Veterans’ Benefits: Dependency and
Indemnity Compensation (DIC) for Survivors
Christine Scott
Specialist in Social Policy
January 4, 2013
Congressional Research Service
7-5700
www.crs.gov
R40757
CRS Report for Congress
Pr
epared for Members and Committees of Congress

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Veterans’ Benefits: Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) for Survivors

Summary
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) administers directly, or in conjunction with other
federal agencies, programs that provide benefits and other services to veterans and their spouses,
dependents, and beneficiaries.
One of the benefits administered by the VA is Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC)
for survivors of certain servicemembers and veterans. DIC is a monthly tax-free cash payment
to survivors and dependents of servicemembers killed while on active military duty, and for
survivors and dependents of certain veterans. Survivors of veterans who die from service-related
conditions are eligible for DIC. Survivors of veterans who die from non-service-connected
conditions may be eligible for DIC if the veteran was eligible for, or was receiving, disability
compensation as totally disabled (a 100% rating) for a period of time (specified in statute)
before the veteran’s death.
Several policy issues are associated with DIC, including the DIC offset of Survivor Benefit Plan
(military retirement survivor) payments, often referred to as the “widow’s tax”; adequacy of the
payments for survivors compared with other retirement systems’ payments to surviving spouses;
the remarriage age of 57; length of time for a totally disabled rating for non-service-connected
deaths to qualify for DIC; and maximum DIC payment for parents based on income levels that
have not been adjusted for inflation.
This report outlines the eligibility requirements and benefit levels for DIC and related policy
issues. This report will be updated as needed for legislative changes and additional information.

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Veterans’ Benefits: Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) for Survivors

Contents
Eligibility Requirements .................................................................................................................. 1
Veteran Eligibility ...................................................................................................................... 1
Recipient Eligibility ................................................................................................................... 2
Surviving Spouses ............................................................................................................... 2
Surviving Children .............................................................................................................. 3
Surviving Parents ................................................................................................................ 3
Monthly Benefit Amounts ............................................................................................................... 3
Surviving Spouses ..................................................................................................................... 3
Surviving Children .................................................................................................................... 4
Surviving Parents ....................................................................................................................... 4
Application Process ......................................................................................................................... 4
DIC Statistics for FY2011................................................................................................................ 5
Policy Issues .................................................................................................................................... 5
DIC and SBP Offset ................................................................................................................... 5
DIC Percentage of Income Compared with Other Pension Programs ....................................... 5
DIC Remarriage Age ................................................................................................................. 6
Disability Requirement for Non-Service-Connected Deaths .................................................... 6
Maximum Benefit for Dependent Parents ................................................................................. 7
Legislative History ........................................................................................................................... 7

Contacts
Author Contact Information............................................................................................................. 8
Acknowledgments ........................................................................................................................... 8

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Veterans’ Benefits: Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) for Survivors

he Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) offers directly, or in conjunction with other federal
agencies, several benefits for surviving spouses, children, and dependent parents of
T deceased veterans to provide them with financial, educational, and emotional support.
Among these various programs, Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) is a monthly
tax-free cash payment for eligible surviving spouses, children, and dependent parents.
DIC has been paid in some form (monthly cash payments or insurance benefits) to survivors since
the Revolutionary War. There were modifications after each war until the 1950s, when the federal
government mandated a more streamlined process that created the system used currently for
survivors of veterans and military servicemen.
Several policy issues are associated with DIC, including the DIC offset of Survivor Benefit Plan
(military retirement survivor) payments, often referred to as the “widow’s tax”; adequacy of the
payments for surviving spouses compared with the payments made by other retirement systems to
surviving spouses; remarriage age of 57; length of time for a totally disabled rating for non-
service-connected deaths to qualify for DIC; and maximum DIC payment for parents based on
income levels that have not been adjusted for inflation.
This report outlines the eligibility requirements and benefit levels for DIC and the policy issues
associated with DIC.
Eligibility Requirements
The eligibility for DIC by survivors is based on (1) the eligibility of the veteran, which is
determined by the circumstances of the veteran’s death and his or her disability compensation
rating; and (2) the survivor meeting certain criteria related to either relationship to the veteran,
age, or income.
Veteran Eligibility
The recipients of DIC must be the survivors of qualifying veterans. By statute, a “veteran” is
defined as a “person who served in the active military, naval, or air service, and who was
discharged or released therefrom under conditions other than dishonorable.”1 DIC is paid to
eligible survivors for three categories of veterans whose deaths fit one of the following
circumstances:
1. veterans who died on active duty,2 active duty for training, or inactive duty for
training;

