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A: An eligible veteran must have been discharged
or separated from active duty under conditions
other than dishonorable and have completed
the required period of service. Persons
entitled to retired pay as a result of 20
years creditable service with a reserve
component are eligible. A U.S. citizen who
served in the armed forces of a government
allied with the United States in a war also
may be eligible. A 1997 law bars persons
convicted of federal or state capital crimes
from being buried or memorialized in one
of the VA national cemeteries or in Arlington
National Cemetery.
Spouses and minor children
of eligible veterans and of service members
also may be buried in a national cemetery.
Adult children incapable of self-support
due to physical or mental disability are
eligible for burial. If a surviving spouse
of an eligible veteran marries a non veteran,
and remarriage was terminated by divorce
or death of the non veteran, the spouse
is eligible for burial in a national cemetery.
A: Burial benefits in a VA national cemetery
include the gravesite, a headstone or marker,
opening and closing of the grave, and perpetual
care. Many national cemeteries have columbaria
or gravesites for cremated remains. Benefits
also include headstones and markers, Presidential
memorial certificates, burial flags and
Reimbursement of Burial Expenses, depending
on the circumstances. Contact should be
made to the Veterans Affairs Office to determine
what benefits can be claimed and then gather
the information required. The National Toll-free
Number for the Veterans Affairs Office is
(800) 827-1000.
http://www.va.gov/
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