The Flag on the Licence — Two Agencies, 30 Days, and $30 If You Cannot Wait
A veteran can have an American flag symbol placed on a driver licence or non-driver identification card. The veterans department verifies status on Form VL1 first, at least 30 days before the motor vehicle visit. Free at renewal; $30 to add it beforehand.
Verified August 23, 2026
What this benefit is
A veteran can have an American flag symbol placed on a driver licence or non-driver identification card. The veterans department verifies status on Form VL1 first, at least 30 days before the motor vehicle visit. Free at renewal; $30 to add it beforehand.
What it's worth: No extra cost at renewal; a $30 charge to add the flag before the renewal notice arrives
- The motor vehicle office states that veterans who apply and have their status verified may receive a driver licence or non-driver identification card carrying an American flag symbol to indicate that status.
- The veterans department states that the applicant must have qualifying active military service, usually evidenced by the DD Form 214, and that the characterisation of discharge for the qualifying service must be honorable or under honorable conditions.
- The instrument filed with the veterans department is CTDVA Form VL1, submitted with the DD Form 214.
- The motor vehicle office states that veterans must first apply to the state veterans department at least 30 days before visiting a motor vehicle service office.
- Adding the flag at renewal carries no additional cost.
- For a customer who already holds a current licence or identification card and adds the flag symbol before receiving the renewal notice, a $30 fee applies, plus the usual renewal or first-issue fees.
- The motor vehicle office notes that certain partner locations may charge a convenience fee of up to $8 per transaction.
- The veterans department gives its Rocky Hill address and a telephone number for the application, and states no processing time on the article.
Who is entitled to it
- This record is about the person who served.
- Your discharge characterisation is inside the test the veterans department states.
- Your home is in this state.
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How to claim it
Deadline: File with the veterans department at least 30 days before the motor vehicle visit- 1Start with the veterans department, not the motor vehicle office. The motor vehicle office cannot verify your service and will send you away if the verification has not been done.
- 2Leave the full 30 days. That lead time is the motor vehicle office's own stated requirement, and turning up early wastes the appointment.
- 3Time the motor vehicle visit to a renewal if you can. The flag is free at renewal and costs $30 added at any other point, for exactly the same symbol.
- 4Check the characterisation the veterans department is measuring: honorable or under honorable conditions, for the qualifying service.
- 5Use a motor vehicle office rather than a partner location if the convenience fee matters — up to $8 per transaction is charged at some partner sites.
- 6Keep the discharge document afterwards. The flag identifies you as a veteran but carries none of the service detail an office may later want.
- Form
- CTDVA Form VL1, then a visit to a motor vehicle service office
- File with
- Department of Veterans Affairs, Rocky Hill — then the Department of Motor Vehicles
- Documents you will need
- dd214
- At each renewal
- Claimed again whenever the underlying licence or registration renews.
Sources
- authority · published policyDepartment of Veterans Affairs — Veteran Indicator on Driver's License or Identification Card
- operating · published policyDepartment of Motor Vehicles — Add veteran's status on driver's licence or non-driver ID card
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