Alabama Veterans Benefits & Disabled Veterans Benefits
Alabama State Veterans’ Benefits
In addition to federal veterans’ benefits programs, there are state-level veterans’ benefits programs. The following are the Alabama veterans’ benefits programs. These programs are for various areas, including education, housing, health care, and employment. You can also learn about veterans’ benefits in other states.
Education Benefits for Veterans in Alabama
The State of Alabama provides education benefits for qualifying military members, veterans, and family members. These programs are subject to change without notice due to legislation, funding changes, and other factors. Contact the Alabama Department of Veterans Affairs for the most current information.
Alabama GI Dependents Scholarship Program
The Alabama GI Dependents Scholarship Program covers textbooks and applicable fees up to a combined maximum total of $1,000 per student per semester. Per HB487, the tuition reimbursement cap was raised to $400 per credit hour. All applicants must apply for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to be eligible.
To qualify, the veteran must have an honorable discharge after at least 90 continuous days of service. Veterans may also qualify if they were discharged within 90 days due to a service-connected disability. Veterans and dependents qualify if they meet at least one of the following requirements:
- Having a 30% or greater VA disability rating
- Being a former POW
- They are declared missing in action
- The veteran died from a service-connected disability or while on active duty
Children of qualified veterans may be eligible for 5 “standard academic years” or 10 semesters at any approved undergraduate school in Alabama. In certain situations, a child or stepchild may be eligible for the program through age 30. If the applicant is a stepchild, the veteran and the stepchild’s parent must be legally married before the child’s 19th birthday.
Spouses or unremarried surviving spouses of veterans rated 100% permanently and totally disabled can also get 5 years of benefits. Spouses and unremarried surviving spouses of veterans rated 40-90% disabled can get three years of benefits.
>> Find colleges in Alabama with our School Finder. Use the filters to sort schools by state.
Alabama National Guard Education Assistance Program (ANGEAP)
ANGEAP covers tuition costs for members of the National Guard. To be eligible for an ANGEAP award, you must be:
- 17 or older
- In good standing with the Alabama National Guard
- Done with basic training
- Pursuing your first degree
You must also demonstrate a financial need and fill out a Free Application for Federal Student Aid.
Some schools will not treat this program as a “promise to pay,” meaning they will require out-of-pocket payment of items covered by ANGEAP but which have not yet been paid for by the benefit on the due date. To be eligible:
- You must be enrolled in a certificate or degree program at an accredited community college, technical college, college, or university in Alabama.
- You must have a minimum cumulative 2.00 GPA for undergraduate degrees or 3.00 GPA for graduate degrees.
- You must demonstrate a financial need of at least $100.
Tuition Waiver for Purple Heart Medal Recipients
Purple Heart recipients may be eligible for waived tuition and fees at Alabama public schools and universities for undergraduate study. The waiver covers up to 125% of the credit hours required for the degree or certificate program.
The veteran must be an Alabama resident who was also an Alabama resident at the time they were awarded the Purple Heart. This benefit is applied after all other education benefits, except those partially funded by the veteran, such as the GI Bill.
Housing Benefits for Veterans in Alabama
Military Family Relief Fund Alabama
State law prevents a lender from starting foreclosure actions on a surviving spouse or the estate of a military borrower who died while deployed overseas on active duty military service. This prohibition lasts for 180 days after the death of the service member. The State of Alabama collects any penalties for violations of this law and deposits those funds into an account used to benefit military communities.
There is also a property tax exemption. Vets with a 100% Permanent and Total (P&T) VA disability rating are fully exempt from all state, county, and city property taxes on their primary homestead, with no limits on income. A home purchased with a VA Specially Adapted Housing (SAH) Grant is also fully exempt from state property taxes, and the exemption transfers to the surviving spouse for as long as they continue to occupy the property.
>> Find colleges in Alabama with our School Finder. Use the filters to sort schools by state.
Employment Benefits for Veterans in Alabama
Alabama State Hiring Preference For Veterans
The State of Alabama offers state-level employment hiring preference to qualifying veterans and spouses in the form of exam points applied to state tests for employment:
- 5-point preference: Honorably discharged veterans who served at least 90 days of active duty
- 10-point preference: Vets with a VA service-connected disability rating of 10% or higher (this also extends to spouses and surviving spouses of disabled or deceased veterans)
Local government and private-sector employers are now authorized to give preference to veterans, spouses of veterans, and active-duty service members. Finally, when job cuts are made, those hired with military preference must be the last to be laid off or replaced.
Business Occupational License Exemptions For Disabled Veterans
Alabama residents who are veterans of World War Two, those who served when the United States was engaged in hostilities, and who also have physical disabilities of 25% or more, may be exempt from business or occupational license taxes.
Veteran business owners who have no more than a single employee shall be entitled to licenses from the state, county, or municipality upon paying license taxes not exceeding $25. However, if a veteran owns any property valued at $5,000 or more (or if net income is $2,500 or more), these exemptions do not apply.
>> Find colleges in Alabama with our School Finder. Use the filters to sort schools by state.
Job Status and Reemployment Rights
State employees not in classified service who are called into or enter military service are offered the same reemployment rights and privileges as those in classified service.
State, county, and municipal officials who serve during a declared state of emergency will retain their job status and reemployment rights.
Teachers who serve in the military during an existing state of war are offered a leave of absence for the rest of the war, and until the beginning of the next school year after release from military service.
Teachers with at least one year of teaching experience immediately before entering military service may be offered credit for that experience if they return to their position within one year after release from military service. Alabama also now authorizes the State Department of Education to issue temporary teaching certificates to veterans who are eligible via SB149.
Membership in State Employees/Teachers’ Retirement System
State employees and teachers who serve in the military and return to state employment or education are entitled to preserved retirement benefits.
You may also earn credit for military service for up to four years if you do not withdraw contributions and return to your employment within one year of being honorably discharged.
You will pay an amount equal to 4% of the average compensation paid to a state employee during each claimed year of full-time military service, plus 8% interest compounded from the last date of service. No credit is offered for military service if you receive military retirement benefits.
Alabama State Insurance Benefits For National Guard Members
Alabama National Guard Service members injured while on active duty may qualify to receive Workers’ Compensation benefits similar to those offered to Alabama state employees.
There is also a life insurance program: the State of Alabama pays a $100,000 death benefit to the dependents of an Alabama National Guard Service member killed while on state active duty. This benefit is only for those who died on duty while activated by the state, not for service members activated by the federal government.
Alabama Military & Veteran Tax Benefits
Military Retiree Income Tax Exemption
Alabama residents who draw military retirement pay do not have to pay income tax on those funds.
Alabama State Combat Zone Tax Exclusion
Residents of Alabama serving in a combat zone are exempt from paying state taxes on military pay earned while in the combat zone.
Alabama National Guard Tax Exemption
Beginning January 1, 2027, Alabama National Guard personnel will be exempt from paying income tax to the state on the first $5,000 of income received for inactive duty training.
>> Find colleges in Alabama with our School Finder. Use the filters to sort schools by state.
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About the author
Michelle Nati is a contributing writer to CollegeRecon who has written about higher education and finance for Granita Media/Big Edition site Work and Money. She's also written law content for Leaf Group's Legal Beagle site and is a ghostwriter of non-fiction books. She lives in Los Angeles and spends her spare time combing flea markets for vintage photos and decor and playing with her dogs, Jellybean and Jukebox.
