Other Funeral Benefit Grant for a Deceased Veteran or Member

Eligibility for other funeral benefit grant    

A funeral benefit may be paid in respect of the funeral of a deceased veteran or member of the Forces:

• whose death occurred in one of the following situations:

  • in an institution where he or she was receiving treatment,

  • while travelling to or from an institution where he or she was receiving treatment,

  • after being discharged from an institution where he or she was receiving treatment for a terminal illness, or

  • while receiving treatment for a terminal illness at his or her home instead of in an institution, or

• who served before 1 July 2004 and whose death was war-caused or defence-caused.

What is Terminal Illness?

For the purpose of a VEA funeral benefit, a terminal illness can be defined as a condition or disease that cannot be cured or adequately treated that is reasonably expected to result in the person's death within a relatively short period of time. The admission, travel, discharge or treatment must have been approved by the Repatriation Commission or the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Commission. This includes services provided under a Veteran Card for all Conditions (Gold Card) or a Veteran Card for Specific Conditions (White Card).

What is Treatment?

For the purpose of a VEA funeral benefit, Treatment can be defined as "the provision of accommodation, medical procedures, nursing care, social or domestic assistance, transport or other action taken to attempt to restore health or alleviate suffering." Where subparagraphs 99(1)(e)(i)-(iv) and subsection 99(3) apply, a person can be eligible for a funeral benefit where they were receiving treatment arranged by the Commission. This can be read to include treatment approvals administered by way of a DVA Veteran Card (either Gold Card or White Card).

What is an Institution?

Under VEA section 94, it states that for the purposes of Part VI, a reference to a hospital or other institution can be read as "a reference to a home, a hostel, a medical centre, an out-patient clinic, and a rehabilitation or training establishment". For the purpose of funeral benefits, this can include a nursing home, also known as an aged care home, among other institutions under Part VI of the VEA. The institution requirement, to be satisfied under paragraph 99 (1)(e) and subsection 99 (3), should be applied in a beneficial manner and not restrictively to VEA funeral benefit claims.

Clients with dual veteran/dependant status    

The eligibility for funeral benefit for clients who have veteran status, and who are also dependants of deceased veterans, should be assessed under sections 99 and 100 of the VEA which both provide for payment. However, it must be noted that these provisions apply independently, requiring the person to establish their eligibility for funeral benefit, either by meeting the specific requirements as a veteran or member of the Forces in section 99, or the different requirements as the dependent of a deceased veteran of member of the Forces in section 100. The circumstances of the client cannot be applied simultaneously to both eligibility tests.

For the operation of section 99 funeral benefits for a client with dual veteran/dependant status (e.g. war widow who is also an eligible veteran in their own right) it is only necessary for that veteran (who may have either a White Card or Gold Card) to have been in an institution for the purposes of treatment arranged by the Commission when they died. Paragraphs 99 (1)(e) and 99(3)(b), which are read together, do not state or imply that the treatment must be for a specific condition that related to their war or defence service. Merely that the veteran "had treatment" under DVA health care arrangements through the VEA and died in an institution would be sufficient to satisfy these provisions.

Posthumous eligibility for other funeral benefit grant    

A funeral benefit may also be paid in respect of the funeral of a deceased veteran or member of the Forces who was posthumously:

• granted (or became eligible for) an increased rate of Disability Compensation Payment at the:

  • extreme disablement adjustment rate;

  • Special Rate; or

  • the specific disability allowance (items 1-8 only), or

• was a prisoner of war before 1 July 2004.

Who is ineligible for other funeral benefit grant? 

The VEA precludes payment of any other funeral benefit in respect of a deceased veteran if an automatic grant of funeral benefit has already been made in respect of that veteran.

Amount payable for other funeral benefit

The amount of funeral benefit paid is the lesser of:

• A maximum amount of $2,000, or
• an amount equal to the amount paid or payable for the funeral of the deceased veteran or member of the Forces.

Note: Where the dependant contributed to a funeral benefit fund, the amount paid or payable for the funeral is reduced by the amount of benefit payable from the fund.

Additional amount payable for transportation of the body

When an eligible veteran or member of the Forces dies:

• at a place other than his or her normal place of residence, and
• the reason for the absence is to obtain treatment approved by the Repatriation Commission or the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Commission,

an additional amount may be paid to cover a reasonable charge for the cost of transporting the veteran or member of the Forces' body to the normal place of residence.

Note: The reason for the absence must have been for the purposes of obtaining treatment. If the person unexpectedly becomes ill while away from their normal place of residence and accesses treatment using their Gold Card or White Card, then the criteria for accessing an additional payment for transportation of the body is not met.

Note: The veteran or member of the Forces normal place of residence, for the purposes of considering additional transportation costs, can be reasonably taken to include the veteran's general locality (suburb or township), rather than being limited to the return of the body to the person's actual residence.

Additional amount payable for transportation of the body - where automatic funeral benefit has been granted

A veteran eligible for an automatic grant of funeral benefit will need to satisfy one of the separate eligibility tests in section 99 to be eligible to receive an additional amount for assistance with transportation costs.

It is expected that a veteran who meets the restrictive circumstances for payment of additional transportation costs under subsection 99(4), being that he/she died while away from their ordinary place of residence, for the purpose of obtaining medical treatment approved by Commission, will readily satisfy one of the eligibility requirements under paragraph 99(1)(e). Where the delegate is satisfied that this eligibility test is met by a veteran who has already received an automatic grant of funeral benefit, a further payment in respect of transportation costs may be made. The eligibility test is also met where the veteran's death is accepted as being war-caused, or where the veteran dies in indigent circumstances.

If determined as eligible, payment of funeral benefit should be limited to the primary automatic grant, with an additional payment in respect of transportation costs. As a further funeral benefit under section 99 is discretionary, this discretion can apply to grant only the additional component for transportation costs. A further primary payment of funeral benefit under section 99 should not be made where the veteran's estate already has an automatic grant entitlement, in keeping with the policy position that only one payment of funeral benefit is to be made.

Restrictions to payment for transportation of the body

No additional amount may be paid to cover the cost of transporting the veteran's or member's body in respect of costs incurred transporting the veteran's body where that transport occurs:

• outside Australia, or
• from one place in the metropolitan area of a capital city to another place in the metropolitan area of the same city.

Note: Please see the Australian Bureau of Statistics website if you need assistance identifying a metropolitan area of a capital city

Payment of other funeral benefit

Payment of a funeral benefit under these criteria are made to the applicant, unless requested otherwise on the application.