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The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) National Cemetery Administration (NCA) receives applications and makes Pre-Need burial eligibility determinations on a first in - first out basis. We are pleased to be providing this service and honored that so that so many view national cemeteries as national shrines commemorating service and sacrifice to our Nation. Due to the unprecedented number of applications received, we have temporarily shifted our focus to notifying each applicant that we have received their application and communicating with them about expected timelines for completion of our determination.
Please Note: It is most critical that we provide eligibility and scheduling support to families with Time of Need requests for burial, meaning those circumstances where a death has occurred, and families need to schedule a burial at a national cemetery. If that is your situation, you should contact your funeral service provider or the National Cemetery Scheduling Office at 1-800-535-1117.
For information about obtaining military records, please visit the Military Personnel Records Center in St. Louis, which is part of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA).
Please Visit:
The VA provides determinations of eligibility for burial in a national cemetery prior to the time of need to assist Veterans and their families with end-of-life planning. Interested individuals may submit VA Form 40-10007, Application for Pre-Need Determination of Eligibility for Burial in a VA National Cemetery, along with a copy of supporting documentation of military service such as a DD 214, if readily available, by: toll-free fax at 1-855-840-8299; email to NCA.Scheduling@va.gov
; or mail to the National Cemetery Scheduling Office, P.O. Box 510543, St. Louis, MO 63151
Please Visit:
The process to schedule a burial at Arlington National Cemetery can be complex and we handle each family's request individually with the utmost care and professionalism. Each request is unique and the length of time it takes for scheduling is typically several weeks to several months and depends on many factors, including the family's ability to provide all documents to verify eligibility, any special requests, requests for full military honors (which can take longer to schedule than standard military honors because of additional military resources such as escorts and the caisson), requests for one of the chapels located on Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall, etc.
Please Visit:
https://www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/Funerals/Scheduling-a-Funeral
For More Assistance: If you have any questions about the Burial at Sea program, please contact the United States Navy Mortuary Affairs office toll-free at 1-866-787-0081. Or contact the Department of the Navy for information.
Please Visit:
https://www.va.gov/burials-memorials/eligibility/burial-at-sea/
The VA's National Cemetery Administration maintains 155 national cemeteries in 42 states (and Puerto Rico) as well as 34 soldier's lots and monument sites.
Arlington National Cemetery*
Interment Services Branch
Arlington, VA 22211
703-607-8585 (local)
877-907-8585 (toll-free)
State Veterans Cemeteries
Many states have established state veterans cemeteries. Included is a listing of these state veterans cemeteries.
The Department of the Army maintains two national cemeteries, the Arlington National Cemetery and the U.S. Soldiers' & Airmen's Home National Cemetery.
United States Soldiers' & Airmen's Home National Cemetery
21 Harewood Road, NW
Washington, DC 20011
202-829-1829
Please visit:
Upon your arrival at the cemetery you will be met by a cemetery representative who will provide the deceased’s burial documents. The cemetery representative will then lead your procession to the appropriate committal shelter for your service.
The National Cemetery Scheduling Office has the primary responsibility for verifying eligibility for burial in VA national cemeteries.
Veterans, service members, spouses, and dependents may be eligible for burial in a VA national cemetery, as well as other benefits, if they meet one of the requirements listed below.
One of these must be true. The person qualifying for burial benefits is:
On June 26, 2015, the Supreme Court held in Obergefell v. Hodges that the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution requires a state to license a marriage between two people of the same sex and to recognize a marriage between two people of the same sex when their marriage was lawfully licensed and performed out-of-state. Accordingly, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) may now recognize all same-sex marriages without regard to a Veteran’s state of residence.
VA offers a variety of benefits and services that depend upon a Veteran’s marital status, including certain benefits to a Veteran’s “spouse” or “surviving spouse.” VA will generally accept a claimant’s statement that he or she is married, but may investigate further if an assertion appears unreliable. This same procedure applies regardless whether the claimant is in an opposite-sex marriage or a same-sex marriage.
