214?
The DD-214 (or equivalent discharge document) is what proves honorable service, and it's the single most important paper in this process — VA burial benefits, national cemetery eligibility, and military funeral honors all depend on it. Check the veteran's own files first: a safe deposit box, a fireproof box, or wherever they kept insurance papers.
If it can't be found, veterans and next of kin can request a copy of the official military personnel file, DD-214 included, through the National Archives or through VA's own records tools. The VA's burial and memorial benefits page confirms families can view and print documents from the veteran's official military personnel file, including the DD-214, as part of planning a burial. Start this step immediately if the document isn't on hand — it can take time to arrive.
How do you arrange burial in a VA national cemetery?
Burial in a VA national cemetery, along with opening and closing of the grave, a burial vault or liner in some cemeteries, and perpetual care, is arranged by calling the National Cemetery Scheduling Office at 800-535-1117. Most funeral homes will make this call for you once you've told them that's the plan and provided proof of the veteran's service. Scheduling generally happens after the death, not before, unless the veteran already obtained a pre-need eligibility determination — a letter confirming eligibility in advance so the family doesn't have to establish it during an already difficult week.
A private cemetery is also an option, and it doesn't cancel out other VA benefits like the headstone or the burial allowance described below.
What does the VA burial allowance actually pay, and how do you claim it?
The burial allowance is a set payment toward funeral and burial costs, not a blank-check reimbursement. As of the rates effective October 1, 2025, published on VA's veterans burial allowance page:
| Type of death | Burial allowance | Plot/interment allowance |
|---|---|---|
| Service-connected death | $1,002 | $1,002 |
| Non-service-connected death | $1,002 | $1,002 |
For a service-connected death, there's no deadline to file. For a non-service-connected death, the claim generally must be filed within two years of the burial, though that time limit doesn't apply if the veteran died while under VA care or if you're only claiming the plot or transportation portion. You file using VA Form 21P-530EZ, either online through VA.gov or by mail to VA's Pension Intake Center.
Separately, request the no-cost headstone, marker, or medallion by calling 800-697-6947, and ask the funeral home about a burial flag — issued to the next of kin at no charge to drape the casket or accompany the urn.
If the allowance and any life insurance the veteran had still leave a gap between what's owed and what's covered, that gap is common, not a sign you did something wrong. Families who can't fully cover a funeral have options worth knowing about before the funeral home's payment deadline arrives.
Do you need to notify Social Security or other agencies?
If the veteran was receiving Social Security retirement, disability, or survivor benefits, those payments stop at death, and any payment received for the month of death or later generally has to be returned. Funeral homes will often report the death to Social Security on the family's behalf if you give them the veteran's Social Security number, but you should confirm with the funeral home that they actually did it rather than assume.
A surviving spouse or dependent child may separately be eligible for their own Social Security survivor benefits, which is a distinct application from anything related to the VA. If the veteran was also drawing VA disability compensation or pension, notify VA directly as well, since that stops separately and a surviving spouse may qualify for Dependency and Indemnity Compensation, which is its own application.
What to do about it
In rough order, over the first several days: call the funeral home and start the death certificate process, locate the DD-214, decide between a national cemetery and a private one and call the National Cemetery Scheduling Office if you're going the national-cemetery route, request the headstone and burial flag, and file VA Form 21P-530EZ for the burial allowance. Confirm with the funeral home whether they're reporting the death to Social Security, and separately contact VA if the veteran received VA compensation or pension. None of these offices talk to each other automatically — each step is its own phone call or form, and writing them down as a checklist is the difference between getting every benefit the veteran earned and missing one because no one asked.