VA Form 21P-527EZ applies for Veterans Pension, a needs-based benefit for eligible wartime veterans. It asks about service, age or disability, family income and assets. It is a different application from the 21-526EZ used for disability compensation.

Download the current VA Form 21P-527EZ PDF

Get the official December 2025 PDF from VA's Form 21P-527EZ page. I checked the 17-page package on October 2, 2026. Its footer prints DEC 2025, replacing February 2023.

Pages 1 through 7 contain instructions and a checklist. The application starts on page 8 and has 14 sections. Page 15 contains privacy information; pages 16 and 17 are care-expense worksheets with their own item numbers.

At a glance:

  • Benefit: VA pension, with service, financial and age-or-disability requirements.
  • Financial entries: Report gross income and follow the additional-form instructions.
  • Medical expenses: Report eligible out-of-pocket costs, not amounts insurance pays.
  • Before sending: Review the evidence checklist, required signatures and any care worksheets.

Who files, and when?

VA's eligibility page requires qualifying service, no dishonorable discharge, income and net worth within applicable limits, and a qualifying age or disability basis. Those bases include being at least 65, permanent and total disability, qualifying long-term nursing-home care, or Social Security disability benefits identified by VA. Minimum service rules vary by entry date and circumstances; check your service against that page.

The disability supporting pension does not have to be service connected. For a service-connected compensation claim, see the 21-526EZ walkthrough.

If you need more time to gather records, the PDF explains using 21-0966, an intent to file, followed by the completed application within one year. VA's application guidance explains when starting an online application with an identity-verified account makes a separate intent to file unnecessary. A potential effective date still depends on a qualifying claim.

Sections I and II: identification and contact, Items 1 and 2

1A through 1C are your name, Social Security number and birth date. 1D asks whether you previously filed a VA claim; 1E is your known VA file number. Skip 1E if 1D is No.

2A is your complete mailing address, 2B your telephone number, including the international field when needed, and 2C optional email. These fields identify the veteran applying, even when someone else prepares the paperwork.

Section III: service, Items 3A through 3I

  • 3A: Other names used during service; leave blank if none.
  • 3B and 3C: Initial active-duty entry and final release dates.
  • 3D: Service number.
  • 3E and 3F: Branch and place of last separation.
  • 3G: Whether you were a prisoner of war.
  • 3H and 3I: Confinement start and end dates, if applicable.

The instructions request a copy of your DD214 or equivalent for every service period. Send copies, not irreplaceable originals; page 3 says original documents cannot be returned.

Sections IV and V: pension basis and employment

4A asks whether you are over 65 or have been determined disabled by Social Security. A Yes skips 4B and Section V. VA's eligibility page and the instructions say age 65 or older, although this field says “over.” If you are exactly 65, confirm how to answer rather than concluding you are too young.

4B asks whether you are medically incapable of working; Yes requires medical evidence. 4C asks about nursing-home residence and directs a Yes response to 21-0779. 4D asks about Medicaid paying costs or a pending Medicaid application; skip it if 4C is No.

4E asks whether you seek special monthly pension for assistance needs, severe visual impairment or confinement to your premises. Yes directs you to attach 21-2680, completed and signed by one of the listed qualified clinicians. 4F and 4G identify VA and other federal treatment facilities.

If Section V applies, 5A through 5C ask about current employment, work type and average weekly hours. If not employed, skip 5B and 5C. 5D through 5G ask when you last worked, average hours, job title and kind of work.

Sections VI and VII: current and prior marriages

6A asks your marital status and gives the branching instructions. For a current spouse, 6B through 6E request legal name, birth date, Social Security number and marriage date. 6F through 6I request marriage city, state, country and type.

6J and 6K ask whether your spouse is a veteran and for any VA file number. If separated, 6L through 6N ask the reason, spouse's address and monthly support you provide. Separation does not automatically remove financial-reporting obligations.

Section VII records previous marriages:

  • 7A through 7F: Your first prior marriage: spouse's name, how it ended, start and end dates, marriage location and termination location.
  • 7G through 7L: The same details for another prior marriage.
  • 7M: Whether you have more marriages to report.
  • 7N through 7S: Your current spouse's first prior marriage, using the same sequence.
  • 7T through 7Y: Another prior marriage of your spouse.
  • 7Z: Whether your spouse has more marriages to report.

For additional history, the form directs you to 21-686c or 21-4138. Follow the skip instructions when neither person has prior marriages.

Section VIII: dependent children, Items 8A through 8S

8A counts dependent children living with you. The three child entries are 8B through 8F, 8G through 8K, and 8L through 8P. Each records name, birth date, Social Security number, birthplace and applicable status, including monthly support when the child lives elsewhere.

8Q asks whether children living elsewhere share an address. If not, the form requests a 21-4138 identifying each child's custodian and address. 8R and 8S provide the custodian's name and address fields.

