VA DIC Rates 2026 and Calculator

By Mustafa Bilgic · Updated 2026-09-25

VA DIC rates for 2026 start at $1,699.36 a month for a surviving spouse, effective December 1, 2025. Added amounts can raise that: $421.00 for each child under 18, $360.85 under the 8-year provision, and $421.00 for aid and attendance or $197.22 if housebound. There is also a $359.00 transitional benefit for the first 2 years when there are children under 18. This VA DIC rates calculator adds up the amounts that apply to you from the Department of Veterans Affairs rate tables. It covers surviving spouses, spouses of veterans who died before 1993 (pay grade rates) and children when there is no eligible spouse.

Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) is a tax-free monthly payment for the surviving spouse, children or parents of a service member who died in the line of duty, or of a veteran who died from a service-related injury or illness.

2026 VA DIC Rates for Surviving Spouses

The Department of Veterans Affairs says these survivor benefits are tax exempt, and the rates are effective December 1, 2025. The transitional benefit ends early if all your children turn 18 before the 2 years are up.

How DIC Is Figured

Monthly DIC = basic rate + 8-year provision + $421.00 per child under 18 + aid and attendance or housebound + transitional benefit

Federal law, 38 U.S.C. 1311, sets each part: a basic monthly rate for a surviving spouse, an increase when the veteran was rated totally disabling for a continuous period of at least eight years immediately before death, an increase for each child under 18, an increase if the spouse needs regular aid and attendance or is a nursing home patient, and a smaller increase if the spouse is permanently housebound but does not qualify for aid and attendance. For the 8-year provision, only periods when the veteran was married to the surviving spouse count. The statute still prints older dollar amounts; VA's table shows the current amounts after later increases, so the calculator uses the VA table.

Worked Examples From VA

• Spouse with 2 children under 18, 8-year provision and aid and attendance: $1,699.36 + $421.00 + $421.00 + $360.85 + $421.00 + $359.00 = $3,682.21 a month for the first 2 years, then $3,323.21 when the transitional benefit ends.
• Spouse of an E-3 veteran who died before 1993, with the 8-year provision and 2 children: $1,699.36 + $360.85 + $421.00 + $421.00 = $2,902.21 a month.
• Two eligible children with no surviving spouse, one of them a helpless child over 18: $516.09 for one child and $937.09 for the helpless child ($516.09 + $421.00), or $1,453.18 in total.

DIC When the Veteran Died Before 1993

For deaths before January 1, 1993, VA uses the veteran's pay grade in service, but only if that rate is greater than the basic rate plus the 8-year increase (if applicable), and a pay grade rate may not be increased by the 8-year amount. With the 8-year provision, the spouse of an E-8, E-9, W-1 to W-4 or O-1 to O-3 veteran is raised to the basic rate plus $360.85, or $2,060.21 (VA's table lists $2,060.20; its worked example uses $2,060.21). VA's table groups E-7 with E-1 to E-6 and says to add $360.85; because a pay grade rate cannot be increased by the 8-year amount, the calculator gives an E-7 spouse the greater of the E-7 rate or $2,060.21.

Special capacity means senior enlisted leaders such as the Sergeant Major of the Army, or, for O-10, positions such as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Children under 18 add $421.00 each in this table too.

DIC Rates for Children

For families of up to 9 children VA publishes a set total, and each additional child in a family of 10 or more adds $255.95. Each helpless child over 18 adds $421.00. When there is an eligible surviving spouse, VA pays adult children separately: $356.66 a month for a child between 18 and 23 in a qualified school program, and $717.50 for a helpless child over 18. A surviving spouse does not get the child increase for a child over 18 who receives DIC in his or her own right.

Who Qualifies as a Surviving Spouse

VA requires that you lived with the veteran or service member continuously until death, or were separated through no fault of your own. You must also have married within 15 years of discharge from the period of service in which the qualifying illness or injury started or got worse, been married for at least 1 year, or had a child together. If you remarried, VA says you can receive or continue to receive DIC if you remarried on or after December 16, 2003 at age 57 or older, or on or after January 5, 2021 at age 55 or older.

DIC, Survivors Pension and SBP

If you qualify for both DIC and the VA Survivors Pension, VA pays whichever benefit gives you more money; you cannot get both. DIC and a Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) annuity can now be paid in full at the same time: the SBP-DIC offset was reduced in phases starting January 1, 2021 and fully eliminated on January 1, 2023. Parents of a deceased veteran can also receive DIC, but parents' rates depend on yearly income, so they are not included in this calculator.

DIC is a VA benefit, not a lawsuit recovery. If you are also pursuing a claim over the death, see our wrongful death settlement calculator. Our VA disability calculator covers ratings for living veterans, and the RECA compensation amounts calculator explains how some radiation awards interact with VA benefits.

Tips

• Ask VA to confirm the veteran's total disability rating history if you may qualify for the 8-year provision.
• Report each child under 18; each adds $421.00 a month to a surviving spouse's DIC.
• Apply for aid and attendance or housebound status if your health changes; VA pays one or the other, not both.
• Mark the 2-year date for the transitional benefit so the drop in payment is not a surprise.

Frequently Asked Questions