Georgia veteran benefits
- Verified veteran benefits
- 29
- each with its statute
- Counties covered
- 159
- every one has its own page
- Veterans in this state
- 0.65M
- Rating thresholds that matter
- 0
- each one opens something different
How to use this, in four steps
You are on step 1. Nothing is locked — browse everything first, then check the ones that look relevant.
See what you may be entitled to
Browse every verified benefit in your state. No questions, no account — everything is open.
Check whether you qualify
Open any benefit and answer a few questions about that one. We stop as soon as we know.
Get the verification letter first
County tax commissioners generally want a VA or GDVS verification letter rather than the raw rating decision.
File before the deadline
The deadline for the main property tax relief is: April 1. File with your county tax commissioner.
Which of these sounds like you?
Pick one and we will narrow the list. You can change or clear it at any point.
Two things sharpen this a lot
Both optional. Your county decides where you file and what a property tax exemption is actually worth; your rating decides which thresholds you cross.
Where do you live?
We use this once to work out your county, because property tax is decided county by county. No benefit is ever matched on a ZIP code alone.
Your VA disability status
What does my rating actually unlock?
Ratings are a starting point rather than the whole answer in Georgia. Read the record for the test that actually applies — several turn on the words on your VA letter rather than on the number.
31 benefits worth checking
What you appear to qualify for — worth checking.
One question checks 20 of them. You can skip it and keep browsing.
Did you serve in the U.S. armed forces?
2 more questions could resolve others. We ask them one at a time.
A High School Diploma for the War That Interrupted School
Under O.C.G.A. 20-2-69 and 20-2-70, local school district boards of education award a high school diploma to a veteran who missed graduation because of service in the Second World War, Korea or Vietnam. No fee is stated.
VeteransApplies statewideA high school diploma awarded by the local board of education
Read it and check if you qualifyThe VECTR Center — Career Counselling, Coaching and Workforce Training
The Georgia Veterans Education Career Transition Resource Center, run by the Technical College System of Georgia, provides career counselling, educational coaching and workforce training to Georgia veterans and transitioning servicemembers. It is a dedicated state centre rather than a grant or a payment. The number is 478-218-3900.
VeteransApplies statewideCareer counselling, educational coaching and workforce training at a dedicated state centre
Read it and check if you qualifyUniversity System Mandatory Fees Waived for Guard and Reserve Combat Veterans
Board of Regents Policy 7.3.4.1 waives MANDATORY FEES — not tuition — at University System of Georgia institutions for Georgia residents who engaged in combat operations as active members of the Georgia National Guard or the U.S. Military Reserves. Mandatory fees at a USG institution run to a substantial sum each term, so this is worth more than it sounds; but tuition itself is not waived, and the record says so.
VeteransApplies statewideMandatory fees waived at University System institutions — tuition is not
Read it and check if you qualifyFree Claims Help and Appeals Support at GDVS Field Offices
The Georgia Department of Veterans Service runs field service offices across the state providing veterans benefits assistance and dedicated appeals support, at no charge, to veterans and their families, caregivers and survivors. Accredited help with a claim is the single most useful thing on this page for most people, and it costs nothing.
VeteransApplies statewideFree accredited claims assistance and appeals support, statewide
Read it and check if you qualifyNo State Sales Tax on a Vehicle Bought or Adapted With a VA Grant
O.C.G.A. 48-8-3 exempts a disabled veteran from state sales tax on a vehicle purchased and adapted with a VA grant. It applies to the ORIGINAL grant purchase only — a later replacement bought without a grant is taxed normally.
VeteransApplies statewideState sales tax exempt on the grant-purchased vehicle
Read it and check if you qualifyGeorgia Income Tax Abated When a Member Dies in a Combat Zone
O.C.G.A. 48-7-37 exempts from Georgia income tax a member of the armed forces who dies from wounds, disease or injury incurred in a combat zone — for the year of death AND for any prior taxable year ending on or after the first day they served in the combat zone. It reaches backwards, which most abatements do not.
VeteransApplies statewideGeorgia income tax exempt for the year of death and prior years back to entering the combat zone
Read it and check if you qualifyA Homestead Exemption for the Surviving Spouse of a Member Killed in War
O.C.G.A. 48-5-52.1 exempts $121,812 for 2025 — a $60,000 base plus an index-adjusted addition — from ALL county, municipal and school property taxes, for the unremarried surviving spouse of a member of the armed forces killed in, or who died as a result of, war or armed conflict. No disability rating is involved anywhere in it.
VeteransApplies statewide$121,812 for 2025, exempt from county, municipal AND school taxes
Read it and check if you qualifyDisabled Veteran Homestead Exemption — $121,812
The largest dollar homestead exemption in this corpus, indexed to a federal figure — and reachable on a VA statutory award as well as on a 100% rating.
