New Jersey veteran benefits
- Verified veteran benefits
- 15
- plus 5 general-law and correction records
- Counties covered
- 21
- every one has its own page
- Veterans in this state
- 0.28M
- 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 letter that shows the finding
A VA Benefit Summary Letter configured to show service connection and permanence satisfies most offices without disclosing any diagnosis.
File before the deadline
The deadline for the main property tax relief is: No fixed deadline. File with your local tax assessor.
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?
Read the record for the test that actually applies in New Jersey — several reliefs across this corpus turn on the words on your VA letter rather than on the number.
33 benefits worth checking
What you appear to qualify for — worth checking.
One question checks 27 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.
Free Hunting and Fishing for Serving Guard Members — but Not From the Usual Counter
An active New Jersey National Guard member in good standing gets free sporting licences. The practical detail that decides whether you actually get them is where you go: THEY ARE OBTAINED THROUGH DMAVA, NOT THROUGH STANDARD LICENCE SALES. A Guard member walking into a licence agent or using the online system will simply be charged. Go through the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs instead.
VeteransApplies statewideFree hunting and fishing licences for serving Guard members
Read it and check if you qualifyThe Veteran Marker on Your Licence — and What It Is Not Good For
New Jersey will put a veteran designation on a driver licence or non-driver ID for anyone honorably discharged from active service, proved by a DD-214 or federal activation orders under 10 U.S.C. 672 or 12301. Read the limitation carefully, because New Jersey states it plainly and most states do not: THE MARKER IS NOT VALID PROOF OF VETERAN STATUS WHERE A STATUTE REQUIRES DOCUMENTATION. It is convenient at a shop counter and it will not do for a property tax deduction or a licence application. Keep the DD-214 for those. The fee is not published.
VeteransApplies statewideVeteran designation on a New Jersey licence or non-driver ID
Read it and check if you qualifyNo Sales Tax on the Part of the Car the VA Pays For
Where the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs or the New Jersey Department of Veterans Affairs provides funds toward a disabled veteran's vehicle purchase, New Jersey does not charge sales tax on THOSE AMOUNTS. What it does charge on is the rest: money you put in yourself remains taxable. So on a car part-funded by a VA automobile grant, the tax is calculated on the balance, not on the whole price — which is a real saving and a common surprise at the dealership if nobody raised it beforehand.
VeteransApplies statewideSales tax not charged on the VA- or NJDVA-funded portion of the purchase
Read it and check if you qualifyFifty-One Licensing Boards, and Someone Whose Job Is to Help You Through Them
New Jersey's 51 professional and occupational boards, all under the Division of Consumer Affairs, must facilitate recognition of military training, education and experience toward licensure. The part that is genuinely unusual is the support: DCA provides DEDICATED ONE-TO-ONE APPLICATION HELP for service members, veterans and spouses, at DCAMilitary@dca.njoag.gov or 973-504-6210. A named contact who deals with this every day is worth more than the statutory duty on its own, because the duty is where most states stop.
Licensed professionalsApplies statewideMilitary training recognised toward licensure, with one-to-one application support
Read it and check if you qualifyFree Undergraduate Tuition for the Children of POWs and the Missing
New Jersey pays free undergraduate tuition at a public OR PRIVATE institution for the child of a servicemember officially declared a prisoner of war or missing in action after 1 January 1960. The private-institution half is unusual — most state tuition benefits stop at public colleges, and this one does not. The residency test is not established from the sources reviewed, so ask the Veterans Benefits Bureau rather than assuming you are outside it.
StudentsApplies statewideFree undergraduate tuition at a New Jersey public or private institution
Read it and check if you qualifyOperation Recognition — Reaching Back as Far as the First World War
New Jersey awards a state-endorsed high school diploma to honorably discharged veterans of WWI, WWII, the Korean conflict or the Vietnam conflict who left a New Jersey high school before graduating in order to serve. The WWI inclusion is now historical, but it tells you how the statute was written: this is one of the widest windows in the corpus. Attendance at a New Jersey high school is the residency test. Awarded by the Department of Education with DMAVA's Veterans Benefits Bureau.
