State benefits
North Carolina veteran benefits: the certification comes first
North Carolina excludes the first $45,000 of appraised value of a permanent residence for a veteran with a service connected permanent and total disability. It is a cap rather than a full exemption, and the certification has to be completed by a veterans service officer before it reaches the county assessor, by June 1.
North Carolina Department of Military and Veterans Affairs
https://www.milvets.nc.gov/benefits-services/benefits-claims
Published 2026-08-21. North Carolina rules last checked against that state's own government sources on 2026-08-21. Every line below carries the page it came from and the date it was read.
What is different about North Carolina
North Carolina caps the benefit rather than removing the property from the tax base, so the exclusion is worth the same in a modest house as in an expensive one. It reaches two groups a percentage test would miss: veterans receiving benefits under 38 U.S.C. 2101 for specially adapted housing, and the surviving spouse where the death resulted from a service connected condition. And the certification does not start at the tax office. Form NCDVA-9 has to be completed by a veterans service officer first and then filed with the county assessor, which is a two office sequence that catches people who begin at the county.
Where each North Carolina benefit is certified, and by whom
Three separate North Carolina entitlements require a veterans service officer to sign before the administering agency will look at them, and that is the single most useful operational fact on this page. The property tax exclusion needs Form NCDVA-9 completed by a veterans service officer at a state or county veterans service office, then filed with the county tax assessor together with Form AV-9. The disabled veteran plate needs section 6 of Form MVR-33A certified by a county veteran service officer or a state veterans service office before it reaches the Division of Motor Vehicles. The lifetime hunting and fishing license needs Form NCDMVA-50 certified by an accredited veterans service officer.
So a veteran who starts at the county tax office, or at the license plate agency, or at a wildlife license agent, has started in the wrong place on all three. The veterans service office is the first stop, not the second.
The thresholds differ across those three. The property tax exclusion is service connected permanent and total, and it separately reaches a veteran who received benefits under 38 U.S.C. 2101 for specially adapted housing as of January 1 of the tax year, and the surviving spouse where the death resulted from a service connected condition. The plate is a combined 100 percent rating or individual unemployability paid at the 100 percent rate, with a separate partially disabled veteran plate below that. The lifetime license is 50 percent or more.
What the North Carolina package is worth, and where the cap bites
The property tax exclusion is a fixed slice, so its worth is $45,000 multiplied by the combined county and municipal rate. At an illustrative $1.00 per $100 of value that is $450 a year. The important consequence of a cap rather than an exemption is that the benefit does not grow with the house: it is worth the same on a $180,000 home as on a $600,000 one, and on the second of those it is a much smaller share of the bill.
The state parks pass is worth more than most people expect, because North Carolina charges no general park admission and the annual pass therefore buys activities rather than entry. The free veteran pass comes in three tiers whose paid equivalents are $70 a year for reservoirs, $100 for the standard annual pass, and $200 with four wheel drive beach access. The standard pass carries entrance at Falls Lake, Jordan Lake and Kerr Lake, hour long boat rentals for up to four, swim passes for up to six, boat launches at two coastal parks, and ferry tickets. And unusually, the 2024 law that created it states no minimum rating percentage.
The lifetime hunting and inland fishing license is $15.00 plus a $5.00 transaction fee, so $20.00 once, for life. The statutory base price of the resident annual combination license is $35.00 and the adopted rule raised it to $42.00, but the counter price has moved again since, so the honest comparison is that the lifetime license costs less than a single year of the annual one.
The military retirement deduction is the other large line. North Carolina allows a deduction for federal military retirement pay where the member completed at least 20 years in the uniformed services or was medically retired under chapter 61 of title 10, effective for taxable years beginning January 1, 2022, claimed on line 20 of Form D-400 Schedule S.
Every North Carolina entitlement checked so far
Each entry states the rule as the statute or the administering agency states it, with the rating threshold that rule uses. Whether any particular file meets a threshold is a question for the office that grants it.
The state's own page
Everything below is a reading of published North Carolina rules. North Carolina Department of Military and Veterans Affairs is the office that administers them, and its own page is the place to check anything here.
https://www.milvets.nc.gov/benefits-services/benefits-claims
The ones with a filing window
- Disabled Veteran ExclusionJune 1
- Scholarship for Children of Wartime VeteransFebruary 14 for classes II and III. December 1 or June 1 for classes I-A, I-B and IV, with awards made on or about January 1 or July 1 and never retroactively.
Filing windows are set by the office that administers each one, and several of them run on the county assessment calendar rather than the tax year.
Property tax
Disabled Veteran Exclusion
Has to be applied for onceNorth Carolina excludes the first $45,000 of appraised value of the permanent residence of an honorably separated veteran certified by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs as having a service connected, permanent and total disability.
- The statute also reaches a veteran who, as of January 1 of the tax year, received benefits under 38 U.S.C. 2101, and the surviving spouse where the veteran's death resulted from a service connected condition.