VeteransApplies statewideUp to $121,812 of assessed value exempted, for 2025
Read it and check if you qualifyOne Vehicle Free of Ad Valorem Tax — and You No Longer Need the DV Plate
O.C.G.A. 48-5-478 exempts ONE vehicle from ad valorem taxation for a veteran verified by the VA as 100% totally and permanently service-connected disabled, or rated unemployable with a qualifying statutory award for loss or loss of use of feet, hands or sight. Purple Heart and Medal of Honor plate holders qualify too. Recent state law changes mean you may now choose ANY veteran licence plate and still receive the exemption — it used to be tied to the Disabled Veteran plate.
VeteransApplies statewideOne vehicle exempt from ad valorem tax, every year
Read it and check if you qualifyMilitary Retirement Income Exclusion Under 62 — Rising to $65,000 in 2027
$17,500 excluded — and another $17,500 if you have at least that much earned income. Both close at 62, when a broader exclusion opens instead. From tax year 2027 this changes substantially: 2025 HB 266 excludes up to $65,000 of military retirement income for individuals under 65, drops the earned-income condition, and lets each spouse on a joint return qualify separately. Those figures do not apply to a 2026 return.
VeteransApplies statewideUp to $17,500 excluded, or $35,000 with $17,500 of earned income — up to $65,000 from tax year 2027
Read it and check if you qualifyGeorgia HERO Scholarship — Guard and Reserve Combat Service
Up to $2,000 a year for Georgia Guard and Reserve members who served in a combat zone, and for their children and spouses. It expires eight years after they came home.
VeteransApplies statewideUp to $2,000 a year — $1,000 a semester full time
Read it and check if you qualifyFree Disabled Veteran Plates — Two of Them, and Free Decals
Two free plates, free revalidation decals, and an eligibility list that includes being compensated at less than the 100% level.
VeteransApplies statewideTwo free plates and free revalidation decals
Read it and check if you qualifyA Free One-Year Hunting and Fishing Licence, and a Discount if You Are Disabled
A free full-privilege sportsman’s licence for one year, issued once to a veteran discharged on or after 1 July 2005, plus a steeply discounted three-year licence for a permanently and totally disabled resident.
VeteransApplies statewideOne free year of hunting and fishing, then a discount if you are disabled
Read it and check if you qualifyFive or Ten Points — and the Ten Reach Spouses Too
Five points added to a passing civil service examination score — ten if you have a 10% service-connected rating, and the ten replace the five rather than adding to them. The ten-point credit is not confined to the veteran: the state veterans service publishes a disabled veteran over 55, the spouse of a disabled veteran, and the surviving spouse of a deceased veteran as ten-point categories in their own right.
VeteransApplies statewideFive points on a passing examination score, or ten with a 10% rating — and the ten reach some spouses
Read it and check if you qualifyFree Veteran Plates — and the Base Plate Is Only One of Them
One veteran plate with no registration fee, no manufacturing fee and no annual fee — and the gate is being a veteran, not being disabled. It is also not the only free plate. The Department of Revenue issues the commemorative service, military medal award, prisoner of war, retired military, National Guard, reserve component and Gold Star plates on the same terms: no manufacturing fee, no registration fee, no annual fee. The Chosin Reservoir and Pearl Harbor Survivor plates are the exception, at a one-off $25 manufacturing fee with no annual registration fee.
VeteransApplies statewideOne plate free of registration, manufacturing and annual fees — and several other military plates on the same terms
Read it and check if you qualifyVeterans Business Certificate of Exemption — Ten Years, No Local Occupation Tax
A certificate exempting a disabled veteran from any occupation tax, administrative fee or regulatory fee a local government charges for peddling, conducting a business, or practising a profession — for ten years. The gate is a 10% rating.
VeteransApplies statewideTen years free of local occupation tax and of local administrative and regulatory fees
Read it and check if you qualifyGeorgia War Veterans Homes — Two Residency Routes, VA Pays at 70%
Skilled nursing at Milledgeville or Augusta for wartime veterans. A nominal daily fee is charged — and at a 70% service-connected rating, or where admission is for a service-connected condition, the VA pays that fee in full.
VeteransApplies statewideA nominal daily fee — paid in full by the VA at a 70% rating or for a service-connected admission
Read it and check if you qualifyExpedited Licence for Military Spouses — and the Compact Trap
A spouse of an active-duty or transitioning servicemember stationed in Georgia may practise on an out-of-state licence while an expedited endorsement is processed. The fee is still payable, and the route closes where Georgia belongs to an interstate compact for that profession.
