Follow to get an email when District of Columbia benefits change. Alert settings
District of Columbia benefits for Veterans and families, each checked against an official District of Columbia source and linked to it. Federal VA benefits work the same everywhere, and the Mayor's Office of Veterans Affairs (MOVA) can help you apply for them at no cost.
14 benefits from official sources1 where sources disagreeLast verified
How to read the labels:In effect confirmed on an official page. Not yet finalized announced or passed but not in force yet. Unverified — confirm with the agency we couldn't confirm it on an official page, so ask the agency.
Help from your state veterans office
MOVA veteran claims assistance (District Veterans Service Officer)
In effect
MOVA's service representatives help District veterans with VA disability claims, health care enrollment, pension and burial claims.
Who qualifies
District veterans and service members.
Amount or details
Free.
How to apply
Contact MOVA's District Veterans Service Officer at 202-724-5454 (1350 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Suite 332).
Since October 1, 2022, homes owned by veterans rated total and permanent, or paid at 100% for unemployability, get a $445,000 reduction in assessed value. Household income must be under the Senior/Disabled Tax Relief limit, which is $163,500 for tax year 2026.
Who qualifies
T&P or 100% IU; DC-domiciled; principal residence; ≥50% ownership; ≤5 units; household income under $163,500 (TY2026).
Amount or details
$445,000 assessed-value reduction (instead of regular homestead/senior relief).
How to apply
Apply through MOVA's online Veterans Homestead Tax Deduction application.
Note: The absence of a military retirement exclusion was inferred because the 2025 D-40 subtraction lines contain none. No OTR statement saying "fully taxable" was quoted.
DC fully taxes military retired pay. The 2025 D-40 instructions list no military retirement subtraction. The only related exclusion is for DC and federal government survivor benefits paid to survivors aged 62 or older.
Who qualifies
—
Details
None for military retired pay; survivor-benefit exclusion for annuitant survivors 62+.
DC Veteran license tags (one design per service branch)
In effect
Veterans who live in D.C., and their spouses, can order DC Veteran tags instead of standard plates. The fees go to the Office of Veterans Affairs Fund to serve D.C. veterans. A surviving spouse can keep the tags.
Who qualifies
D.C. residents who served on active duty (or in the Guard/Reserve with qualifying service) and were discharged under conditions other than dishonorable, plus spouses. The DMV asks for proof of honorable discharge.
Amount or details
$52 one-time application fee plus a $26 display fee each year, on top of normal registration. Passenger cars, pickups and vans only.
How to apply
Bring your DD 214 (or WD AGO / DD 256), your current DC DMV credential and your DC vehicle registration to a DC DMV service center.
“DC Veteran tags are available on behalf of the DC Office of Veteran Affairs (OVA), for a one-time application fee and a yearly display fee, in addition to annual registration fees.”
“the identification tags shall be transferred, upon application, to the surviving spouse for the spouses’s lifetime or until he or she remarries”
No registration fee for one vehicle: permanent and total (P&T) disabled veterans
In effect
If VA rates you permanently and totally disabled from a service-connected condition, D.C. waives the annual registration fee on one set of tags for a non-commercial vehicle.
Who qualifies
Veterans with a VA letter stating a service-connected "Total and Permanent" disability.
Amount or details
Annual registration fee: none (one set of tags, non-commercial vehicle). The DMV page conflicts on whether specialty-tag application fees are also waived (see note).
How to apply
Bring your VA benefit summary letter showing "Total and Permanent" to a DC DMV service center when you register or renew.
Note
The DC DMV specialty-tag page says two different things. The DC Veteran and DAV sections say the "no fee" applies only to annual registration fees. The DC Woman Veteran section says P&T veterans pay no application, registration or renewal fee for one set of tags. Ask the DMV which fees will be waived on your tags.
“shall not be charged the application fee, registration fee or renewal fee for one set of tags. This does not apply to commercial vehicles”
Disabled American Veteran (DAV) tags
In effect
DAV tags are available at the normal registration fee. A version with the wheelchair symbol needs a VA authorization letter and an approved D.C. disability tag/placard application.
Who qualifies
Veterans certified as members of the District of Columbia Disabled American Veterans by its Commander.
Amount or details
Normal registration fees. P&T veterans pay no annual registration fee on one set of tags.
How to apply
Get DAV membership certification, then apply at a DC DMV service center. For the wheelchair-symbol tag, add the VA authorization letter and the DMV disability tag/placard application.