- Character of service at separation must have been honorable or under honorable conditions.
- What it is worth
- The tax on $45,000 of appraised value A fixed slice of appraised value rather than a full exemption, so the worth is $45,000 multiplied by the combined county and municipal rate. At an illustrative $1.00 per $100 of value that is $450 a year, and it does not grow with the house.
- Filing window
- June 1
- Administered by
- The county tax assessor, on a certification completed first by a veterans service officer
- How it is claimed
- Form NCDVA-9, completed by a veterans service officer at a state or county veterans service office, then filed with the county tax assessor with Form AV-9 by June 1.
- Rule
- N.C. Gen. Stat. 105-277.1C
NCDVA-9 certification of disabled veteran's for property tax exclusion (North Carolina Department of Revenue). Checked 2026-08-21.
Vehicles and plates
Disabled veteran registration plate
Has to be applied for onceNorth Carolina authorises a disabled veteran plate for a veteran with a 100 percent service connected disability, and a separate partially disabled veteran plate for a service connected disability of less than 100 percent. Neither carries a special plate fee.
- The state department of military and veterans affairs records the 100 percent plate as reaching a combined rating of 100 percent, or individual unemployability paid at the 100 percent rate.
- The Department of Motor Vehicles lists the disabled veteran plate and the disabled veteran motorcycle plate under one free plate per person per year. The partially disabled veteran plate is listed as requiring no additional fee.
- A VA rating or summary of benefits letter dated within a year is required, and section 6 of the application has to be certified by a county veteran service officer or a state veterans service office before it reaches the Department of Motor Vehicles.
- Personalising a military or veteran plate costs $30.00 a year.
- Administered by
- North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles
- How it is claimed
- Form MVR-33A, with section 6 certified by a county veteran service officer, filed with the Division of Motor Vehicles.
- Rule
- N.C. Gen. Stat. 20-79.4 and 20-79.7
Military and veteran license plates (North Carolina Department of Military and Veterans Affairs). Checked 2026-08-21.
Property tax exclusion for an adapted motor vehicle
Has to be applied for onceNorth Carolina excludes from property tax a motor vehicle owned by a disabled veteran that is altered with special equipment to accommodate a service connected disability.
- The statute defines the qualifying case by entitlement to special automotive equipment under 38 U.S.C. 3901.
- Administered by
- The county assessor, on a form published by the Department of Revenue
- How it is claimed
- Form AV-10V, filed with the county assessor.
- Rule
- N.C. Gen. Stat. 105-275(5a)
AV-10V application for motor vehicle exemption (North Carolina Department of Revenue). Checked 2026-08-21.
Licenses and parks
Lifetime combination hunting and inland fishing license
Has to be applied for onceNorth Carolina issues a lifetime combination hunting and inland fishing license to a state resident who is a 50 percent or more disabled veteran as determined by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
- The current application prices it at $15.00 plus a $5.00 transaction fee, so $20.00 once, for life.
- It covers statewide hunting and inland fishing including designated public mountain trout waters, trout waters on game lands and joint waters. It does not cover coastal waters.
- Other lifetime options at the same eligibility are inland fishing only at $15, coastal recreational fishing at $15, sportsman at $131 and sportsman with coastal at $144.
- Certification is by an accredited veterans service officer at the state department of military and veterans affairs.
- What it is worth
- $20 once, against an annual license bought every year The statutory base price of the resident annual combination hunting and inland fishing license is $35.00, and the adopted rule raises it to $42.00. The counter price has moved again since, so the safe comparison is that the lifetime license costs less than one year of the annual one.
- Administered by
- North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission
- How it is claimed
- Form NCDMVA-50, certified by an accredited veterans service officer, then filed with the Wildlife Resources Commission. It is a one time filing rather than an annual one.
- Rule
- N.C. Gen. Stat. 113-270.1C(b)(5)
N.C. Gen. Stat. 113-270.1C, special activity licenses (North Carolina General Assembly). Checked 2026-08-21.
Free state parks annual pass
Has to be applied for onceNorth Carolina provides a free annual pass to a veteran discharged under honorable or honorable conditions who receives disability benefits under federal law or holds a federal certification of a service connected disability. No minimum rating percentage is stated.
- Most North Carolina state parks are free to enter, so the annual pass covers specified activities rather than admission.
- The eligible veteran chooses a tier: the reservoirs pass, the standard annual pass, or the annual pass with four wheel drive beach access.
- What it is worth
- $70, $100 or $200 a year depending on the tier chosen The paid equivalents are $70 a year for reservoirs, $100 for the standard annual pass, and $200 with four wheel drive beach access. The standard pass carries entrance at Falls Lake, Jordan Lake and Kerr Lake, hour long boat rentals for up to four, swim passes for up to six, boat launches at two coastal parks and ferry tickets.
