State veteran benefits · MS
Mississippi Veteran Benefits
Mississippi exempts the homestead of a service-connected totally disabled veteran from all ad valorem property taxes, and the exemption carries over to an unremarried surviving spouse.
By Mario Bailey, U.S. Air Force veteran · current Air National Guard member. Data updated 2026-07-10.
What Mississippi adds, benefit by benefit
Your federal VA benefits travel with you to any state. Everything below is the second stack: what Mississippi itself offers, each item checked against the state's own official source on the date shown.
Total homestead exemption for service-connected total disability
An honorably discharged veteran with a service-connected total disability is exempt from all ad valorem taxes on the assessed value of homestead property, with no dollar cap, and the exemption extends to the veteran's unremarried surviving spouse. This is the top tier of Mississippi's homestead exemption system.
You must apply in person at the county tax assessor's office between January 1 and April 1, with proof of the disability. Miss the window and the exemption waits until next year.
SOURCE: Mississippi Department of Revenue · retrieved 2026-07-10
Retirement income, including military pensions, is not taxed
Mississippi does not tax retirement income: pensions and annuities, military retirement included, are exempt from state income tax once the plan's retirement requirements are met. VA disability compensation is never taxed by Mississippi or the federal government. Separately, National Guard and Reserve members exclude the first $15,000 of that pay.
SOURCE: Mississippi Department of Revenue · retrieved 2026-07-10
In-state tuition for all veterans, free semesters for POW/MIA children
Any veteran as defined by Title 38, or a person entitled to Title 38 education benefits, is authorized in-state tuition at Mississippi's public institutions regardless of residency history. Children of Mississippi service members officially listed as prisoners of war or missing in action receive an eight-semester scholarship at state colleges and universities without cost, exclusive of books and food.
SOURCE: Mississippi Veterans Affairs · retrieved 2026-07-10
Four state veterans homes
Mississippi Veterans Affairs operates veterans homes in Collins, Jackson, Kosciusko, and Oxford, each providing long-term nursing care with its own on-site administrator.
SOURCE: Mississippi Veterans Affairs · retrieved 2026-07-10
Two state veterans memorial cemeteries
Mississippi operates veterans memorial cemeteries at Newton (248 Honor Circle) and Kilmichael (2 Legion Road), open to veterans discharged under conditions other than dishonorable, plus spouses and dependents.
Under the Burial Equity Act effective July 1, 2024, interments carry fees, roughly $950 per person plus $115 for a columbarium niche cover or $445 for casket or in-ground cremation burial, payable by cashier's check or money order before services. Budget for this; several neighboring states bury the veteran free.
SOURCE: Mississippi Veterans Affairs · retrieved 2026-07-10
No hunting or fishing license needed at total disability
Veterans with a total service-connected disability are not required to purchase a Mississippi hunting or fishing license.
SOURCE: Mississippi Veterans Affairs · retrieved 2026-07-10
One-dollar license plates and waived permit fees
Veterans rated 100 percent permanently disabled pay $1 per year for vehicle license plates and $1 for motorcycle plates. Service-connected disabled veterans who have been Mississippi residents for at least 12 months are exempt from concealed carry permit and renewal fees, and honorably discharged veterans with combat handgun training can qualify for the permit by affidavit.
SOURCE: Mississippi Veterans Affairs · retrieved 2026-07-10
Run the arithmetic on a 100 percent rating in Mississippi and the state’s pitch becomes obvious: no property tax on the house, no state tax on the military pension, no tax anywhere on the VA check, a dollar a year for the truck’s plate, and no hunting or fishing license to buy. In a state where living costs already run low, a fully rated veteran’s fixed costs drop to nearly nothing. That is the profile Mississippi serves best, the retired E-7 or O-4 at 100 percent who owns a home outright and wants their VA disability pay and pension to stretch.
The exemption’s one sharp edge is the calendar. Homestead applications are accepted only between January 1 and April 1, in person, at the county tax assessor’s office. A veteran whose 100 percent rating comes through in May waits until the following January to file, and veterans who move in-state mid-year hit the same wall. Put the date on the calendar the day the rating letter arrives, and bring the VA documentation with you; the assessor cannot take your word for the rating. The full detail on why that rating letter matters for taxes generally is in our guide to VA disability and taxes.
Below the 100 percent line, the state thins out fast. There is no partial property exemption tier for a 70 or 80 percent rating like Minnesota’s, and no broad state tuition waiver for the veteran’s own degree; the in-state tuition guarantee mostly matters to recently separated veterans using Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits at Ole Miss or Mississippi State without established residency. The POW/MIA children’s scholarship is generous but reaches few families by design.
The detail that catches families off guard is at the end of life. Mississippi’s two state cemeteries charge interment fees under the 2024 Burial Equity Act, paid up front, which surprises people who assumed state burial mirrors the free federal burial benefits. It is still far cheaper than a private cemetery, but it is not zero, so fold it into the plan rather than discovering it during the worst week of the year.
Where to apply
State benefits are administered by the state, not by VA, so the applications above run through Mississippi Veterans Affairs or the specific agency named in each source link. A free VA-accredited representative or VSO in Mississippi will know both stacks, the federal claim and the state paperwork, and charges nothing to help with either.