VeteransApplies statewideA state-endorsed high school diploma
Read it and check if you qualifyOne Licence, Every Town — the Veteran's Statewide Peddler Licence
An honorably discharged New Jersey veteran can hold a peddler licence that is good STATEWIDE and is EXEMPT FROM APPLYING FOR A MUNICIPAL LICENCE. In a state of 564 municipalities, that is the whole value: an ordinary peddler applies town by town. Apply to the county clerk with a WD Form 93 or DD-214, which is forwarded to the state Department of Veterans Affairs for verification. Other municipal ordinance provisions — where and when you may trade — still apply; it is the licensing requirement that is lifted, not the local rules.
VeteransApplies statewideA statewide right to hawk, peddle and vend, with no municipal licence needed
Read it and check if you qualifyNew Jersey Taxes No Military Pension — at Any Age
Military retirement pay and survivor benefit payments are fully excluded from New Jersey gross income tax. There is NO AGE THRESHOLD and no disability requirement, which distinguishes it from New Jersey's ordinary pension exclusion — a 42-year-old retiree gets the same treatment as a 72-year-old. Survivor benefit payments are covered in their own right. One line to watch: a FEDERAL CIVIL-SERVICE PENSION based on military service credit is NOT exempt, so a veteran who went on to a federal civilian career should separate the two.
VeteransApplies statewideMilitary pension and survivor benefit payments fully excluded from New Jersey income
Read it and check if you qualify$400 a Year for Vietnam-Era Veterans — and Three Ways to Prove Residency
New Jersey pays up to $400 a year toward tuition for a veteran who served on active duty between 31 DECEMBER 1960 AND 7 MAY 1975 and is eligible for federal educational assistance. Half-time study pays $200. It goes to the institution and cannot exceed the tuition charged. The residency test has THREE alternative routes: New Jersey legal residence at induction, OR at discharge, OR for at least one year before applying, not counting active duty time — so someone who has only recently returned to the state can still meet it. Deadlines are 1 October for the fall term and 1 March for spring.
StudentsApplies statewide$400 a year full-time, $200 half-time, paid to the institution
Read it and check if you qualifyVeteran-Owned Business Certification — a Listing, Not a Set-Aside
New Jersey certifies Veteran-Owned Business Enterprises: a business with its principal place of business in New Jersey, independently owned and operated, at least 51% owned and controlled by one or more veterans. Be clear about what it buys. NO SET-ASIDE PERCENTAGE ATTACHES TO VOBE — the 3% state contracting set-aside is for DISABLED veteran-owned businesses (DVOBE) only. What VOBE gives you is certification and a place on the state registry, which agencies and prime contractors search. That is worth having; it is not the same thing as reserved work.
Veteran business ownersApplies statewideState VOBE certification and a listing on the registry
Read it and check if you qualifyFree Counselling for Gold Star Families — Paid for by a Credit to the Therapist
New Jersey provides mental health counselling to the families of members of the armed forces or National Guard who died while on active duty, through professionals linked to the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs. The funding mechanism is unusual and worth understanding: the professional donates the time and takes A STATE TAX CREDIT for it. That means the counselling is free to the family and that availability depends on how many professionals have signed up in your area — so ask DMAVA who is participating rather than searching on your own.
VeteransApplies statewideMental health counselling at no cost to the family
Read it and check if you qualifySkip the CDL Road Test — Your Military Driving Counts for Twelve Months
New Jersey waives the CDL behind-the-wheel skills examination for an active, reserve or veteran applicant who served WITHIN THE LAST 12 MONTHS in a military post requiring the operation of a vehicle equivalent to a commercial motor vehicle. A commanding-officer certification is required, which is worth getting BEFORE you separate — chasing a signature from a unit you have left is the part that goes wrong. You need a valid New Jersey driver licence to apply.
