• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Parman & Easterday

Oklahoma Estate Planning Attorneys

Call Now: (405) 843-6100
(913) 385-9400

Attend a Webinar - OK Attend a Webinar - KS/MO
  • Home
  • Our Firm
    • About Our Firm
    • Attorney and Staff Profiles
    • What Our Clients Say
  • Estate Planning
    • Asset Protection
    • Estate and Gift Tax Figures
    • Estate Planning Services
    • Family-Owned Businesses & Farms
    • Financial Planning Assistance
    • IRA and Retirement Planning
    • Legacy Planning
    • LGBTQ Estate Planning
    • Pet Planning
    • Powers of Attorney
    • Probate
    • SECURE Act
    • Special Needs Planning
    • Trust Administration and Probate
    • Young Families
  • Elder Law
    • Coping With Alzheimer’s
    • Elder Law
    • Emergency Medicaid
    • Guardianship & Conservatorship
    • Hospice Care
    • Medicaid Planning
    • Veteran’s Benefits
  • Resources
    • Asset Protection Worksheet
    • DocuBank
    • Elder Law
      • Elder Law & Medicaid Definitions
      • Elder Law Reports
      • Elder Law Resources
        • Edmond Elder Law
        • Oklahoma City Elder Law
        • Overland Park Elder Law
        • Yukon Elder Law
      • Medicaid
      • Nursing Home Resources
    • Estate Planning
      • Estate Planning Checkup
      • Estate Planning Definitions
      • Estate Planning Reports
        • Advanced Estate Planning
        • Basic Estate Planning
        • Estate Planning for Niches
        • Trust Administration
      • Incapacity Planning Definitions
      • Is Your Estate Plan Outdated?
      • Top 10 Estate and Legacy Planning Techniques
    • Free Estate Planning Worksheet
    • Free Seminars
    • Frequently Asked Questions
      • Estate Planning
      • Elder Law
      • Frequently Asked Questions for Families Without an Estate Plan
      • Legacy Wealth Planning
      • LGBTQ Estate Planning
      • Probate
      • Trust Administration
      • Trust Administration & Probate
      • Wills and Trusts
    • Newsletters
    • Probate and Trust Administration
      • Bereavement Resources
      • How to Know if You Need Extra Help With Your Grieving
      • Loss of a Loved One
      • Probate Checklist
      • The Mourner’s Bill of Rights
      • Things You Need To Do When a Loved One Passes Away With a Trust
      • Things You Need To Do When a Loved One Passes Away With a Will
      • Trust Administration & Probate Definitions
    • Probate Resources
      • Leawood Probate
      • Midwest City Probate
      • Moore Probate
      • Oklahoma City Probate
      • Overland Park Probate
    • Published Books
    • Pre Consultation Form
  • Communities We Serve
    • Kansas
      • Johnson County
        • Fairway
        • Mission
        • Overland Park
        • Prairie Village
        • Shawnee
      • Wyandotte County
    • Oklahoma
      • Edmond
      • Midwest City
      • Moore
      • Norman
      • Oklahoma City
      • Yukon
  • Reviews
    • Our Reviews
    • Review Us
  • BLOG
  • Contact Us
Home » Veterans » Wartime Veterans Pension Will Rise in 2021

Wartime Veterans Pension Will Rise in 2021

January 7, 2021 by Larry Parman, Attorney at Law

Veterans PensionPeople who have served in the military can take advantage of a retirement pension earned after 20 years of service. This benefit can provide a comfortable retirement, and there are two different approaches that can be taken.

Since most people join the military when quite young, a service member could retire after 20 years of service and embark on a second career in the private sector, receiving his or her military pension during that time.  A retired veteran could save the pension for the future and live on current wages or salary.

When retired veterans put their working years behind them, they would qualify for Social Security benefits as well as the military pensions, and should have nice 401(k) nest eggs waiting for them.

The other possibility is the careerist approach. Members might stay in the service until they are eligible to receive full Social Security benefits. Pension benefits are commensurate with years of service, so a person who retires after 40 years  of service would get a significantly higher pension than someone who moves on after 20 years.

Wartime Veterans Pension

The retirement pension is not the only pension available to veterans.  The Veterans Pension is a program that can provide monthly income to veterans who served during wartime.

This benefit is often overlooked, because the length of service requirement is surprisingly modest.