1 38 U.S.C. §101(2)
2 Active duty is considered to include (1) full-time service in the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, or Coast
Guard, other than active duty for training (38 U.S.C. §101(21)(A); 38 C.F.R. §3.6(b)(1)); (2) full-time service as a
commissioned officer in the Public Health Service ( 38 U.S.C. §101(21)(B); 38 C.F.R. §3.6(b)(2)); (3) full-time service
as a commissioned officer at the Coast and Geodetic Survey, Environmental Science Services Administration, or
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (38 U.S.C. §101(21)(C); 38 C.F.R. §3.6(b)(3)); (4) service as a
cadet at a military academy (38 U.S.C. §101(21)(D); 38 C.F.R. §3.6(b)(4)); (5) attendance by active-duty members at
certain prep schools associated with military academies (38 C.F.R. §3.6(b)(5)); and (6) authorized travel to or from
such duty or service (38 U.S.C. §101(21)(E); 38 C.F.R. §3.6(b)(6)).
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Veterans’ Benefits: Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) for Survivors

2. veterans who died due to service-connected disabilities;3 or
3. veterans who died from non-service-related causes not as a result of willful
misconduct and were receiving, or eligible to receive, disability compensation
from the VA for service-connected disabilities rated at 100% subject to the
following stipulations:4
• the disabilities were rated as 100% disabled for 10 years or more prior to
death;
• the disabilities were rated as 100% since discharge or release from active
duty for at least five years prior to death; or
• the veterans were prisoners of war who had service-connected
disabilities rated at 100% for at least one year prior to death after
September 30, 1999.5
The Veterans’ Benefits Act of 2010 (P.L. 111-275) expanded the criteria for survivors of veterans
who were prisoners of war and died from non-service-related causes by eliminating the
requirement that the veteran had to have service-connected disabilities rated at 100% disabled for
one year prior to death.
The VA determines the eligibility of veterans and their entitlement to disability compensation
through evidence found in military department service records and circumstances of death.
Recipient Eligibility
The dependents of veterans are not generally entitled to all benefits administered by the VA, but
some benefits are available based on the relationship the dependent may have had with the
veteran. If the eligibility criteria for DIC related to the veteran’s death are met, the survivors also
have certain criteria to meet to be eligible for DIC. There are three different groups of recipients:
spouses, children, and dependent parents of deceased veterans. Each group has specific eligibility
requirements.
Surviving Spouses
A surviving spouse is eligible if he or she
• was married to the veteran for at least one year before the veteran’s
death,6 or
• has a child with the veteran, or
• if the veteran left the military due to a service-connected disability, the
marriage was within 15 years of the discharge;

3 A service-connected disability is defined in 38 U.S.C. §101(16).
4 Eligibility for non-service-connected deaths of certain veterans rated totally disabled was added by P.L. 100-687.
5 38 U.S.C. §1318.
6 This requirement does not exist for surviving spouses of a servicemember killed on active military duty.
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Veterans’ Benefits: Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) for Survivors

• cohabited with the veteran for the duration of the marriage unless the
couple underwent a period of separation that was not the fault of the
surviving spouse; and
• has not remarried before reaching the age of 57.7
Surviving Children
Surviving children8 are eligible for DIC if they are independent of the surviving spouse,
unmarried, and below the age of 18. If they are aged 18 to 23, they must be pursuing an approved
course of education to be eligible for DIC.9 Children who are permanently incapable of
supporting themselves at the age of 18 or older remain entitled to DIC.10
Surviving Parents
Surviving parents are required to provide evidence of financial dependence on the deceased
veteran before becoming eligible for DIC. This evidence is gained through a calculation of
countable income11 by the VA that cannot exceed the amounts outlined in the Income for VA
Purposes (IVAP) tables.12
Monthly Benefit Amounts
Surviving Spouses
Surviving spouses receive monthly benefits at a current base rate of $1,195 if the veteran died on
or after January 1, 1993.13 Otherwise, payment is based on the veteran’s pay grade at the time of
death with the current lowest rate being $1,215. A higher amount may be provided to the
surviving spouse for several reasons:
• if the veteran, eight years before death, was receiving or entitled to
receive disability compensation for a service-connected disability rated at
totally disabled (100%)—an additional $258 a month;14

