Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) is a tax-free monthly benefit paid to surviving spouses, children, and parents of veterans who died from a service-connected condition or a service-related cause. In 2026, the base DIC rate for a surviving spouse is $1,699.36 per month — up 2.8% from 2025 thanks to the December 2025 COLA.
What is DIC?
DIC is the VA's survivor compensation program. It replaces some of the income lost when a veteran dies in service or from a service-connected condition. DIC is separate from Social Security survivor benefits and the Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP).
2026 DIC rates for surviving spouses
- Base monthly rate: $1,699.36
- 8-year add-on (veteran rated totally disabled for 8+ years before death, married 8+ years): +$360.85
- Each dependent child under 18: +$421.00
- Aid & Attendance allowance: +$421.00
- Housebound allowance: +$197.22
- Each helpless child over 18: +$421.00
DIC eligibility for surviving spouses
You qualify for DIC if your spouse:
- Died on active duty, active duty for training, or inactive duty training.
- Died from a service-connected disability or injury.
- Was rated totally disabled (100% schedular or TDIU) for at least 10 years before death.
- Was rated totally disabled for at least 5 years immediately after separation.
- Was a former POW who died after September 30, 1999, with a 1-year total-rating period.
DIC for surviving children
Children under 18 (or 23 if in school) may receive DIC if the surviving parent doesn't qualify or has remarried. Helpless adult children (disabled before age 18) receive lifetime DIC.
DIC for surviving parents
Parents' DIC is income-based and varies by relationship status. The 2026 maximum parents' DIC ranges from about $704 to $1,400 per month with income-based reductions of $0.08 per $1 of income above thresholds.
How to apply for DIC
- File VA Form 21P-534EZ — the survivor benefits application.
- Attach the veteran's death certificate.
- Include a copy of your marriage certificate and the veteran's DD-214.
- Submit medical evidence linking the cause of death to a service-connected condition, if applicable.
- Submit through VA.gov, by mail, or with a Veterans Service Officer.
DIC and other survivor benefits
DIC can be combined with other benefits, with some offsets:
- Social Security survivor benefits — paid in full alongside DIC.
- SBP (Survivor Benefit Plan) — the 2023 “widow's tax” repeal eliminated the SBP-DIC offset. Surviving spouses now receive both in full.
- Survivors Pension — cannot be paid concurrently with DIC. The VA pays whichever is higher.
Special monthly DIC
Surviving spouses with serious disabilities may qualify for Aid & Attendance (+$421) or Housebound (+$197) allowances on top of the base rate.
Related guides
Apply at the VA DIC page.
DIC Eligibility Deep Dive: The 10-Year, 20-Year, and Continuous Disability Rules
DIC (Dependency and Indemnity Compensation) pays a tax-free monthly benefit to the surviving spouse of a veteran who died from a service-connected condition — but service-connected cause of death is only one of four qualifying pathways.
Four Pathways to DIC Eligibility
- Direct service-connection death: The veteran's death certificate lists a service-connected condition as the cause of death. This is the most straightforward pathway and requires a nexus between the death and a previously or newly established service-connected disability.
- 10-Year Rule: If the veteran was continuously rated at 100% Permanent and Total (P&T) for at least 10 years immediately before death, the surviving spouse qualifies for DIC regardless of the actual cause of death. The veteran could die of an entirely unrelated condition and DIC is still payable.
- 20-Year Rule: If the veteran was continuously rated at any service-connected disability for 20 or more years before death and was rated at 100% for the final year of that period, the surviving spouse qualifies for DIC regardless of cause of death.
- Prisoner of War (POW): Former POWs who die from any cause qualify their surviving spouses for DIC automatically.
Effective Dates and Remarriage Rules
Filing within one year of the veteran's death sets the effective date as the first day of the month of death — the most favorable outcome for back pay. Filing after the one-year window results in an effective date of the claim itself. Remarriage before age 57 permanently disqualifies the surviving spouse from DIC. Remarriage at age 57 or older has no effect on DIC eligibility. For how to file, see VA Survivor Benefits and How to Apply for Survivor Benefits.
2026 DIC Payment Rates
The base DIC rate for a surviving spouse in 2026 is $1,699.04 per month, effective December 1, 2025, following the 2.8% COLA adjustment.
Add-On Rates That Increase Monthly DIC
- Dependent children (under 18, or under 23 if a full-time student): $435.54/month per child
- Aid and Attendance add-on (surviving spouse who needs daily personal care): $415.69/month
- Housebound add-on (confined to home but not requiring personal attendant care): $181.11/month
- Transitional benefit: an additional $332/month for 2 years when there are dependent children in the household, added to the base DIC rate
- 8-Year Provision: an additional $310/month if the veteran was continuously rated 100% for at least 8 full years before death and the couple was married during that entire 8-year period
Combined Maximum Example
A surviving spouse with two dependent children, qualifying for Aid and Attendance, the 8-year provision, and the transitional benefit could receive approximately $3,393 per month in total 2026 DIC payments:
- Base rate: $1,699.04
- Two children: $871.08
- Aid and Attendance: $415.69
- 8-Year Provision: $310.00
- Transitional benefit: $332.00
These rates are adjusted annually by COLA each December.
New for 2026: If your veteran is rated 100% permanently and totally disabled, our 100% disabled veteran spouse benefits page covers CHAMPVA, Chapter 35 DEA education, and the state-level add-ons. After a divorce, see Military spouse benefits after divorce for the 20/20/20 rule and DIC remarriage rules.
For related survivor benefit programs, see Survivors Pension and the full DIC Benefits overview.