Serving membersApplies statewidePractise on your existing out-of-state licence while an expedited endorsement is processed
Read it and check if you qualifyVeterans Memorial Cemeteries — No Charge, Vault Included, Spouse Included
Two state cemeteries, at Glennville and Milledgeville. There is no charge for the gravesite, the vault, the marker or use of the committal chapel — and the department states that no-charge treatment for an eligible veteran or a spouse or eligible family member alike.
VeteransApplies statewideGravesite, vault, marker and use of the committal chapel — no charge for the veteran or for an eligible spouse or family member
Read it and check if you qualifyFree Driver’s Licence — for the Veteran, for a Spouse Who Drives for Them, and for the Guard
A qualified veteran gets a driver’s licence at no cost. So does the spouse of a veteran whose disabilities preclude driving, and an un-remarried surviving spouse. A serving Georgia National Guard member gets one free too, renewable while they serve — and at 20 years it converts to the veteran’s licence.
VeteransApplies statewideNo cost — veteran, honorary spouse and National Guard licences are all issued free
Read it and check if you qualifyNational Guard Service-Cancelable Loan — a Loan That Service Pays Off
A student loan for an active member in good standing of the Georgia National Guard, paid at a per-credit-hour rate set for each institution, up to 120 semester or 180 quarter paid hours. It is cancelled by continued service — which is why the paperwork calls it a loan and the outcome is usually a grant.
VeteransApplies statewideA per-credit-hour award set for your institution, up to 120 semester or 180 quarter paid hours
Read it and check if you qualifyFree Birth, Death, Marriage and Divorce Records for a Federal Claim
Veterans and their families obtain marriage, divorce, birth and death documents without charge where the copies are for establishing a disability or death claim. The published fee schedule quotes $25 for a birth or death certificate and says nothing about the exemption, so it has to be asked for.
VeteransApplies statewide$25 a birth or death certificate, $10 a marriage record, $5 each extra copy — waived for a claim
Read it and check if you qualifyTwenty-Five Percent Off State Park and Historic Site Entrance Fees
A veteran with an honorable discharge and a VA service-connected disability rating gets a 25 percent reduction on entrance fees at state parks and historic sites, claimed through a discount card rather than at the gate.
VeteransApplies statewide25 percent off entrance fees at state parks and historic sites
Read it and check if you qualifyMilitary Funeral Honors — Rendered by the Georgia National Guard, Often on 24 Hours’ Notice
The Georgia National Guard runs a statewide funeral honors programme: two personnel for TAPS, the flag fold and the presentation of the flag to the next of kin, and a detail of seven to nine for full honors. Most requests can be supported within 24 hours, and a request is accepted even when the family cannot yet lay hands on proof of service.
VeteransApplies statewideA two-person detail for TAPS, the flag fold and the flag presentation — seven to nine for full honors
Read it and check if you qualifyBreaking a Lease on Orders — Six Routes Out, and a Cap That Covers Your Family
Georgia lets an active duty service member end a residential lease on 30 days’ written notice through any of six routes, most of them turning on a 35-mile move. A separate section caps the liability of an immediate family member left in the property at 30 days’ rent plus the cost of repairing damage.
Serving membersApplies statewideOut of the lease on 30 days’ notice — and an immediate family member’s liability capped at 30 days’ rent plus damage
Read it and check if you qualifyCancelling the Contracts You Cannot Use — Phone, Gym, Television and Internet
Deployment orders let an active duty service member out of a cell phone contract on 30 days’ notice where the posting is outside the provider’s service area. Since 1 July 2019 the same relief reaches a health spa membership, television, video, audio programming and internet access.
Serving membersApplies statewideOut of a phone, gym, television, audio or internet contract on 30 days’ notice, on deployment orders
Read it and check if you qualifyWhat a Creditor Cannot Take — VA Compensation, Military Retired Pay and Survivor Annuities
The Attorney General publishes the list of funds exempt from garnishment in Georgia, and gives military money a section of its own: veterans benefits including military pensions, retirement pay and disability payments; veterans survivor annuities; and — a Georgia provision with no federal twin — the wages of a service member or their spouse where the creditor is a payday lender.
VeteransApplies statewideVeterans benefits, military retired pay, disability payments and survivor annuities are on the exempt list
Read it and check if you qualifyUtility Bill Discounts — There Is No Veteran Route, and That Is Worth Knowing
Georgia’s regulated utility discounts are real and worth up to $33.50 a month, but every route into them is age, income or programme based. Veteran status, a VA disability rating and a veterans pension appear nowhere in the published criteria for electricity, natural gas or telephone.
