VA Veterans Pension: needs-based money for wartime veterans

What it is

VA Veterans Pension is a monthly payment for some wartime veterans who have limited income and net worth. It is not the same as disability compensation, which is based on a service-connected condition. Pension is based on need. Your pension is the maximum annual pension rate (MAPR) for your situation minus your yearly income for VA purposes.

Who qualifies

VA lists these requirements on its eligibility page. All of them apply:

• You did not receive a dishonorable discharge.
• Service: if you entered active duty on or before 7 September 1980, at least 90 days on active duty with at least 1 day during a wartime period. If you enlisted after 7 September 1980, at least 24 months or the full period you were called to active duty, with wartime service. Officers who started active duty after 16 October 1981 have their own rule, and VA lists it on the eligibility page.
• At least one of these: you are 65 or older; you have a permanent and total disability; you are a nursing home patient because of disability; or you receive Social Security Disability Insurance or Supplemental Security Income.
• Your yearly family income and net worth are under limits set by Congress.

Wartime periods VA recognizes: Mexican Border 9 May 1916 to 5 April 1917; World War I 6 April 1917 to 11 November 1918; World War II 7 December 1941 to 31 December 1946; Korean War 27 June 1950 to 31 January 1955; Vietnam War 5 August 1964 to 7 May 1975 (1 November 1955 to 7 May 1975 if you served in country before 5 August 1964); Gulf War 2 August 1990 to a date not yet set.

What it pays (effective 1 December 2025)

Maximum annual pension rates for Veterans:

• No dependents: $17,441 a year, or $21,313 with Housebound, or $29,093 with Aid and Attendance.
• One dependent (spouse or child): $22,839, or $26,710 with Housebound, or $34,488 with Aid and Attendance.
• Each additional dependent child adds $2,984.

These are ceilings, not the amount you are paid. Your income for VA purposes is subtracted. The net worth limit from 1 December 2025 to 30 November 2026 is $163,699. VA counts net worth as what you own, except your house, your car and most home furnishings, minus debts, and it includes your spouse's net worth. The full table, including two married veterans, is on VA's rates page. If you also need daily help or are homebound, see the Aid and Attendance and Housebound page.

How to apply, step by step

1. Gather: Social Security number, military and marital history, work history, dependent information, household gross monthly income, asset values and medical expenses. If you are under 65, also medical records.
2. Optional but smart: file an intent to file first (VA Form 21-0966). You then have 1 year to complete the claim, and it can set your effective date. VA says you do not need it if you sign in with an identity-verified account and apply for pension online.
3. Apply one way: online at VA.gov; by mail with VA Form 21P-527EZ to Department of Veterans Affairs, Pension Intake Center, PO Box 5365, Janesville, WI 53547-5365; or in person at a VA regional office.
4. Or work with an accredited representative, listed below. Help from a VSO representative is free.

Traps

• Income and net worth decide everything. Report them fully and truthfully.
• Under 65 and not on SSDI or SSI? You must show a permanent and total disability, so include medical records.
• If you got an other-than-honorable discharge, VA lists two ways to try to qualify: a discharge upgrade or a VA Character of Discharge review (see VA's eligibility page).

If a payment or date looks wrong

• Lay your award letter next to your bank deposits. Check the effective date, the monthly rate, the dependents listed and the income VA used.
• Keep your original pension application, any Intent to File, every VA notice, your income and medical-expense records, your bank deposits, and any review requests you filed.
• If you disagree with a decision, you may use one review lane per issue within the deadline on your letter: Supplemental Claim (VA Form 20-0995, new and relevant evidence), Higher-Level Review (20-0996, error in the existing record) or Board appeal (10182). See Appeal a VA Decision.
• In your request, name the date or amount you dispute, and you may ask VA in writing to explain how it worked out the payment. A month-by-month table is a reasonable thing to ask for, but VA does not promise one, so keep your own notes.
• For pension, the effective date is generally the date VA receives your claim. There is a one-year exception for veterans who were permanently and totally disabled and unable to file. See Effective Dates and Back Pay.
• If VA says you were overpaid, see VA Debt and Overpayments.

Where to call and where to go

Phone

• VA benefits hotline, Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. ET: 1-800-827-1000 (TTY: 711). Source: va.gov/pension and Helpful VA phone numbers (hours).
• Veterans Crisis Line, 24/7: 988, then select 1. Source: Helpful VA phone numbers

Official pages

• VA Pension: overview
• Veterans Pension eligibility
• Veterans Pension rates
• How to apply for Veterans Pension
• Apply online (VA Form 21P-527EZ)
• VA Form 21P-527EZ, Application for Veterans Pension
• VA Form 21-0966, Intent to File
• Find your VA regional office

Free accredited help

• Find an accredited representative (a VSO representative's help on VA claims is always free; attorneys and claims agents may charge fees)