Disabled Veteran Benefits in Virginia

This is Virginia's headline benefit and it is all or nothing. A veteran the VA has rated 100% service-connected, permanent and total pays no real estate tax on the home they own and live in as their principal residence. The exemption covers the dwelling and up to one acre of land, or more where the county or city already exempts more under its other relief programs.

You do not need a 100% schedular rating. Veterans rated below 100% whom the VA pays at 100% for individual unemployability, and who are rated permanent and total, qualify too. If your rating comes through after you already own the home, the exemption begins on the date of the rating.

You apply to your local Commissioner of the Revenue, not to the state. A surviving spouse keeps the exemption as long as they do not remarry, and can move to a different Virginia home and take it with them.

Virginia's car tax is a local property tax, and this exemption removes it for one vehicle. Since January 1, 2021, one motor vehicle owned and used primarily by or for a veteran rated 100% service-connected, permanent and total is exempt from the tax. It has to be a passenger car, pickup or panel truck registered for personal use. A vehicle owned by your spouse can qualify if you are the 100% veteran. You apply to your local Commissioner of the Revenue.

Unlike the home exemption, this one ends at the veteran's death and does not pass to a surviving spouse.

There is a second, local benefit. State law lets a county, city or town set a lower tax rate on one vehicle for a veteran who has lost, or lost the use of, a leg, arm or hand, is blind, or is permanently and totally disabled. It is optional, so ask your Commissioner of the Revenue whether your locality offers it.

The VA describes disability compensation as a tax-free payment. Virginia's tax agency says military benefits that federal law already leaves out of income, such as Dependency and Indemnity Compensation, are not counted as income on the Virginia return either, so there is nothing to subtract.

Military retirement pay is different because it is taxable income. Virginia lets you subtract up to $40,000 of eligible military benefits on your 2025 and later returns, up from $30,000 for 2024. Eligible benefits are military retirement income and benefits paid to a surviving spouse, including the Survivor Benefit Plan, and they must be included in your federal income. On a joint return each spouse claims the subtraction on their own military benefits.

This is one of the most searched questions about Virginia, and the honest answer is no. The state law on free use of toll facilities lists who rides free on toll roads, bridges and tunnels, and a disability rating is not on the list.

What the law does provide is narrow. A vehicle passes free if it is specially equipped for a driver with a disability, and that driver is certified as having a severe physical disability with permanent upper limb mobility or dexterity impairments. The VA can be the one that certifies you. You then apply to the Virginia Department of Transportation for a window sticker.

If that is not your situation, this law gives you no toll exemption, whatever your rating.

The Virginia Military Survivors and Dependents Education Program (VMSDEP) is the state's education benefit for military families, and it reaches below the 100% line. It covers the spouse and children of a veteran the VA rates totally and permanently disabled or at least 90% permanently disabled because of military service. They are guaranteed a waiver of all tuition and mandatory fees for eight semesters at a Virginia public college or university.

Children must be between 16 and 29. The veteran has to meet a Virginia tie: Virginia was your home of record when you entered service, or you can show presence here for at least five years before the college application goes in. Families of veterans disabled in combat may also receive a stipend each semester toward room, board, books and supplies; the amount is set each year and depends on funding.

For yourself, the benefit is the rate you pay. Any veteran who lives in Virginia is charged in-state tuition, regardless of domicile.

Virginia has two tiers. Any service-connected rating lets you buy Disabled Veteran plates: you pay normal registration plus a $10 special plate fee each year.

The free tier is narrower than a percentage. You get one set of plates free, exempt from registration and plate fees, if you have lost or lost the use of a leg, arm or hand, are blind, or are permanently and totally disabled as certified by the VA. An unremarried surviving spouse can get a free set too. Personalization and emissions fees still apply. Bring a VA benefit letter showing the disability is service-connected.

Two things people get wrong. Standard DV plates do not let you park in accessible spaces; for that you need the DV plate with the access symbol, which takes a certification from a physician or other licensed provider. And the Veteran indicator on your driver's license costs nothing to add, though you still pay the standard license fee.

A Virginia resident with a service-connected rating of 30% or more can buy a license to hunt and freshwater fish that is valid for life. The price falls as the rating rises: $100 at 30% to 49%, $75 at 50% to 69%, $50 at 70% and up, and no cost if the VA rates you totally and permanently disabled. It does not cover stocked trout waters, which need a separate trout license.

State parks ask for more. The Veteran Disability Passport is free and requires a 100% service-connected rating. It covers parking and admission plus boat launching, and takes 50% off camping, swimming, shelters and park-run equipment rentals. You apply with your VA paperwork showing the 100% rating.