What To Know About Veterans Affairs Life Insurance

Veterans make many sacrifices for our country. For their service, they get educational benefits, home loans, medical benefits, and much more.

In 2023, veterans were given another benefit that they may not know about. That year, the Veterans Affairs Life Insurance (VALife) was created to give veterans life insurance benefits, with acceptance guaranteed.

As of 2025, the VALife program has surpassed $2 billion in total life insurance coverage, helping more than 60,000 veterans.

VALife offers qualifying veterans whole life insurance of up to $40,000 with guaranteed acceptance, meaning no medical exam or underwriting required. Qualifying veterans are defined as those with any level (0 to 100%) of service-connected disability and under the age of 80. There’s no time limit to apply after getting your disability rating.

If you are age 81 or older, you may still qualify for life insurance if all the following apply:

• You applied for VA disability compensation for a service-connected disability before you turned 81 years old.
• After you turned 81, you received a rating for that same disability.
• You apply for VALife within two years of getting notification of your disability rating.

Some key features of the VALife program include:

• Premiums are the same for men and women.
• Rates do not depend on medical conditions.
• Premiums are fixed and will not increase over the life of the policy.

While men and women have the same premiums, there are a couple factors that can affect premium amounts: the veteran’s age at enrollment and the coverage amount selected.

How Coverage Works

Once you apply for VALife, you can keep your coverage for the rest of your life. Note that coverage does not start immediately. Your full life insurance coverage starts two years after you apply. You must pay the premiums during those two years in order to receive coverage.

If you die during the two-year waiting period, VALife will pay your beneficiaries the total amount you paid in premiums, plus interest. The interest rate for a death in 2025 is 3.59%. If you die after the two-year waiting period, VALife will pay your beneficiaries the full coverage amount of your policy. Beneficiaries would need to fill out a Claim for One Sum Payment (VA Form 29-4125).

Veterans can apply online at https://www.va.gov/life-insurance/ and usually get a decision within about 10 minutes. They also have access to self-service tools, like updating beneficiaries and making premium payments electronically

Learn More About Veterans Benefits

Veterans Affairs Life Insurance is just a couple years old but it has already served as a major lifeline for veterans and their families.

A White Plains veterans disability benefits lawyer from The Law Office of Michael Lawrence Varon can help you understand all the benefits you have worked hard to receive. I have helped veterans for more than 20 years. Schedule a consultation with our office today by filling out the online form or calling 914-294-2145.

Source:

news.va.gov/142642/life-insurance-tops-2-billion-in-coverage/