VeteransApplies statewideNo veteran discount — but up to $33.50 a month is available on age, income or programme grounds
Read it and check if you qualifyFull-Service Fuel at the Self-Service Price
Where a filling station offers both, an employee must on request pump the fuel for a driver displaying a Disabled Veteran licence plate and charge only the self-service price — provided nobody in the car is able to do it for them.
VeteransApplies statewideFull-service fuel charged at the self-service price, on request
Read it and check if you qualifyVeterans Court Division — Dismissal Is on the Table, but Only Before Judgment
Any Georgia court with jurisdiction over criminal cases may run a veterans court division. The statutory definition of veteran is wide — a former member of the armed forces or of any state’s National Guard, with no combat, discharge or service-period test. Complete the programme before judgment is entered and the prosecuting attorney may dismiss the case; complete it as part of a sentence and the sentence may be reduced or modified instead.
VeteransApplies statewideDismissal by the prosecuting attorney on completion before judgment, or a reduced or modified sentence on completion as part of one
Read it and check if you qualifyWomen Veterans Office — Claims Help, Military Sexual Trauma Counselling, and Court Mentors
The Georgia Department of Veterans Service runs a Women Veterans Office with a full-time advocate. It provides direct assistance filing benefits claims, provides counselling for military sexual trauma, works with the department’s Veterans Field Service Offices to build a support network for veterans who have experienced military sexual trauma, and is charged with mentorship and advocacy for veterans working with Georgia’s veteran treatment courts.
VeteransApplies statewideDirect claims assistance, military sexual trauma counselling, and veteran treatment court mentorship
Read it and check if you qualify
Does my county change the answer?
For the statewide records, no — the same law applies in all 159 counties. What changes is the office you file with and the rate your bill is calculated at, and we do not yet hold Georgia rates.
- Appling County
- Atkinson County
- Bacon County
- Baker County
- Baldwin County
- Banks County
- Barrow County
- Bartow County
- Ben Hill County
- Berrien County
- Bibb County
- Bleckley County
- Brantley County
- Brooks County
- Bryan County
- Bulloch County
- Burke County
- Butts County
- Calhoun County
- Camden County
- Candler County
- Carroll County
- Catoosa County
- Charlton County
- Chatham County
- Chattahoochee County
- Chattooga County
- Cherokee County
- Clarke County
- Clay County
- Clayton County
- Clinch County
- Cobb County
- Coffee County
- Colquitt County
- Columbia County
- Cook County
- Coweta County
- Crawford County
- Crisp County
- Dade County
- Dawson County
- Decatur County
- DeKalb County
- Dodge County
- Dooly County
- Dougherty County
- Douglas County
- Early County
- Echols County
- Effingham County
- Elbert County
- Emanuel County
- Evans County
- Fannin County
- Fayette County
- Floyd County
- Forsyth County
- Franklin County
- Fulton County
- Gilmer County
- Glascock County
- Glynn County
- Gordon County
- Grady County
- Greene County
- Gwinnett County
- Habersham County
- Hall County
- Hancock County
- Haralson County
- Harris County
- Hart County
- Heard County
- Henry County
- Houston County
- Irwin County
- Jackson County
- Jasper County
- Jeff Davis County
- Jefferson County
- Jenkins County
- Johnson County
- Jones County
- Lamar County
- Lanier County
- Laurens County
- Lee County
- Liberty County
- Lincoln County
- Long County
- Lowndes County
- Lumpkin County
- McDuffie County
- McIntosh County
- Macon County
- Madison County
- Marion County
- Meriwether County
- Miller County
- Mitchell County
- Monroe County
- Montgomery County
- Morgan County
- Murray County
- Muscogee County
- Newton County
- Oconee County
- Oglethorpe County
- Paulding County
- Peach County
- Pickens County
- Pierce County
- Pike County
- Polk County
- Pulaski County
- Putnam County
- Quitman County
- Rabun County
- Randolph County
- Richmond County
- Rockdale County
- Schley County
- Screven County
- Seminole County
- Spalding County
- Stephens County
- Stewart County
- Sumter County
- Talbot County
- Taliaferro County
- Tattnall County
- Taylor County
- Telfair County
- Terrell County
- Thomas County
- Tift County
- Toombs County
- Towns County
- Treutlen County
- Troup County
- Turner County
- Twiggs County
- Union County
- Upson County
- Walker County
- Walton County
- Ware County
- Warren County
- Washington County
- Wayne County
- Webster County
- Wheeler County
- White County
- Whitfield County
- Wilcox County
- Wilkes County
- Wilkinson County
- Worth County
Every benefit here was checked against the statute or rule behind it, and each page shows the date. This is an informational match, not a government eligibility determination — the responsible agency decides your application.