VeteransApplies statewideThe CDL behind-the-wheel skills examination waived
Read it and check if you qualifyFull Property Tax Exemption for 100% Disabled Veterans — and Their Surviving Spouses
The dwelling and its lot come off the roll entirely — one of only a handful of true total exemptions in this corpus. It does not end with the veteran: an unremarried surviving spouse, civil union partner or domestic partner of an honorably discharged veteran who was 100% permanently and totally disabled during active duty service qualifies for the same full exemption.
VeteransApplies statewide100% of your property tax bill
Read it and check if you qualifyThe Wounded Warrior Caregivers Credit — $675 a Year for Looking After a Relative
New Jersey pays an income tax credit to a family caregiver of a relative whose disability arises from service in any war or conflict ON OR AFTER 11 SEPTEMBER 2001. The credit is the lesser of 100% of the federal veteran disability compensation or $675 a year, and it is APPORTIONED where more than one person cares for the same veteran. Income caps: $100,000 filing jointly, head of household or qualifying widow(er); $50,000 single or married filing separately. Claimed on Schedule NJ-WWC or Form NJ-1040-HW.
VeteransApplies statewideThe lesser of 100% of the federal disability compensation or $675 a year
Read it and check if you qualifyThe $6,000 Veteran Income Tax Exemption
A flat $6,000 exemption for any veteran discharged honorably, or released under honorable circumstances, from active duty on or before the last day of the tax year. It is not a pension exclusion and does not require military retired pay. A spouse or civil union partner who independently qualifies may claim their own $6,000 on a joint return. It does not pass to a surviving spouse, except in the year of death on a joint return.
VeteransApplies statewide$6,000 off your New Jersey taxable income
Read it and check if you qualifyWar Orphans Tuition Assistance
$500 a year for four years — modest money, and a window that closes at 21.
VeteransApplies statewide$500 a year, for four years of college or equivalent training
Read it and check if you qualifyFree Hunting and Fishing Licences
A service-connected disability of any degree — there is no percentage — makes every licence, stamp and permit you are eligible for free.
VeteransApplies statewideEvery licence, stamp and permit you are eligible for, free
Read it and check if you qualifyAbsolute Veterans Preference in Civil Service
Pass the examination and you rank above every non-veteran on the list, whatever their score — disabled veterans first, then veterans, then everyone else.
VeteransApplies statewideTop of the eligible list, above every non-veteran, whatever their score
Read it and check if you qualifyDisabled Vet Plates and Placard — 24-Hour Meter Exemption, Any Rating
Any honorably discharged veteran the VA has declared service-connected disabled — at any rating — may carry "Disabled Vet" plates ($15 on top of ordinary registration) and the free MVC placard that exempts the vehicle from municipal parking meter fees for up to 24 hours.
VeteransApplies statewide"Disabled Vet" plates for $15 plus ordinary registration fees; placard with a 24-hour municipal parking meter exemption
Read it and check if you qualifyThe Three New Jersey Veterans Memorial Homes
Round-the-clock nursing care at Paramus, Menlo Park and Vineland — for veterans discharged from war or peacetime service, their spouses, and Gold Star parents. Residents pay according to income.
VeteransApplies statewideNursing care across 948 beds statewide, charged on ability to pay
Read it and check if you qualifyA 3% Set-Aside of State Contracting for Disabled Veteran Owned Businesses
New Jersey reserves three percent of state contracting for disabled veteran owned businesses. Certification is free through the Treasury’s registry, and a federally verified SDVOSB can come in on that verification.
VeteransApplies statewideA three percent share of state contracting, reserved
Read it and check if you qualifyBurial at the Brigadier General William C. Doyle Veterans Memorial Cemetery
The state buries an eligible veteran, their spouse and their dependent children at no cost — the grave, the state-provided liner and the interment included.
VeteransApplies statewideThe grave, the state-provided liner and the interment, at no cost to the family
Read it and check if you qualifyBringing Veterans Home — the State’s Route Out of Veteran Homelessness
Street outreach, diversion, emergency shelter, housing navigation and rapid rehousing, run jointly by the housing department and the veterans department, with a self-referral route you can use yourself.
