6 North Carolina Veterans Benefits Many Qualify For but Never Apply For
Serving your country comes with benefits, some of which are sometimes left on the table.
In North Carolina, the help comes from several different offices, so it’s easy enough for veterans to miss a few without realizing it.
Here’s are the benefits that North Carolinians who served may want to ask about.
Note: This is general information, not legal or tax advice. Benefit rules and dollar amounts are subject to change, so confirm the current requirements with the North Carolina Department of Military and Veterans Affairs.
1. Disabled Veteran Property Tax Exclusion
The disabled veteran property tax exclusion lets you subtract $45,000 of appraised value from the home you live in before the county taxes it.
The Department of Military and Veterans Affairs says you need a permanent and total service-connected disability rating of 100%, or specially adapted housing benefits.
An honorable or under honorable conditions discharge is required too.
A surviving spouse who hasn’t remarried qualifies too.
That includes a spouse whose veteran died from a service-connected condition.
Neither the statute nor the department’s page lists an income limit.
If you own the home with your spouse, only one of you has to qualify for the couple to get the full exclusion.
A temporary absence for health reasons doesn’t cost you the exclusion.
Your county tax office takes the application through June 1.
What the Veteran Property Tax Exclusion Saves
North Carolina’s veteran property tax exclusion lowers the value your county taxes, not your bill.
The state revenue department’s formula divides a home’s value by 100 and multiplies the result by the combined tax rate per $100.
Say your combined county and city rate is 80 cents per $100, and $45,000 of excluded value cuts your yearly bill by $360.
2. Military Retirement Pay Deduction
North Carolina lets veterans who served at least 20 years in the uniformed services, or were medically retired, subtract their military retirement pay on the state return.
You can only deduct the part of your pay that shows up in your adjusted gross income.
Severance pay doesn’t qualify, but Survivor Benefit Plan payments do, as long as the retired member could deduct retirement pay.
A payment you deduct here can’t also be deducted under a second retirement provision.
Questions about the deduction go to the revenue department at 1-877-252-3052.
3. Lifetime Hunting and Fishing License
The Wildlife Resources Commission sells a lifetime hunting and fishing license for $110 to veterans with a VA disability rating of 50% or more.
Lifetime comes with a catch.
The license stays valid only while your rating stays at 50% or more.
You have to be a state resident to buy it.
Applications go in by mail or in person with a VA certification attached.
The commission’s customer service line is 833-950-0575, open weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Psst! How much do you know about veterans benefits? Take our quiz and see if you can ace it.
Quiz
Veterans Benefits IQ
Answer these questions on North Carolina veterans benefits and eligibility. We bet you can’t get them all right. Prove us wrong?
The North Carolina Scholarship for Children of Wartime Veterans covers how many academic semesters?
4. Fee-Waived License Plates
The Department of Military and Veterans Affairs lists the special plate fee as waived for the Disabled Veteran, Ex-Prisoner of War and Medal of Honor plates.
Silver Star recipients and Bronze Star recipients with a combat V device are on that list too.
The rating decides the plate.
You can get the Disabled Veteran plate with a combined rating of 100%, or with Individual Unemployability paid at the 100% rate.
If your service-connected disability is below 100%, you can get the Partially Disabled Veteran plate instead, according to G.S. 20-79.4.
5. In-State Tuition
North Carolina can charge veterans in-state tuition at University of North Carolina System schools, according to the system.
If you served at least 90 days on active duty and were honorably discharged, you also have to meet one of three conditions.
You meet one if you graduated from a North Carolina high school on or after January 1, 2004.
Serving 90 continuous days with a permanent duty station in the state also counts.
A Purple Heart works too.
Active-duty service members with a permanent duty station in the state, and their spouses and dependents, pay in-state tuition too.
Residency is the catch.
Veterans and family members covered under the Veterans Choice Act may qualify as well, but you must be living in North Carolina when classes begin.
State law also waives the usual 12-month residency wait if you file a letter of intent to establish residence.
If your VA education benefits run out before you graduate, the system says you have to establish residency in the state to keep paying in-state tuition.
6. Free Claims Help
North Carolina gives every veteran in the state free help with benefit claims through its veterans service officers, according to the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs.
Family members can use them too.
Active-duty service members, Guard members and reservists qualify as well.
A service officer can gather evidence for your claim, track it and help with an appeal.
That appeals help covers higher-level reviews and board appeals.
The department's service centers page says most counties also offer services and claims support for veterans.
What Papers Do North Carolina Veterans Benefits Require?
The property tax exclusion takes Form NCDVA-9 certified by a veterans service officer, Form AV-9 and your annual tax abatement letter from the VA.
You fill out Sections 1 and 2 of Form NCDVA-9 first, then take it to your local veterans service office for certification.
You file the property tax paperwork with your county tax office.
If a late spouse's name is still on the house deed, our guide to that step may help.
A Disabled Veteran plate starts with Form MVR-33A, and only an accredited service officer from the department can certify one section of it.
Plates also require a DD-214 showing an honorable discharge or one under honorable conditions.
Photocopies are fine for plate paperwork, according to the department.
FAQ
Does North Carolina have a property tax exclusion for veterans?
Yes.
A veteran with a permanent and total service-connected disability and an honorable discharge can exclude the first $45,000 of a home's appraised value.
A surviving spouse who hasn't remarried can too.
Is there an income limit for the North Carolina veterans property tax exclusion?
The statute lists no income limit.
Qualifying depends on your discharge, a VA-certified disability and living in the home.
What is the deadline for the North Carolina veterans property tax exclusion?
The statute says your county must accept an application through June 1 before the tax year it covers.
Do you need a 100% disability rating for a North Carolina veterans hunting and fishing license?
No. The lifetime license requires a VA disability rating of 50% or more and North Carolina residency.
Where can you get free help applying for North Carolina veterans benefits?
The Department of Military and Veterans Affairs runs 12 Veterans Service Centers across four regions.
The department's toll-free number is 844-624-8387.
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