- Administered by
- North Carolina Division of Parks and Recreation
- How it is claimed
- Application to the Division of Parks and Recreation with a VA summary of benefits letter.
- Rule
- North Carolina Session Law 2024-45, section 15
Annual passes (North Carolina Division of Parks and Recreation). Checked 2026-08-21.
Education
Scholarship for Children of Wartime Veterans
Has to be applied for onceNorth Carolina provides a scholarship for a child of a wartime veteran, in five classes keyed to what happened to the veteran, covering tuition and required institutional fees at public institutions and a set allowance at private ones.
- Class I-B covers a child whose veteran parent receives, or received at death, compensation for a wartime service connected disability of 100 percent. It has no numerical limit but it covers tuition and fees only, not room and board.
- Class II covers a child whose veteran parent receives compensation for a wartime service connected disability of 20 percent or more but less than 100 percent, or was awarded a Purple Heart, and is limited to 100 children a year.
- Class III covers a non service connected permanent and total disability pension, or service in a combat zone or campaign carrying a badge or medal, and is likewise limited to 100 children a year.
- The applicant must be under 25 at application and a resident of and domiciled in North Carolina.
- One scholarship per child, for no more than four academic years, which need not be consecutive, within an eight year period from the first award, with a 2.0 cumulative grade point average required.
- What it is worth
- Tuition and required fees at a public institution, with room and board for the classes that carry it At a public institution the classes other than I-B carry tuition, a standard board allowance, a standard room allowance and required institutional fees. Class I-B carries tuition and fees only. At a private institution the allowance is set annually by the Director of the Budget, and the published synopsis figures date from 2021 rather than the current year.
- Filing window
- February 14 for classes II and III. December 1 or June 1 for classes I-A, I-B and IV, with awards made on or about January 1 or July 1 and never retroactively.
- Administered by
- The Veterans' Affairs Commission selects; the state department of military and veterans affairs administers; the State Education Assistance Authority disburses
- How it is claimed
- Application through the state department of military and veterans affairs.
- Rule
- N.C. Gen. Stat. 143B-1224 to 143B-1227
N.C. Gen. Stat. 143B-1225, scholarships for children of wartime veterans (North Carolina General Assembly). Checked 2026-08-21.
State income tax
Military retirement deduction
Applies without a filingNorth Carolina allows a deduction for military retirement pay from the federal government where the member completed at least 20 years of service in the uniformed services, or was medically retired under chapter 61 of title 10, effective for taxable years beginning January 1, 2022.
- A beneficiary of an eligible retired member may also deduct Survivor Benefit Plan payments.
- An amount deducted under this provision cannot also be deducted under the Bailey provision.
- Administered by
- North Carolina Department of Revenue
- How it is claimed
- Line 20 of Form D-400 Schedule S, with the Form 1099-R or W-2 attached.
- Rule
- N.C. Gen. Stat. 105-153.5(b)(5a)
Military retirement (North Carolina Department of Revenue). Checked 2026-08-21.
Filter this by rating band
The finder takes a rating band and lists only the North Carolina entitlements whose published threshold that band reaches, with a version laid out for printing and carrying to a county office.
Questions
Is the North Carolina exclusion a full exemption?
No. It excludes the first $45,000 of appraised value of the permanent residence. Value above that stays taxable, so the benefit is worth the same in a modest house as in an expensive one.
Where does the North Carolina application start?
At a veterans service office. Form NCDVA-9 has to be completed by a veterans service officer before it is filed with the county tax assessor, together with Form AV-9, by June 1.
When are the wartime veterans scholarship deadlines?
February 14 for classes II and III. December 1 or June 1 for classes I-A, I-B and IV, with awards made on or about January 1 or July 1. Awards are not retroactive.
Does the free state parks pass need a particular rating?
The 2024 session law states no minimum percentage. It reaches a veteran discharged under honorable or honorable conditions who receives disability benefits under federal law or holds a federal certification of a service connected disability.
Sources
- NCDVA-9 certification of disabled veteran's for property tax exclusion, retrieved 2026-08-21 (North Carolina Department of Revenue)
- AV-10V application for motor vehicle exemption, retrieved 2026-08-21 (North Carolina Department of Revenue)
- Military and veteran license plates, retrieved 2026-08-21 (North Carolina Department of Military and Veterans Affairs)
- N.C. Gen. Stat. 113-270.1C, special activity licenses, retrieved 2026-08-21 (North Carolina General Assembly)
- Annual passes, retrieved 2026-08-21 (North Carolina Division of Parks and Recreation)
- N.C. Gen. Stat. 143B-1225, scholarships for children of wartime veterans, retrieved 2026-08-21 (North Carolina General Assembly)
- Military retirement, retrieved 2026-08-21 (North Carolina Department of Revenue)
Accuracy owner Brayden Marley. State entitlement thresholds move on state fiscal calendars, so this page is re-read against its sources every quarter and the date beside each line is the date that line was last read.