VeteransApplies statewideCoordinated housing help rather than a payment
Read it and check if you qualifyNew Jersey National Guard Free Tuition — 16 Credits a Semester
A member of the New Jersey National Guard may attend any New Jersey public college or university tuition free, undergraduate or graduate, up to 16 credits a semester.
VeteransApplies statewideTuition free for up to 16 credits a semester at a New Jersey public college or university
Read it and check if you qualifyCatastrophic Entitlement — $150 a Month, and It Survives You
A monthly $150 state payment for a wartime service-connected disability on a closed list of seven catastrophic conditions. The surviving spouse continues to receive it.
VeteransApplies statewide$150 a month — $1,800 a year — and it continues to the surviving spouse
Read it and check if you qualifyState PTSD and Readjustment Counselling — Family Included
New Jersey runs its own counselling service for combat veterans of all war periods, from individual and group counselling through biofeedback to medication monitoring — and it treats the family too.
VeteransApplies statewideState clinical counselling for the veteran and the family — no cost figure is published
Read it and check if you qualifyVeterans Haven — Two Years of Transitional Housing
A two-year transitional housing programme for homeless New Jersey veterans, run by the State at Glen Gardner in the north and a second site in the south. Admission requires being drug and alcohol free on the day.
VeteransApplies statewideUp to two years of transitional housing and support, aimed at a permanent solution
Read it and check if you qualify$250 Off the Property Tax Bill Every Year — No Disability Needed
An annual $250 property tax deduction for an honourably discharged veteran with active duty service who owns a New Jersey home, and for an unremarried surviving spouse — tested as of 1 October of the pretax year.
VeteransApplies statewide$250 off the property tax bill, every year
Read it and check if you qualifyMilitary Funeral Honours — Requested Through the Funeral Director
An honourably discharged veteran is entitled to a detail, Taps, the folding of the flag and its presentation to the next of kin. A retiree gets a nine-soldier detail with a firing party. The department itself renders none of it.
VeteransApplies statewideA detail, Taps, the flag folded and presented — more if the veteran retired
Read it and check if you qualifyRefused a Job or a Flat Because You Might Be Called Up — That Is Illegal Here
The New Jersey Law Against Discrimination protects people with liability for service in the Armed Forces. An employer may not refuse to hire or promote you because you may be called to duty, and a landlord may not refuse you housing for the same reason.
VeteransApplies statewideA protected characteristic in employment, housing and public accommodation
Read it and check if you qualifyGetting to the VA Without a Car — the County Transport Directory
The state veterans department publishes a Veterans Transportation Guide naming, county by county, the unit that carries veterans to medical appointments, its reservation and cancellation numbers, whether it takes wheelchair users, and whether a caregiver may ride.
VeteransApplies statewideA named county transport unit, with its booking number and its wheelchair and escort policy
Read it and check if you qualifyThe Veterans Diversion Program — a Route Out Before the Court Route
Created by P.L. 2017, c. 042, the Veterans Diversion Program lets a servicemember who is a veteran and alleged to have committed an eligible offence be assisted, with a volunteer mentor, in resolving the problems that led to the involvement with the criminal justice system.
VeteransApplies statewideDiversion with a volunteer veteran mentor, for an eligible offence
Read it and check if you qualifyOffice of Women Veterans — the State Says It Makes No Distinction
New Jersey states plainly that the benefits on its veterans department site apply to all veterans and make no distinction between men and women, and refers gender-specific needs to the federal VA. What the state adds is outreach and women veterans service officers.
VeteransApplies statewideOutreach and women veterans service officers — the benefits themselves are not gendered
Read it and check if you qualify
Does my county change the answer?
For the statewide records, no — the same law applies in all 21 counties. What changes is the office you file with and the rate your bill is calculated at, and we do not yet hold New Jersey rates.
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.