Pension Benefit
VA offers two broad categories of Pension benefit programs:
Veterans Pension: Tax-free monetary benefit payable to low-income wartime Veterans
Survivors’ Pension: Tax-free monetary benefit payable to a low-income, unremarried surviving spouse and/or unmarried child(ren) of a deceased Veteran with wartime service
ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS
Pension benefits are needs-based and your “countable” family income must fall below the yearly limit set by law. Veterans must have at least 90 days of active duty, including one day during a wartime period (PDF).
If the active duty occurred after September 7, 1980, you must have served at least 24 months or the full period that you were called up (with some exceptions). You must also be at least one of the following:
- Age 65 or older with limited or no income
- Totally and permanently disabled
- A patient in a nursing home receiving skilled nursing care
- Receiving Social Security Disability Insurance
- Receiving Supplemental Security Income
- The Veteran must have met the service requirements above for surviving spouses and children applying for the Survivors’ Pension
Additional Pension Allowances
Veterans and survivors who are eligible for Pension benefits and are housebound or require the aid and attendance of another person may be eligible to receive additional monetary amounts.
AID & ATTENDANCE
The Aid & Attendance (A&A;) increased monthly pension amount may be added to your monthly pension amount if you meet one of the following conditions:
- You require the aid of another person in order to perform personal functions required in everyday living, such as bathing, feeding, dressing, attending to the wants of nature, adjusting prosthetic devices, or protecting yourself from the hazards of your daily environment
- You are bedridden, in that your disability or disabilities requires that you remain in bed apart from any prescribed course of convalescence or treatment
- You are a patient in a nursing home due to mental or physical incapacity
- Your eyesight is limited to a corrected 5/200 visual acuity or less in both eyes; or concentric contraction of the visual field to 5 degrees or less
HOUSEBOUND
This increased monthly pension amount may be added to your monthly pension amount when you are substantially confined to your immediate premises because of permanent disability.
Application Process
The best way to apply for a pension is contacting the Clark County Veterans Office and scheduling an appointment today. When applying for pension, you must have access to the following information:
- Proof of income (Social Security, pension from a previous employer, etc.)
- Discharge or separation papers (DD214 or equivalent)
- Dependency records (marriage and children’s birth certificates)
- Bank Information (Account & Routing Numbers)