licenses & feesstate

The Word VETERAN on Your Licence — and the County Office That Gets Told

An honourably discharged veteran may ask for the word VETERAN to be marked prominently on the face of an Iowa driver's licence. Two things about it are rarely mentioned: a Guard or Reserve applicant going straight to the department must show 90 days aggregate active duty for other than training, and where the licence is issued on a DD214 the department must notify your county commission of veteran affairs, which is then required to make contact with you.

Verified August 23, 2026

What this benefit is

What it's worth: VETERAN printed on the face of the licence

The statute sets no separate charge for the marking. What it does not do is make the licence itself free, so a request made outside a renewal cycle is likely to attract the ordinary duplicate-licence charge.
The marking is proof of status at a counter. It is not proof of a disability rating, and no discount in this state is keyed to it.

Who is entitled to it

You served.
The subsection is written around an honourably discharged veteran.
You are in this state.

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

1Decide which of the two routes is yours before you go. Rule 761—605 lets you either present a DD214 showing an honourable discharge, or hand in Form 432035 completed by you and by a designee of the Iowa department of veterans affairs.
2Guard and Reserve service has an extra hurdle on the direct route. A licensee who was a member of the national guard or reserve forces and applies directly to the department must present a DD214 showing an honourable discharge after at least a minimum aggregate 90 days of active duty service for purposes other than training.
3If your discharge document is not a DD214, the direct route is closed and Form 432035 is the route. The rule sends that eligibility question to a designee of the veterans department to decide.
4Know that the county gets told. Where the licence is issued on a DD214 presented at the counter, §321.189(8) requires the department to notify the commission of veteran affairs for your county of residence, and the commission must then initiate contact with you. Some veterans want that call; some are surprised by it. It is in the statute either way.
5Take the free county route to your DD214 if you cannot find yours. Many Iowa veterans recorded the discharge with the county recorder at separation and can get a certified copy the same day.

Form: Form 432035 where the veterans department must certify; otherwise a DD214 presented at the counter
File with: Motor Vehicle Division, driver's licence service centre or county treasurer issuance site
Documents you will need: dd214
At each renewal: Claimed again whenever the underlying licence or registration renews.

Worth knowingThe rule and the statute do not describe the Guard and Reserve position identically. The statute speaks of an honourably discharged veteran; the rule adds the 90-day aggregate active duty test for other than training on the direct route, and routes everything else through the veterans department. Plan around the rule, because that is what the counter applies.

Worth knowingThe notification duty is a privacy fact worth knowing in advance rather than after the phone rings. It is not optional for the department and it is not optional for the commission.

Sources

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