7 Congress passed the Veterans Benefits Act of 2003, which allowed surviving spouses to remarry after the age of 57.
P.L. 108-183; 38 U.S.C §§103, 1304.
8 Definitions of who is considered a “child” for the purpose of VA benefits are outlined in 38 U.S.C §101(4).
9 Students receiving DIC are not able to concurrently receive education benefits under the G.I. Bill or from the VA
Survivors’ and Dependents Educational Assistance Program under 38 USC §3562.
10 38 U.S.C §§1313, 1314.
11 Exclusions for countable income are outlined in 38 CFR §3.272, available at http://law.justia.com/us/cfr/title38/38-
1.0.1.1.4.1.62.101.html.
12 The applicable rate table can be found at VA’s website, at http://www.vba.va.gov/bln/21/Rates/comp04.htm#BMC1.
13 All benefits listed are adjusted for cost-of-living expenses coinciding with the percentage decided for Social Security
benefits in accordance with 38 U.S.C §1303.
14 Only the time period for which the veteran was married to the surviving spouse counts toward the eight-year
requirement.
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Veterans’ Benefits: Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) for Survivors

• if the surviving spouse has dependent children—an additional $301 a
month for each child;
• if the surviving spouse has a disability that requires aid and assistance—
an additional $301 a month; or
• if the surviving spouse is permanently housebound—an additional $141
a month.
Surviving Children
Surviving children under the age of 18, or under the age of 23 if they are students, who are
independent of the surviving spouse, are entitled to DIC in the following current monthly
amounts: one child receives $513, two children receive $738, three children receive $963, and
more than three children receive $963 with an additional $183 for each additional child past three.
If a child is permanently incapable of self-support before the age of 18, the child remains eligible
for DIC past the age of 18.
Surviving Parents
Under current law, the maximum allowable DIC for surviving dependent parents is reduced for
countable income above $800, or $1,000 if both parents are a married couple. Monthly benefits
received by parents fluctuate by income.15 In the case of a sole surviving parent, the monthly DIC
benefit ranges between $5 and $590. For parents who are still married to each other or have
remarried other individuals, the range is between $5 and $401. For parents who are not living
with each other or different spouses, the range is between $5 and $427.
Application Process
To claim DIC benefits, a survivor is to complete and submit to the local VA office VA Form 21-
534a and Department of Defense (DD) Form 1300, Report of Casualty.16 The effective date of
DIC entitlement is the first day of the month that the death occurred for claims filed within one
year of the death. After one year, the DIC entitlement starts on the date the claim is received by
the VA.17

15 To see income level rate charts, visit http://www.vba.va.gov/BLN/21/Rates/comp04.htm#BMC3.
16 To download VA Form 21-534a, go to this link, http://www.vba.va.gov/survivors/21-534a.pdf. For parental DIC,
download VA Form 21-535 at http://www.vba.va.gov/pubs/forms/VBA-21-535-ARE.pdf. The Department of Defense
Form 1300 is located at http://www.dtic.mil/whs/directives/infomgt/forms/eforms/dd1300.pdf.
17 38 U.S.C §5110.
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Veterans’ Benefits: Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) for Survivors

DIC Statistics for FY2011
In FY2011, 355,474 spouses, children, and parents of veterans received approximately $5.2
billion in DIC.18 On average, each survivor received $14,529 in annual compensation. Children
recipients received an average of $4,668 in annual compensation.19
Policy Issues
Several policy issues are associated with DIC, including the DIC offset of Survivor Benefit Plan
(military retirement survivor) payments, often referred to as the “widow’s tax”; adequacy of the
payments for survivors compared with other retirement systems’ payments to surviving spouses;
remarriage age of 57; length of time for a totally disabled rating for non-service-connected deaths
to qualify for DIC; and maximum DIC payment for parents based on income levels that have not
been adjusted for inflation.
DIC and SBP Offset
The Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) is a form of insurance provided by the Department of Defense
to military retirees that does not require service-connected death or disability for survivors to
receive payments.20 A military retiree elects to have lower monthly retirement pay—the insurance
premium for SBP is taken from retirement pay—to ensure that his or her survivors can receive a
monthly payment after his or her death. However, this income is taxable, whereas DIC is tax-free.
If the survivor of a military retiree is also eligible for and receives DIC, the SBP payment is
reduced dollar for dollar by the DIC amount (but not below zero).21
DIC Percentage of Income Compared with Other Pension Programs
There is a disparity between the percentage of income a DIC recipient is paid and the percentages
given to recipients of other retirement and pension plans. Currently, an eligible surviving spouse
would receive a basic DIC benefit of $1,215 monthly. This is 41.0% of the basic compensation
rate for a veteran with a spouse receiving disability compensation at the 100% disabled rating.
This has called into question the adequacy of DIC payments.
Private pension plans are required to pay 50% of their benefit to surviving spouses, but retirees in
some plans may elect to give their surviving spouses a larger percentage. As a result of the
variance in pension plans, benefits, and survivor options, it is difficult to discern what the average
pension benefit for a surviving spouse in the private sector might be. SBP recipients receive 55%
of the military retiree’s retirement pay.22 Federal employee pension plans provide 55% of

