Honoring Canadian Veterans
We're proud to do our part in honoring our country's veterans. Our duty is to provide you and your family with professional and dignified assistance during your time of need, and we promise to support you in honoring your loved one for their dedication and selfless service.
Funeral Assistance
Our knowledgeable staff will help you complete all the necessary paperwork for receiving the military death and burial benefits, such as the Funeral and Burial Assistance from Veterans Affairs Canada or the Last Post Fund. Financial assistance also is available through these organizations to help cover the funeral and burial expenses.
Eligibility
Before being eligible for financial assistance, the estate of the deceased and surviving spouse need to pass a means test to see if they have the financial resources to cover the funeral expenses.
An exception to this rule may be if the veteran’s death is related to their military service and a condition for which Veteran’s Affairs provided a disability benefit. In this case, financial assistance may be automatically granted after it’s determined by a Veteran’s Affairs medical authority.
However, below are the rules used to determine eligibility for means testing for all other veterans:
- A Canadian Merchant Navy Veteran of the Second World War or the Korean War.
- A former member of the Canadian Armed Forces.
- An Allied Veteran who served with Allied Forces during the Second World War or Korean War and also has lived in Canada for at least 10 years.
Means Testing
After a veteran is determined eligible for means testing, the following standards will not be considered when calculating their financial status:
- The family home (including standard household furnishings) and the family vehicle Regular income cheques issued to the deceased for the month of death, including Old Age Security, Guaranteed Income Supplement, War Veterans Allowance, or disability pension payments.
- Assets to a value of $700 for each dependent child.
- Assets to a value of $35,738 if the deceased left a surviving spouse.
Veteran Benefits
If the veteran’s estate planning passes the means testing, the funding will cover all or part of the following expenses:
- Medical costs of the veteran’s last sickness that weren’t paid by the Minister and aren’t insured under a private or provincial healthcare plan.
- Funeral service costs, including preparation of the remains, provision of a casket or an urn that meets the standards specified by the Minister, provision of ceremonial services, and provision of death notices.
- The cost of cremating the remains, if applicable.
- Special preparation of the remains for the viewing, if applicable.
- Transportation of the remains from the place of death to the funeral and to the burial or cremation location, and transportation that requires two funeral homes because the funeral home or burial or cremation location aren’t at the same location.
- Cost of a single grave and reasonable costs of opening and closing the grave and its perpetual care, if applicable.
- Cost of a decomposable or non-decomposable grave liner, if required by the authorities of the cemetery.
- Military-style grave marker that meets the standards of Veterans Affairs Canada.
If you have any questions regarding veteran benefits or want to learn more about the veteran services that our funeral home offers, please don’t hesitate to reach out to our staff at (insert phone number), and we’ll be happy to assist you in honoring your loved one.