Veterans Alliance is privately owned and operated to serve veterans. We are not affiliated with the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Veterans Alliance — Veterans Alliance
← All Colorado benefits
recreationstate

The Independence Pass — Free Entry to Every State Park, Renewed Yearly

A Colorado resident veteran gets free admission to all state parks on the Independence Pass. Four routes reach it: a service-connected rating of 50% or more, loss of use of one or more limbs, permanent loss of vision in both eyes, or the Purple Heart — and the last three carry no rating threshold. You apply once and renew every 12 months. Holders aged 64 and over also get $3 a night off camping, Sunday to Thursday.

Verified August 27, 2026

What this benefit is

A Colorado resident veteran gets free admission to all state parks on the Independence Pass. Four routes reach it: a service-connected rating of 50% or more, loss of use of one or more limbs, permanent loss of vision in both eyes, or the Purple Heart — and the last three carry no rating threshold. You apply once and renew every 12 months. Holders aged 64 and over also get $3 a night off camping, Sunday to Thursday.

What it's worth: Free admission to all Colorado state parks, renewed every 12 months

  • Four routes qualify: a service-connected disability of 50% or more; loss of use of one or more limbs; permanent loss of vision in both eyes; or the Purple Heart.
  • Three of those four carry NO rating threshold. A Purple Heart recipient with no rating, or a veteran who has lost the use of a limb, qualifies.
  • The rule above tests the rating route and the Purple Heart route, because Colorado does not ask a question that would capture loss of use or blindness. If either applies to you, apply regardless of what this page concludes.
  • The pass admits the holder to all Colorado state parks.
  • It must be RENEWED EVERY 12 MONTHS — online, by phone on 1-800-244-5613, or in person. It is not a one-off.
  • Holders aged 64 and over also receive a $3 a night camping discount, Sunday to Thursday.

Who is entitled to it

  • You served in the U.S. armed forces.
  • You are on one of the routes to the pass.
  • Your rating is 50% or higher.
  • You were awarded the Purple Heart.
  • You are in Colorado.

Not sure whether that describes you?

Answer a few questions about this benefit specifically — we only ask what this one actually depends on, and we stop as soon as we know.

How to claim it

Deadline: Every 12 months
  1. 1Apply once to Colorado Parks and Wildlife with proof of the qualifying route.
  2. 2Diary the renewal. It runs 12 months and has to be renewed — online, on 1-800-244-5613, or in person — and a lapsed pass is the usual reason people stop using it.
  3. 3If you hold the Purple Heart, or have lost the use of a limb or your sight in both eyes, apply even at a low rating. Those routes have no percentage threshold.
  4. 4If you are 64 or over, ask about the $3 a night camping discount, Sunday to Thursday. It comes with the pass and is not advertised alongside it.
Form
Independence Pass application
File with
Colorado Parks and Wildlife
Documents you will need
va benefit summary letter
Annual
Claimed once a year.
Worth knowingTwo of the four eligibility routes — loss of use of a limb, and permanent loss of vision in both eyes — are not testable against any question Colorado asks, so the rule cannot check them. They are stated in the record so a veteran on those routes knows to apply anyway.

Sources

This finder provides an informational match, not a government eligibility determination. The responsible agency decides your application.