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120 Credit Hours Waived for Survivors
Tuition, matriculation and registration fees waived for 120 credit hours for the child or spouse of a member killed on active duty — but two clocks run against you.
Verified August 19, 2026
What this benefit is
Tuition, matriculation and registration fees waived for 120 credit hours for the child or spouse of a member killed on active duty — but two clocks run against you.
What it's worth: Tuition, matriculation and registration fees waived, up to 120 credit hours
- 120 credit hours is more than a standard bachelor’s degree requires, so for most students this covers the whole of it.
- The waiver covers tuition, matriculation and registration fees. It is not a living stipend and does not cover books or housing.
Who is entitled to it
- The member was killed, or died of injuries sustained, while on active duty.
- You are enrolled at, or applying to, a Florida institution.
- You are the member's child.
- You have not yet reached your 25th birthday.
- You are the surviving spouse.
- Your home is in Florida.
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
- 1Check which clock applies to you before anything else. A child is covered to their 25th birthday. A spouse must begin within five years of the death and is covered until ten years after it.
- 2Take the death certificate and proof of relationship to the financial aid office, not to the veterans office.
- 3Keep your academic standing. The waiver is withdrawn for failing to meet the institution’s minimum scholarship and conduct standards, which makes this one of the few benefits here you can lose by your own actions.
- File with
- The financial aid office of your Florida institution
- Documents you will need
- death certificate · proof of relationship
- Apply each term
- Your institution re-checks this every term.
Worth knowingTwo clocks, and they are different. A child is covered until their 25th birthday. A spouse must BEGIN within five years of the death and is covered until ten years after it. Neither clock announces itself.
Worth knowingThis is claimed from the institution, not from a veterans agency, while the $75,000 death benefit under the same statute is claimed from the Department of Military Affairs. Families routinely claim one and never hear about the other.
Known gapThe statute conditions the waiver on maintaining good academic standing and complying with institutional conduct rules, and leaves the standard to the institution. We publish the condition and not a threshold, because each institution sets its own.
Sources
- authority · statuteFla. Stat. §295.061
- operating · published policyFlorida Department of Veterans' Affairs — Benefits and Services
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