18 Department of Veterans Affairs, Annual Benefits Report Fiscal Year 2011.
19 Ibid.
20 For more information on the Survivor Benefit Plan, see CRS Report RL31664, The Military Survivor Benefit Plan: A
Description of Its Provisions, by David F. Burrelli.
21 Survivors who remarry at the age of 57 or older may retain DIC benefits, and for them no other federal benefit
including SBP can be reduced.
22 For additional information regarding veterans’ pension programs, see CRS Report RS22804, Veterans’ Benefits:
(continued...)
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Veterans’ Benefits: Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) for Survivors

retirement pay, or 50% of retirement pay along with an initial lump-sum payment, depending on
the plan.23
A low-income elderly or disabled veteran may be eligible for the Improved Disability Pension. In
the event of his or her death, the surviving spouse may be eligible for the Improved Death
Pension Benefit. The surviving spouse would receive, under the Improved Death Pension, about
51.2% of the veteran’s Improved Disability Pension.24
As a percentage of 100% disability compensation, DIC is below the 50% or more level for
survivors associated with other retirement or pension benefits. However, unlike pension benefits,
DIC is not structured as a percentage of the disability compensation received by the veteran.
Under the current DIC structure, the surviving spouse of a veteran who died with a disability
rating of less than 70% would receive more in DIC than the veteran received in disability
compensation while alive (based on the current disability compensation rates for a veteran with a
spouse). If DIC were 50% of the disability compensation received by the veteran, a survivor
would receive a basic monthly benefit (based on the veteran’s disability rating) ranging from $64
to $1,486.25 This range exists because a veteran could die from a service-connected condition that
is rated at less than 100%.
DIC Remarriage Age
Until 2003, a surviving spouse could not remarry and continue to receive DIC benefits. That
changed with the enactment of the Veterans Benefits Act of 2003 (P.L. 108-183), which allowed
a surviving spouse aged 57 or older to remarry and keep DIC benefits. However, surviving
spouses who do not remarry will continue to have their military Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP)
reduced by their DIC benefits. For the military Survivor Benefit Plan and for federal employees,
the remarriage age is 55 for retaining benefits, and for Social Security beneficiaries, the
remarriage age is 60. The difference in ages for remarriage means that a remarried surviving
spouse may not be able to keep all of his or her benefits if he or she remarries.
Disability Requirement for Non-Service-Connected Deaths
As stated earlier (see “Eligibility Requirements” section), if a veteran’s death was not service-
connected, the veteran must have been receiving, or been eligible to receive, disability
compensation as 100% disabled for 10 years or more prior to death to enable a survivor to be
eligible for DIC. Some totally disabled veterans have expressed concern that their surviving
spouses would not receive a benefit if they die from non-service-connected causes if they have
not been totally disabled for at least 10 years. The 10-year disability requirement for non-service-
connected deaths can be viewed as a measure of the survivor’s dependence on the veteran’s

(...continued)
Pension Benefit Programs, by Christine Scott and Carol D. Davis.
23 For more information on survivor benefits for federal employees, see CRS Report RS21029, Survivor Benefits for
Families of Civilian Federal Employees and Retirees, by Katelin P. Isaacs.
24 If both pension payments were received at their maximum rates (which would be dependent on income levels). The
Improved Disability Pension payment would include the veteran and his or her spouse.
25 Fifty percent of the disability compensation for a veteran with a spouse at 10% and 100% disability ratings. Please
note that there is no additional spousal amount paid if the veteran’s disability rating is less than 30%.
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Veterans’ Benefits: Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) for Survivors

