Survivors of service members who died on active duty face immediate changes for their families and need to know that there are resources and benefits available to help. It is important that survivors understand their benefits and how to obtain them. The following information is meant to help you navigate this process.
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Casualty assistance officer
When a service member dies, the services assign a casualty assistance officer. Each military service has its own title for its casualty assistance officers. The Army has casualty assistance officers. The Marine Corps, Navy and Coast Guard have casualty assistance calls officers. The Air Force has casualty assistance representatives, family liaison officers and mortuary officers.
- Role — The role of these officers is to help the family handle important matters following their loved one's death. The officer is a liaison between the family and service branch, helping them understand the benefits and helping to complete appropriate paperwork.
- Need — When performing CAO or CACO duties, these officers are expected to provide professional and empathetic support to the next of kin. This assignment takes precedence over all other conflicting responsibilities and lasts until all benefits have been applied for and received and all requests for fatality reports or investigations have been obtained or you determine that their assistance is no longer needed. Your CAO or CACO will ensure a warm handoff to your long-term case manager, who will be there for an indefinite time period.
Long-Term Case Management
Your service's long-term case management program will have expert case managers and counselors to assist you in the years to come. You may access support groups, grief counseling, benefit assistance, milestone management (as you experience life changes, your benefits may change), financial counseling to assist with budgeting, investing, estate planning, tax issues and other long-term benefits. To find your service's long-term case management program, you may contact:
Funeral and burial benefits
- Preparation and transportation of remains — Remains of all service members are handled with dignity, respect and care. Families are provided with the recovery and identification of remains, return of personal effects, embalming or cremation services and transportation to the funeral home or other location.
- Funeral services — Military funeral honors are available upon request for all eligible deceased service members. This includes military representation, burial flag with presentation to the family and the playing of taps.
- Gravesites — Eligible service members are entitled to burial in a gravesite in a national or private cemetery with available space. Cremated remains are buried in cemeteries with the same honors as casketed remains.
- Other services — Additional burial services are available at no cost, including perpetual care if buried at a national cemetery, a government headstone or marker and a Presidential Memorial Certificate.
Initial compensation
- Death Gratuity — A payment of up to $100,000 is authorized for survivors or other individuals as identified by the service member. The death gratuity's purpose is to help survivors meet their financial needs immediately following a member's death, before other survivor benefits become available.
- Eligibility — Families of reservists who die on or en route to active duty, or those in drill status, are also eligible to receive the death gratuity if the service member designated them. The death gratuity may also be payable if an eligible veteran dies within 120 days of discharge from active duty if the death is due to a service-related disability.
Insurance, annuities, and other payments
- Unpaid pay and allowances, or pay arrears — When a service member dies, any unpaid pay or allowances will be paid to his or her designated beneficiary. This may include: unpaid basic pay, accrued leave pay, specialty payments, travel pay, per diem and unpaid installments of re-enlistment bonuses.
- Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance — Service members pay life insurance premiums from their monthly income. The maximum payout for these benefits is $400,000 to the primary beneficiary, or multiple beneficiaries in 10 percent increments. This amount is set by the service member and could be less or declined altogether.
- Dependency and Indemnity Compensation — This is a benefit paid for by the Department of Veterans Affairs. This payment may be available to a surviving spouse, if they remain unmarried, and unmarried children under the age of 18. Parents of deceased service members may also be eligible to receive these payments if they have limited income and the service member died on duty or as a result of a service-related injury.
- Uniformed Services Survivor Benefit Plan — These payments are for a surviving spouse and children of an active-duty service member. The amount received is based upon the number of active-duty service years at the time of death. The amount is 55 percent of the retired pay that the service member would have received and the compensation is taxable.
Social Security and tax benefits
- Social Security Administration lump-sum death payment — This is a death payment of up to $255 to the surviving spouse or eldest child of a service member who dies while on active duty.
- Monthly survivor benefits — As soon as possible following a service member's death, contact the Social Security Administration so that long-term benefits can begin. In addition to the lump-sum death payment, there are other monthly benefits for eligible surviving family members. The benefit amounts depend on time in service and the amount of money contributed through payroll deductions.
- Tax benefits — Several of the benefits paid out to families of deceased service members are tax-free. These include: Social Security benefits, death gratuities, burial benefits, VA pension and compensation payments, any cash gifts willed to survivors by the deceased and life insurance policy payouts. Spouses of service members who die overseas as a result of military action may not have to pay federal taxes on income earned by the service member during that year. Connect with your local Internal Revenue Service office to find out information about your current tax status and other tax-related benefits.
Health and dental benefits
- Medical benefits — Unmarried surviving spouses will continue to receive health care benefits at no cost for three years after the service member's death. After three years, spouses can continue at the retiree dependent rate. Children are eligible to continue with TRICARE coverage up to age 21, 23, or 26, depending on eligibility.
- Dental benefits — Dependents may be eligible for dental benefits through the TRICARE Retiree Dental Program if they are no longer eligible for benefits under the TRICARE Dental Program. If your sponsor died while serving on active duty, you may qualify for the TRICARE Dental Program Survivor Benefit Plan, which pays 100 percent of your monthly premium along with your cost shares for covered services. If you were using the TRICARE Dental Program when your sponsor died, you're automatically transferred to the Survivor Benefit Plan. If not, you can enroll at any time.
Other benefits
- Commissary and exchange benefits — Unmarried surviving spouses and their unmarried children under age 21, or 23, for full-time college students, are eligible to continue shopping at base commissary and exchange facilities. It is important to remember that family members will receive new ID cards that reflect their current benefits.
- Basic allowance for housing — Surviving family members living in government housing at the time of a service member's death are allowed to live there for an additional 365 days. Survivors who vacate government housing may receive the balance of their basic allowance for housing, or BAH, from the time they leave through the 365th day of eligibility. Surviving dependents who do not live in government housing are eligible to receive a tax-free BAH for 365 days.
- Educational assistance — Under the Dependents' Educational Assistance and Fry Scholarship programs, children (ages 18 to 26) and spouses are eligible for educational assistance to attend various colleges and universities. Contact your local VA office to get information on how to apply for this benefit.
- Montgomery GI Bill® — In the event of the service-related death of an active-duty service member, the VA will refund to the beneficiary any money which the service member put into a Montgomery GI Bill® account.
- State benefits — Several states also provide benefits for survivors of deceased military service members to include bonuses, educational assistance, civil-service preference and loan and employment assistance. Contact your local VA office for more information on state benefits offered.
As you go through the days ahead, remember to rely on your community and the support offered by your service branch. You don't have to navigate this alone. Your casualty assistance officer will connect you to survivor benefit experts and assist you with applying for your benefits.