“certified as a member of the District of Columbia Disabled American Veterans by the Commander of the District of Columbia Disabled American Veterans”
Combat Wounded Veteran Purple Heart tags
In effect
Purple Heart recipients can get Combat Wounded Veteran tags for a one-time application fee plus normal registration. The fees go to the Office of Veterans Affairs Fund.
Who qualifies
Purple Heart recipients with discharge documents showing the award (DD-214, DD-215 or WD-AGO 53-55).
Amount or details
$10 one-time application fee, plus annual registration.
How to apply
Bring your discharge documents, DC DMV credential and registration to a DC DMV service center.
UDC Office of Military and Veteran Student Services (GI Bill certification)
In effect
The University of the District of Columbia, D.C.'s public university, has an office that certifies VA education benefits and helps veterans and military students make the move to school.
Who qualifies
Students using VA education benefits or military tuition assistance.
Amount or details
Help using federal VA education benefits. No separate D.C.-funded veteran tuition benefit was found.
How to apply
Apply for VA education benefits, then submit the UDC VA Education Enrollment Request Form every term. Call 202-274-6099 or email military@udc.edu.
“The Office of Military and Veterans Student Services is a centralized office designed to provide comprehensive resources to veterans and military-related personnel who are utilizing VA and tuition assistance educational benefits.”
DC gives hiring preference to disabled veterans, veterans with qualifying service periods, and in some cases their spouses, widows or widowers, or mothers. Retirees at the rank of Major or Lieutenant Commander or above don't qualify unless the retirement was for a service-connected disability.
Who qualifies
Veterans/disabled veterans and certain family members.
Amount or details
5 points for >180 days active duty with honorable separation, plus 5 more for a service-connected disability (D.C. Code § 1-607.03). Most preference ends 5 years after separation, with exceptions.
How to apply
Submit official proof such as a DD-214 when you apply.
“shall receive an additional 5 points if he or she has separated from the armed forces under honorable conditions, and has established the presence at the time of appointment of a service-connected disability”
Priority of service at DC American Job Centers (DOES)
In effect
At D.C. American Job Centers, veterans and eligible spouses get priority for employment, training and placement services funded by the U.S. Department of Labor, including one-on-one case management.
Who qualifies
Veterans and eligible spouses.
Amount or details
Free. Priority access to job search help, counseling, case management and training.
How to apply
Visit any DC American Job Center, or call the DOES Veterans Program Coordinator at 202-698-5819.
HUD-VASH housing vouchers for homeless veterans (DC Housing Authority)
In effect
The DC Housing Authority runs Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (VASH) vouchers. These pair rental help with VA case management for veterans who are homeless.
Who qualifies
Veterans referred by VA. The housing authority then checks income and other program rules.
Amount or details
Rental assistance voucher.
How to apply
Call the National Call Center for Homeless Veterans at 877-424-3838 or contact the DC VA Medical Center homeless program. VA makes the referral to DCHA.
Armed Forces Retirement Home, Washington (federal, not run by D.C.)
In effect
D.C. does not run its own veterans home. The federal Armed Forces Retirement Home has a campus in Washington, D.C. for enlisted veterans who can live independently when they are admitted.
Who qualifies
More than half of your service as enlisted, warrant officer or limited-duty officer, plus one more qualifier, such as 20+ years of service, military retired pay, or a service-connected disability.
Amount or details
Residents pay a monthly fee. Admission is decided by AFRH, not D.C.
How to apply
Request an application from AFRH or call (800) 422-9988.
We only publish what we could confirm on an official District of Columbia source. These are the open questions from our latest review. Ask the Mayor's Office of Veterans Affairs (MOVA) about anything here.
D.C. has no D.C.-run veterans home or veterans cemetery on MOVA pages. The federal Armed Forces Retirement Home (Washington campus) is listed above. Arlington and other VA national cemeteries serve D.C. veterans but are federal and not itemized here.
No D.C.-funded veteran tuition benefit (waiver or grant) was found on UDC or MOVA pages. Only VA benefit certification is listed.
Hunting is not permitted in D.C. No veteran discount was found on DC Department of Parks and Recreation pages. A disabled-veteran parking-meter exemption was proposed in 2019 (District Wounded Warrior Parking Permit Act), but no enacted law was found.
The legacy domain ova.dc.gov redirects to communityaffairs.dc.gov/mova.
Federal benefits you can use in District of Columbia
This District page was last reviewed against official sources on November 1, 2026. Our watcher re-checks those pages automatically and flags any item whose quoted wording disappears.