North Dakota
North Dakota gives a Disabled Veterans Property Tax Credit equal to the service connected disability percentage applied against up to $8,100 of taxable value, free hunting and fishing licenses for resident veterans rated 50 percent or higher, in state tuition at the North Dakota University System, and free state park admission for disabled veterans.
North Dakota Department of Veterans AffairsProperty tax exemption
Tax credit equal to (disability percentage) x (lesser of $8,100 or actual taxable valuation). For example, a 70 percent rating yields a credit on 70 percent of up to $8,100 of taxable value.
State income tax
North Dakota does not tax VA disability compensation, and military retirement pay is fully exempt from North Dakota income tax (full exemption since the 2019 tax year).
Disabled veteran plates & registration
North Dakota issues Disabled American Veteran plates with no annual fee to veterans rated 100% service-connected (or unemployable), exempting the vehicle from excise tax and license fees; a surviving spouse keeps it for one vehicle.
Public employment preference
North Dakota adds a 5-point preference for veterans and 10 points for disabled veterans on state-agency hiring, with preference extended to certain spouses.
In state tuition
Under 38 USC 3679(c) (originally Section 702 of the Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act), every public college that accepts Post-9/11 GI Bill or Montgomery GI Bill students must charge in state tuition to covered students using their GI Bill, regardless of state residency. The old requirement to enroll within 3 years of separation was removed by the Isakson and Roe Act effective August 1, 2021, so there is no longer a time limit after discharge. State specific extensions to this rule are noted below where applicable.
Dependent / survivor education
North Dakota waives tuition and fees (up to 45 months) at North Dakota University System schools for the children and spouses of veterans who were killed, are totally (100%) disabled, or are MIA.
Hunting and fishing license
Free or reduced fee combination license for qualifying resident veterans.
State park entrance
Free admission to North Dakota state parks for qualifying veterans.
Camping & recreation
North Dakota residents rated 50%+ service-connected (and former POWs) get a free lifetime state-park entrance permit; under-50% veterans pay a reduced annual rate, and 100% veterans get a low-cost combined hunting license.
State veterans cemetery
The North Dakota Veterans Cemetery near Mandan offers no-charge burial for veterans (a small fee for a spouse), with no residency requirement.
North Dakota ranks 50 of 51 for rural veterans' access to accredited help: 15.96 accredited representatives per 10,000 veterans, with 42.3 percent of its veterans living rural.
Email me the North Dakota benefit checklist
A clean, printable checklist of every North Dakota benefit on this page - with the eligibility threshold and official source for each - sent straight to your inbox.
State legislatures revise thresholds and dollar amounts every session. The figures above are sourced from the state agency that administers each program, but the latest year is the state's word, not ours. Before you file an application, click the source link in each section and verify the current threshold.
Writing about North Dakota veteran benefits? You are welcome to reference this guide. Copy the citation below and link back so your readers can verify each program against the state source, or download the benefits table.
Developers: this record is available as structured data VBD:STATE:ND