VA is dedicated to serving all eligible Servicemembers, Veterans and their families and providing them the benefits they have earned. We encourage all Veterans in same-sex marriages who believe they are entitled to benefits (including those whose claims were previously denied on a ground related to their marriage) to promptly apply for benefits.
Important: VA is in the process of updating all forms that request marital status and dependent information in order to clarify that same-sex married couples and their dependents are eligible for benefits, including by replacing references to “husband” or “wife” with “spouse” and providing appropriate references to children of same-sex marriages. In the interim, you may use existing forms to apply for benefits. If you have questions regarding how to fill out a form, please call 1-800-827-1000. If you have additional questions about how these recent changes regarding same-sex marriage may affect your claim for benefits, please refer to our frequently asked questions.
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) furnishes upon request, at no charge to the applicant, a Government headstone or marker for the unmarked grave of any deceased eligible Veteran in any cemetery around the world, regardless of their date of death.
A Government-furnished headstone or marker may be provided for eligible Veterans who died on or after Nov. 1, 1990 and whose grave is marked with a privately purchased headstone. A Government-furnished medallion may be provided for eligible Veterans who served on or after Apr. 6, 1917 and whose grave is marked with a privately purchased headstone or marker.
Flat markers in granite, marble, and bronze and upright headstones in granite and marble are available. Bronze niche markers are also available to mark columbaria used for inurnment of cremated remains. The style chosen must be permitted by the officials in charge of the private cemetery where it will be placed.
When burial or memorialization is in a national cemetery, state Veterans' cemetery, or military post/base cemetery, a headstone or marker will be ordered by the cemetery officials based on inscription information provided by the next of kin or authorized representative.
Spouses and dependents are not eligible for a Government-furnished headstone or marker unless they are buried in a national cemetery, state Veteran's cemetery, or military post/base cemetery.
The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 38.632 "Headstone and Marker Application Process" became effective on July 1, 2009. This regulation describes the processes required to apply for a Government headstone and marker, as well as request a new emblem of belief be added to the list of emblems available for inscription on headstones and markers.
Who Can Apply for a Headstone or Marker?
Under 38 CFR 38.600(a)(1) only the following individuals may apply for a burial headstone or marker:
1) a decedent’s family member;
2) a personal representative;
3) a representative of a Congressionally-chartered Veterans Service Organization;
4) an employee of a state or local government whose official responsibilities include serving veterans;
5) any individual who is responsible, under the laws of a state or locality, for the disposition of unclaimed remains or matters related to the decedent’s interment or memorialization; or
6) any individual, if the dates of service of the veteran ended prior to April 6, 1917.
NOTE: For memorial headstones and markers that commemorate the memory of an eligible individual, the applicant must be a member of the decedent’s family, 38 CFR 38.600(a)(2).
Who Can Apply for a Medallion?
Under 38 CFR 38.600(a)(1) the following individuals may apply for a medallion:
1) a decedent’s family member;
2) a personal representative;
3) a representative of a Congressionally chartered Veterans Service Organization;
4) an employee of a state or local government whose official responsibilities include serving veterans;
5) any individual who is responsible, under the laws of a state or locality, for the disposition of unclaimed remains or matters related to the decedent’s interment or memorialization.
A Presidential Memorial Certificate (PMC) is an engraved paper certificate, signed by the current President, to honor the memory of deceased Veterans who are eligible for burial in a national cemetery.
"Honoring Those Who Served"
The Department of Defense (DOD) is responsible for providing military funeral honors. "Honoring Those Who Served" is the title of the DOD program for providing dignified military funeral honors to Veterans who have defended our nation.
Upon the family's request, Public Law 106-65 requires that every eligible Veteran receive a military funeral honors ceremony, to include folding and presenting the United States burial flag and the playing of Taps. The law defines a military funeral honors detail as consisting of two or more uniformed military persons, with at least one being a member of the Veteran's parent service of the armed forces. The DOD program calls for funeral home directors to request military funeral honors on behalf of the Veterans' family.
However, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) National Cemetery Administration cemetery staff can also assist with arranging military funeral honors at VA national cemeteries. Veterans organizations may assist in providing military funeral honors. When military funeral honors at a national cemetery are desired, they are arranged prior to the committal service by the funeral home.
The Department of Defense began the implementation plan for providing military funeral honors for eligible Veterans as enacted in Section 578 of Public Law 106-65 of the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2000 on Jan. 1, 2000.
Questions or comments concerning the DOD military funeral honors program may be sent to the address listed below. The military funeral honors Web site is located at
https://mfh.dmdc.osd.mil/mfh/
[Link will take you off
the VA web site.]
Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense
(Military Community and Family Policy)
4000 Defense Pentagon, Room 5A726
Washington, DC 20380
To arrange military funeral honors, contact your local funeral home.
You may be eligible for a burial flag if you’re the next of kin or a close friend of the Veteran or Reservist and one of these descriptions are true for that person.
One of these must describe the service of the Veteran or Reservist:
VA burial allowances are flat rate monetary benefits that are generally paid at the maximum amount authorized by law for an eligible Veteran’s burial and funeral costs. A VA regulation change in 2014 simplified the program to pay eligible survivors quickly and efficiently. Eligible surviving spouses of record are paid automatically upon notification of the Veteran’s death, without the need to submit a claim. VA may grant additional benefits, including the plot or interment allowance and transportation allowance, if it receives a claim for these benefits.
Who is eligible?
If the burial benefit has not been automatically paid to the surviving spouse, VA will pay the first living person to file a claim of those listed below:
• Veteran’s surviving spouse; OR
• The survivor of a legal union* between the deceased Veteran and the survivor; OR
• The Veteran’s children, regardless of age; OR
• The Veteran’s parents or surviving parent; OR
• The executor or administrator of the estate of the deceased Veteran.
*Legal union means a formal relationship
between the decedent and the survivor that existed on the date of the Veteran’s death, which was recognized under the law of the State in which the couple formalized the relationship and evidenced by the State’s issuance of documentation memorializing the relationship.
The Veterans Benefits Administration offers a variety of benefits and services to spouses, children, and parents of Servicemembers and Veterans who are deceased or totally and permanently disabled by a service- connected disability.
Disinterments from national cemeteries will be approved only when all living immediate family members of the decedent, to include the person who initiated the interment (whether or not he or she is a member of the immediate family), give their written consent, or when a court order or state instrumentality of competent jurisdiction directs the disinterment. "Immediate family members" are defined as surviving spouse, even if remarried, all adult children of the decedent, appointed guardians (s) of minor children, the appointed guardian of the surviving spouse or of the adult child(ren) of the decedent. In the absence of a surviving spouse and children, the decedent's parents will be considered "immediate family members."
All requests for authority to disinter remains will be submitted on VA Form 40-4970,
Request for Disinterment and will include the following information:
(a) A full statement of reasons for the proposed disinterment.
(b) Notarized statements by all eligible living immediate family members of the decedent, to include the person who initiated the interment (whether or not he or she is a member of the immediate family), that they consent to the proposed disinterment.
(c) A notarized statement, by the person requesting the disinterment that those who supplied affidavits comprise all the living immediate family members of the deceased.
In lieu of the documents required in paragraph (2) above, an order of a court of competent Jurisdiction will be considered. The VA or officials of the cemetery should not be made a party to the court action since this is a matter among the family members involved.
Burial benefits available for Veterans buried in a private cemetery may include a Government
headstone, marker or medallion, a burial flag, and a Presidential Memorial Certificate, at no cost to the family.
Some Veterans may also be eligible for Burial Allowances. There are not any VA benefits available to spouses and dependents buried in a private cemetery.
Website: https://gravelocator.cem.va.gov/
The database of burial information is updated each day.
Search for burial locations of veterans and their family members in VA National Cemeteries, state veterans cemeteries, various other military and Department of Interior cemeteries, and for veterans buried in private cemeteries when the grave is marked with a government grave marker.
The Nationwide Gravesite Locator includes burial records from many sources. These sources provide varied data; some searches may contain less information than others. Information on veterans buried in private cemeteries was collected for the purpose of furnishing government grave markers, and we do not have information available for burials prior to 1997. Erroneous information can be corrected, but we are unable to add to the information contained in the existing record.