disability compensation. This view assumes that the longer the veteran was disabled, the more
dependent the survivors were on the veteran’s disability compensation as a replacement of the
veteran’s earnings.
Maximum Benefit for Dependent Parents
For survivors, income is not a factor in DIC eligibility unless the survivor is a dependent parent.
The maximum DIC amount payable to parents is only for parents below a stationary income
level: $800 for a single parent and $1,000 for a married couple. These amounts were enacted into
law in 1968 and unlike other income levels related to benefits, they have not been adjusted for
inflation. The $800 limitation in 1968 is equivalent to $5,292 in 2012. This means that dependent
parents over time may see reductions in DIC as their incomes increase due to cost-of-living
adjustments in their other income, because the $800 and $1,000 income limitations for DIC are
not adjusted for inflation.
Legislative History
DIC has been paid in some form to survivors since the Revolutionary War. At that time, women
and children survivors of officers received a seven-year pension amounting to half of the officer’s
entitled pay (according to a 1780 act of the Continental Congress).26
During the Civil War, survivor compensation was expanded to cover all servicemembers at a rate
that would be payable to totally disabled veterans.27 The Civil War also led to other changes to
survivor compensation, especially for survivors of servicemembers with service-connected
disabilities. They were covered under the Act of July 14, 1862, which was referred to as General
Law and amended various times in the 19th century.
In 1917, Congress passed the War Risk Insurance Act to eliminate the need for non-service
pensions and highlighted that service-connected payments for death and disability were
compensation payments.28 The act changed the system to meet the current needs of World War I
veterans and their survivors and eliminated the pay discrepancy between officers and soldiers.29
The Servicemen’s Indemnity Act of 1951 replaced this life insurance system with a new system
where the servicemembers did not contribute to the insurance program, but the government
provided monthly payments to eligible survivors of $120 with a 2.25% increase per year until a
$10,000 insurance maximum was reached.30 Potentially eligible survivors included spouses,
children, parents, and siblings.

26 Omar N. Bradley, Clarence G. Adamy, and William J. Donovan, et al., Veterans’ Benefits in the United States: A
Report to the President by the President’s Commission on Veterans’ Pensions, The Bradley Commission, Washington
DC, April 1956. (Hereafter referred to as the Bradley Report.)
27 Ibid.
28 P.L. 65-105.
29 Ibid.
30 P.L. 82-23.
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Veterans’ Benefits: Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) for Survivors

Because legislation had been written in response to need, dependency and indemnity
compensation was unorganized and administered by four different administrations by the mid-
1950s, and congressional and executive committees were formed to make the issuance of
compensation more streamlined and manageable.31 Death compensation was set up similar to the
way it is now by the time the final report of the President’s Commission on Veterans’ Pensions,
Veterans’ Benefits in the United States: Report to the President by the President’s Commission of
Veterans Pensions (hereafter referred to as the Bradley Report) was written in 1956.32 Death
compensation was provided to survivors (except for dependent parents) regardless of income. The
rate of compensation depended on whether the veteran served in peacetime or wartime.
In 1969, after review of the Bradley Report, recommendations from a commission headed by
Robert M. McCurdy in 1967,33 and extensive testimony from several other federal
administrations and veterans service organizations, Congress devised a different, more equitable
system for survivor compensation that gave fixed rates to each pay grade. The base rate was
adjusted for a cost-of-living increase to reflect changes in the cost of living since the last base rate
had been determined in 1956, 13 years earlier.34 In 1969, years of service were no longer a factor
in determining DIC.35 There were no subsequent changes of significance to DIC legislation until
1993, when the rate tables for surviving spouses were eliminated and one flat monthly rate was
reinstated.36 In 2003, surviving spouses who remarried after reaching the age of 57 were able to
retain DIC.37

Author Contact Information

Christine Scott

Specialist in Social Policy
cscott@crs.loc.gov, 7-7366


Acknowledgments
This report was written by Jayla L. Randleman, a former intern with the Congressional Research Service.
All questions should be directed to the current author.


31 Sen. Bob Graham, “Honor the DIC commitment,” remarks in the Senate, Congressional Record, vol. 137 (November
12, 1991), pp. S16332-S16338.
32 Bradley Report (Washington DC: April 1956), pp. 33-52.
33 Sen. Bob Graham, “Honor the DIC commitment,” remarks in the Senate, Congressional Record, vol. 137 (November
12, 1991), pp. 31116-31123.
34 Ibid.
35 Ibid.
36 P.L. 102-568.
37 P.L. 108-183.
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