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Five 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.

Verified August 27, 2026

What this benefit is

What it's worth: Five points on a passing examination score, or ten with a 10% rating — and the ten reach some spouses

Points are added to a PASSING score. The preference does not lower the pass mark — it moves your rank on the eligible list, not your eligibility.
The state veterans service lists as ten-point categories: a veteran with a service-connected disability rated at 10% or more, a disabled veteran over 55, the spouse of a disabled veteran, and the surviving spouse of a deceased veteran.
The ten points replace the five rather than adding to them, so no one receives fifteen.

Who is entitled to it

You were honorably discharged.
You have a service-connected disability of at least 10% — this is the ten-point route.
You served during a period of armed conflict.
You served more than 180 days on active duty.

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

1Claim the preference on the application itself — it is not applied automatically from your record.
2If you have a rating of 10% or more, claim the ten-point route rather than the five. They do not combine, and the ten-point one is the better of the two.
3Attach the DD214 for the service route, and a VA letter showing the rating for the disability route.

File with: The hiring agency, with your application
Documents you will need: dd214 · va benefit summary letter
No renewal: Once granted it does not need renewing.

CorrectionThe ten points REPLACE the five — the statute says the preference is in lieu of and not in addition to any other similar preference. A disabled veteran scores ten, not fifteen, and guidance that lists the two preferences separately invites the wrong sum.

Worth knowingThe threshold for the ten points is 10%, which is low enough that most rated veterans clear it. It is claimed far less often than that suggests, because veterans assume a disability preference must ask for more.

Worth knowingThe 180-day floor on the service route is waived for National Guard and reserve members who served any length of time in the designated Persian Gulf areas during Operation Desert Shield or Desert Storm. We do not model that waiver above because we hold no question for those deployments.

Worth knowingThe State Personnel Board's rule reaches categories the two code sections do not name: veterans over 55 entitled to pension or compensation for a disability whether or not service-connected, spouses of disabled veterans who are themselves disqualified by the disability, and unmarried widows and widowers of veterans of any period of armed conflict. If you are in one of those groups, apply on the rule.

Known gapPoints attach to a competitive civil service examination. Where a Georgia employer hires without one, we could not read what the preference does instead, and we do not assume it does nothing.

Sources

authority · published policyGeorgia Department of Veterans Service — Employment Preference (Other Special State Provisions), on O.C.G.A. §45-2-21 and §45-2-22
operating · published policyGeorgia State Personnel Board Rule 478-1-.18, Veterans’ Preference

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