If your search returns incorrect information about a veteran or family member buried in a national cemetery, please contact the cemetery directly to discuss your findings.
To report incorrect information about a veteran buried in a private cemetery, click on "Contact Us" at the top of the gravesite locator page. Names cannot be added to the listing if a government grave marker was not furnished for the grave, or if the existing government grave marker was furnished prior to 1997.
For more complete information concerning individual records, we suggest you contact the cemetery or local officials.
Main VA phone numbers
MyVA411 main information line
800-698-2411
Hours: 24/7
If you need an interpreter: Call 800-698-2411 and select 0. We’ll connect you with a VA call center agent. Tell the agent that you want a language interpreter to join the call.
Telecommunications Relay Services (using TTY)
711
Hours: 24/7
VA health care
VA health benefits hotline
877-222-8387
Hours: Monday through Friday,
8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. ET
My HealtheVet help desk
877-327-0022
Hours: Monday through Friday,
8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. ET
Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs (CHAMPVA)
800-733-8387
Hours: Monday through Friday,
8:05 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. ET
CHAMPVA Meds by Mail
888-385-0235
Hours: Monday through Friday,
8:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. MT
866-229-7389
Hours: Monday through Friday,
8:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. ET
Foreign Medical Program (FMP)
877-345-8179
Hours: Monday through Friday,
8:05 a.m. to 6:45 p.m. ET
Quit VET (get help from a counselor to stop smoking)
855-784-8838
Hours: Monday through Friday,
9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. ET
MISSION Act
800-698-2411, Select 1
Hours: 24/7
Spina Bifida Health Care Benefits Program
888-820-1756
Hours: Monday through Friday,
8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. ET
Caregiver support line
855-260-3274
Hours: Monday through Friday,
8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. ET, and
Saturday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. ET
VA benefits
VA benefits hotline
800-827-1000
Hours: Monday through Friday,
8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. ET
GI Bill hotline
888-442-4551
Hours: Monday through Friday,
8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. ET
Students outside the U.S.
+1-918-781-5678 This isn’t toll-free.
Hours: Monday through Friday,
8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. ET
VA loan guaranty service
877-827-3702
Hours: Monday through Friday,
8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. ET.
National pension call center
877-294-6380
Hours: Monday through Friday,
8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. ET
Support for SGLI or VGLI
800-419-1473
Hours: Monday through Friday,
8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. ET
All other VA life insurance programs
800-669-8477
Hours: Monday through Friday,
8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. ET
Special issue hotline (Blue Water Navy Act, Gulf War, Agent Orange, and other information)
800-749-8387
Hours: Monday through Friday,
8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. ET
Burials and memorials
National Cemetery Scheduling Office
800-535-1117
Hours: Monday through Friday,
8:00 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. ET, and
Saturday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. ET
Headstones and markers
800-697-6947
Hours: Monday through Friday,
8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. ET
Other VA support
Women Veterans hotline
855-829-6636
Hours: Monday through Friday,
8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. ET, and
Saturday, 8:00 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. ET
National Call Center for Homeless Veterans
877-424-3838
Hours: 24/7
Debt Management Center (collection of nonmedical debts)
800-827-0648
Hours: Monday through Friday,
7:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. ET
Vets Center call center
877-927-8387
Hours: 24/7
Veterans Crisis Line
988, Select 1
Hours: 24/7
Integrity and Compliance Helpline
866-842-4357
Hours: Monday through Friday,
8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. ET
New Hope Funeral Home has the utmost respect and honor for our veterans. We want the family members of these veterans to be fully informed. When a veteran passes, there are many benefits available from the VA. Many of these benefits are not always easy to file for or to get information on. The sections below attempt to provide some documentation and guidance on these benefits.
For additional information, please visit the official VA website.
Visit www.prepaidfunerals.texas.gov for information relating to the purchase of pre-need funeral contracts including descriptions of the trust and insurance funding options available under state law.