For veterans who began active duty before September 8, 1980, the requirement is 90 days with a single day of wartime service. The requirement for people who joined on or after this date is 24 months or the full period of enlistment .

This benefit may be available to veterans who are 65 years of age or older, and totally and permanently disabled veterans of any age.

There is also a financial need requirement. Prior to 2018, decisions were made on a case-by-case basis and there was no etched in stone asset limit. During 2018, legislation was passed that changed the playing field.

there is a limit tied to the amount of the Medicaid Community Spouse Resource Allowance. This is an allowance that gives a healthy spouse the ability to keep half of the shared assets when the institutionalized spouse is applying for Medicaid to pay for nursing home care.

In 2020, the limit was just over $129,000 of combined assets and income. The Veterans Administration has not published the 2021 number at the time of this writing, but there will be a slight increase.

We should point out that a home and one motor vehicle are not counted when administrators  determine an applicant’s eligibility. Household belongings and personal effects are exempt, as well.

There are three different Veterans Pension designations: (1) the standard pension, (2) Aid and Attendance (for veterans who need help with activities of daily living), and (3) the Housebound pension.

Cost-of-Living Adjustment

A veteran who is eligible for the standard benefit can receive as much as $13,752 in 2020. The amount for a veteran eligible for Aid and Attendance is $22,939, and the maximum annual benefit for a veteran eligible for the Housebound benefit is $16,805 for 2020.

Annual cost-of-living adjustments increase the monthly benefit received by Veteran Pension beneficiaries. This is based on the Social Security cost-of-living adjustment rate, which  calculates the appropriate increases. The increase for 2021 will be 1.3 percent.

Three-Year Look Back Period

The bill that established this hard asset and income limit also established a three-year look back period. Prior to this change, veterans could make gifts to family members to reduce their countable assets and then qualify for benefits. Now, gift giving must be completed at least three years before the application for pension is submitted or a penalty will be accrued.

Access Our Estate Planning Worksheet

We update this blog regularly, and have other written materials on our site you can access free of charge.

One of these is our estate planning worksheet.  This resource has been carefully prepared to give you a better understanding of the estate planning process.  Please take the time to go through it by getting your own copy right now at our worksheet access page.

Need Help Now?

If you have learned enough to feel it is time to work with an attorney and to put your estate plan in place, we are here to help. You can schedule a consultation at our Oklahoma City location by calling 405-843-6100, or at our Overland Park, Kansas office by calling 913-385-9400.  You can also use our contact form if you would like to send us a message.

 

 

  • Author
  • Recent Posts
Larry Parman, Attorney at Law
Latest posts by Larry Parman, Attorney at Law (see all)
  • New Year’s Resolution: Schedule an Estate Plan Review - January 19, 2021
  • 2021 Estate Tax Exclusion Update - January 14, 2021
  • Preparing for the Unexpected…and the Eventual - January 13, 2021

Filed Under: Veterans Tagged With: Aid and Attendance pension, Veterans Pension

Other Articles You May Find Useful

Veterans Pension
Veterans Pension Can Give Seniors a Boost
Oklahoma City veterans benefits attorney
Are You Entitled to Veterans Benefits?
Oklahoma City veterans benefits lawyer
How Does a Veteran Qualify for Aid & Attendance?
Veterans Aid and Attendance
What Is the Aid and Attendance Benefit for Veterans?
Parman & Easterday
What Is a Payable on Death Account?

Primary Sidebar

Parman & Easterday, LLP

DOWNLOAD OUR FREE ESTATE PLANNING CHECKLIST

There's a lot that goes into setting up a comprehensive estate plan, but with our FREE worksheet, you'll be one step closer to getting yourself and your family on the path to a secure and happy future.

Subscribe to Our Blog

Upcoming Seminars

    To be notified of our upcoming Seminars please fill out this form!
See all seminars

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Where We Are

Parman & Easterday
parman_sidbr_map

Where We Are

Parman & Easterday
parman_sidbr1_map

Office Hours

Monday9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday9:00 AM - 5:00 PM

Footer

footer-logo

The information on this Oklahoma Attorneys & Lawyers / Law Firm website is for general information purposes only. Nothing on this or associated pages, documents, comments, answers, emails, or other communications should be taken as legal advice for any individual case or situation. This information on this website is not intended to create, and receipt or viewing of this information does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship.

Privacy Policy | Contact Us | Disclaimer | Site Map | Powered by American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys


© 2021 American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube