VA Life Insurance: VALife, VGLI and Coverage for Disabled Veterans

Short answer: VA life insurance comes in two main forms for veterans. VALife is whole life coverage of up to $40,000 for any veteran age 80 or younger with a service-connected disability rating, including 0%, with no health questions. VGLI lets you keep $10,000 to $500,000 of term coverage after you leave the military if you had SGLI. There is no free policy that comes automatically with a 100% disability rating, but some disabled veterans can keep or waive coverage in specific situations.

What Life Insurance Does the VA Offer Veterans?

The Department of Veterans Affairs runs several life insurance programs. Which ones you can use depends on whether you're still serving, how recently you left, and whether you have a service-connected disability rating.

Program	Who it's for	Coverage	Type
VALife	Veterans with a VA service-connected disability rating (any percentage)	Up to $40,000, in $10,000 steps	Whole life, guaranteed acceptance
VGLI	People leaving the military who had SGLI	$10,000 to $500,000	Term
SGLI Disability Extension	Totally disabled service members leaving the military	Keeps SGLI for up to 2 years after separation	Extension of SGLI
S-DVI	Veterans who already have an S-DVI policy	Varies by policy	Whole life
VMLI	Severely disabled veterans with a Specially Adapted Housing grant and a mortgage	Up to $200,000, paid to the lender	Mortgage life

The two programs most veterans look at are VALife and VGLI, so the rest of this guide focuses on them.

How Does VALife Work?

Veterans Affairs Life Insurance (VALife) is guaranteed-acceptance whole life insurance. You don't have to prove you're in good health, and coverage lasts for life as long as you pay the premiums.

Who qualifies. If you're 80 or younger and have a VA service-connected disability rating, even 0%, you're eligible. There's no time limit to apply after you get your rating. Veterans 81 or older may qualify only if they applied for disability compensation before turning 81, received a rating for that disability after turning 81, and apply for VALife within 2 years of being notified of the rating.

How much coverage. You can choose up to $40,000 in $10,000 increments.

The 2-year waiting period. Full coverage starts 2 years after you apply, and you pay premiums during that time. If you die during the waiting period, your beneficiaries receive the premiums you paid plus interest. VA lists the interest rate as 4.23% for a death in 2026. After the waiting period, they receive the full coverage amount.

Cash value. Cash value starts to build 2 years after approval. VALife doesn't offer loans against the policy.

Premium waivers. VALife doesn't offer premium waivers, even for total disability.

How Much Does VALife Cost?

Premiums depend on your age when you apply and the amount of coverage. VA says your rate won't go up while you keep the policy. If more than 6 months have passed since your last birthday, you're charged the rate for your next age.

Here are sample monthly rates from VA's published tables:

Age when you apply	$10,000 coverage	$40,000 coverage
50	$32.50	$130.00
60	$50.00	$200.00
70	$78.00	$312.00
80	$127.50	$510.00

You can also pay yearly. For $10,000 of coverage, the yearly premium is $593.30 at age 60 and $1,512.80 at age 80. You pay your first premium when you apply.

Because VALife is whole life insurance with a fixed premium, it works differently from term coverage. Our guide to term vs. whole life insurance explains the trade-offs in plain terms.

How Does VGLI Life Insurance Work After You Leave the Military?

Veterans' Group Life Insurance (VGLI) lets you keep group term life coverage after you leave the service. It's run by the Office of Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance (OSGLI), and Prudential is the insurer.

Who qualifies. If you had SGLI, you're generally eligible within 1 year and 120 days of leaving active duty (after a period of active duty of 31 days or more), or of retiring or being released from the Ready Reserve or National Guard. Some people moving to the Individual Ready Reserve, the Inactive National Guard or the Temporary Disability Retirement List also qualify.

How much coverage. You can get $10,000 to $500,000, up to the amount of SGLI you had when you left. One year after you get VGLI, you can add $25,000, and you can add another $25,000 every 5 years after that, up to $500,000, until age 60.

Deadlines that matter.

1. Within 240 days of leaving: no health review. Your health doesn't affect whether you qualify.
2. From 241 days to 1 year and 120 days: you can still apply, but you need to show you're in good health.
3. After 1 year and 120 days: the VGLI window closes.

If you have a health condition, the 240-day window is the one to watch.

What Do VGLI Rates Look Like?

VGLI rates depend on your age and coverage amount. Gender and tobacco use don't affect them. Rates are set by 5-year age bands, so your premium goes up as you move into an older band. These monthly rates are from VA's table, effective July 1, 2025:

Age	$100,000 coverage	$500,000 coverage
29 and younger	$6.00	$30.00
40–44	$14.00	$70.00
50–54	$29.00	$145.00
60–64	$85.00	$425.00
70–74	$215.00	$1,075.00
80 and older	$440.00	$2,200.00

VA also announced a premium holiday: eligible veterans covered under VGLI have no payments due from November 1, 2026, through January 31, 2027.

Converting to a private policy. You can convert VGLI to a permanent policy, such as whole life, with a participating insurance company at standard rates without a health review. Term, variable and universal life policies don't qualify for conversion.

Do 100 Percent Disabled Veterans Get Free Life Insurance?

This is one of the most common questions veterans ask, and the answer is no, not automatically. VA's life insurance pages don't describe a free policy that comes with a 100% disability rating. VALife charges premiums and has no waivers. What does exist is narrower:

• SGLI Disability Extension. If you're totally disabled or have certain conditions when you leave the military, you may be able to keep your SGLI coverage for up to 2 years after your separation date.
• S-DVI premium waivers. Veterans who already hold Service-Disabled Veterans Life Insurance (S-DVI) can apply for a premium waiver if a disability that started before age 65 prevents them from working and lasts at least 6 months in a row. Use VA Form 29-357. Premiums can generally be waived only up to 1 year before VA receives the claim.
• Accelerated benefits. If you have SGLI, Family SGLI or VGLI and a doctor states you have 9 months or less to live, you can request up to 50% of the face value before death.

VA's life insurance programs are listed on VA.gov. Private life insurance policies marketed to veterans are separate from VA programs, so check which one you're looking at before you apply.

Should You Switch From S-DVI to VALife?

If you already have S-DVI, you can keep it and do nothing. If you apply for VALife on or after January 1, 2026, your S-DVI ends the day VALife is approved. You'll pay only VALife premiums, but you won't have full coverage during VALife's 2-year waiting period. Any S-DVI premium waiver does not carry over to VALife.

That gap matters. Before you apply, compare what your S-DVI pays today with what VALife would pay during and after the waiting period.

How Do You Apply for VA Life Insurance?

• VALife: check your eligibility and apply online at VA.gov. You'll need to pay your first premium with the application. If approved, you can manage your policy through AccessVA.
• VGLI: apply online through the OSGLI website run by Prudential, or mail Form SGLV 8714 to OSGLI.
• SGLI Disability Extension and S-DVI waivers: see VA's page for totally disabled or terminally ill policyholders for the forms and steps.

The Bottom Line

If you have any service-connected rating, VALife gives you up to $40,000 of lifelong coverage with no health questions, as long as you can wait 2 years for full benefits. If you're leaving the military, VGLI is the simplest way to keep larger term coverage, and applying within 240 days avoids a health review. Neither is free, and VA coverage may be only part of what your family needs. Our insurance guides cover how to size and compare coverage, and our retirement planning guides explain how insurance fits with Social Security and savings.

FinancialAdviser.com is not affiliated with the Department of Veterans Affairs. Program rules and rates change; confirm details on VA.gov before you apply.

Frequently asked questions

Do 100 percent disabled veterans get free life insurance?

Not automatically. VA's life insurance pages don't describe a free policy that comes with a 100% rating. VALife, the main option for veterans with a service-connected rating, charges premiums and has no premium waivers. Keeping or waiving coverage is possible only in specific cases: the SGLI Disability Extension can let a totally disabled veteran keep SGLI for up to 2 years after leaving the military, and existing S-DVI policyholders may qualify for a premium waiver for total disability.

What is the difference between VALife and VGLI?

VALife is whole life insurance for veterans with a service-connected disability rating. It pays up to $40,000, has no health questions and keeps the same premium for life. VGLI is term life insurance for people leaving the military who had SGLI. It pays $10,000 to $500,000, and its rates rise as you move into older age bands.

How long do I have to sign up for VGLI?

You have 1 year and 120 days after you leave the military. If you apply within 240 days, there's no health review. After 240 days, you need to show you're in good health.

Is there a waiting period for VALife?

Yes. Full coverage starts 2 years after you apply, and you pay premiums during that time. If you die during the waiting period, your beneficiaries get the premiums you paid plus interest (4.23% for a death in 2026). After the 2 years, they get the full coverage amount.

Do VGLI rates go up as I get older?

Yes. VGLI rates depend on your age and coverage amount and are set in 5-year age bands. For $100,000 of coverage, VA's table effective July 1, 2025 lists $14.00 a month at ages 40 to 44 and $85.00 at ages 60 to 64. Gender and tobacco use don't affect the rate.

Sources

1. VA.gov: Veterans Affairs Life Insurance (VALife)
2. VA.gov: Veterans' Group Life Insurance (VGLI)
3. VA.gov: Life Insurance for Totally Disabled or Terminally Ill Policyholders
4. VA.gov: Veterans' Mortgage Life Insurance (VMLI)

This guide is general information, not personal advice. Your situation may differ, so consider talking with a qualified professional, such as a fiduciary financial adviser, CPA or licensed agent, before making a decision.