Use 21-686c for additional children when needed. The instructions require appropriate adoption documents, 21-674 for school attendance, or medical evidence for a child claimed on permanent incapacity grounds. If there are no dependent children, skip to Section IX.

Section IX: income and assets, Items 9A through 9K

9A asks whether you and your dependents have over $75,000 in assets, excluding the primary residence. Yes requires 21P-0969; No asks for an estimated asset total. This is an additional-form threshold, not the pension net-worth eligibility limit. Use VA's current pension rates page for that separate limit.

9B asks about asset transfers in the three calendar years before the current year. Its examples include gifts, sales, annuities and trusts. Yes requires 21P-0969. VA's pension guidance separately describes a look-back covering the three years before filing. If you transferred assets this year, ask VA how to include them; the field's calendar-year wording should not be read as excluding them from review.

9C asks about home ownership. 9D asks whether the lot exceeds two acres. 9E asks the value of land beyond two acres; 9F asks whether that excess land is marketable. Follow the printed skips and the 21P-0969 instruction for marketable excess land.

9G counts family income sources: none, one through four, or five or more. Five or more requires 21P-0969.

9H, 9I, 9J and 9K each have four subfields: recipient, income type, payer and current gross monthly amount. Report the gross amount before deductions, not simply the deposit reaching your bank.

If 9A through 9G directed you to 21P-0969, the application says to report only Social Security income here and other income on that separate form. Avoid duplicate reporting. Partially completed income entries can trigger clarification requests.

Section X: medical expenses, Items 10A through 10J

10A asks whether you claim unreimbursed medical expenses. No skips to Section XI. The instructions exclude costs paid by insurance or other family members and require the applicable care worksheets when claiming in-home or facility care.

10B, 10C and 10D are care-provider entries. Each has subfields 1 through 9 for whose care was paid, provider, care type, hourly rate and monthly hours for in-home care, start date, end date or continuing care, payment frequency and amount paid for that frequency.

10E through 10J cover other reportable expenses. Each has subfields 1 through 6 for whose expense, provider paid, purpose, payment date, frequency and amount. The frequency choices distinguish monthly, annual and one-time costs.

Use 21P-8416 if more space is needed. A medical bill is not proof that you paid the entire billed amount. Gather payment records and distinguish your share from reimbursements.

Sections XI through XIV: payment and signatures

11A names the financial institution; 11B identifies the account type or certifies you lack an account. Its instructions permit “Established” when you already have VA direct deposit. 11C and 11D are routing and account numbers. Follow the section's banking or Treasury waiver instructions if direct deposit presents a problem.

Read Section XII's certification and information-release language. 12A is your signature or mark; 12B is the signing date.

If you sign with an X, Section XIII requires two witnesses. 13A through 13C are the first witness's signature, printed name and address; 13D through 13F are the second witness's corresponding fields.

Section XIV applies when 12A is blank and a qualifying alternate signer signs. 14A and 14B are that person's signature and date. Read both the authority and claimant-capacity conditions above them. Helping type an application does not alone satisfy those conditions.

Pages 16 and 17: care worksheets

For each relevant provider, have the person identified in the worksheet instructions complete it. The care expense must also be claimed on the application or 21P-8416.

Facility worksheet, page 16: Items 1 through 7 identify recipient, provider, provider's role, facility name, phone, address and website. 8 identifies daily activities assisted; 9 records licensing, residential and staffing facts. 10 identifies who provides health or custodial care. 11 through 13 cover admission and expected ending; 14 gives monthly charges; 15 and 16 are provider signature and date.

In-home worksheet, page 17: 1 and 2 identify recipient and provider. 3 through 7 address professional licensing, agency affiliation, agency name, phone and address. 8 and 9 identify personal-care and household activities assisted; 10 asks about the attendant's primary care responsibility. 11 through 13 give care dates; 14 and 15 give hourly charge and monthly hours; 16 and 17 are provider signature and date.

Fictional example: a single veteran with retirement income

This is a fictional form exercise, not a real claimant or an eligibility calculation. Assume a 70-year-old wartime veteran, never married, with no dependents, $20,000 in reportable assets, no asset transfers, rented housing and one Social Security income source.

  • 4A: Yes; skip 4B and Section V.
  • 6A: Not married; follow the never-married skip to Section VIII, then Section IX because there are no children.
  • 9A: No, with $20,000 as the estimated assets.
  • 9B and 9C: No; follow the home-ownership skip to 9G.
  • 9G: One through four sources.
  • 9H: Veteran, Social Security, the payer, and the actual gross monthly amount.
  • Section X: Any claimed unreimbursed expenses, using actual payment records.
  • Sections XI and XII: Banking information and the veteran's signed certification.

The veteran's age and assets do not establish approval. VA must evaluate service, income and the other applicable requirements.

Where to submit, and what happens afterward

VA's application page offers an online application, completed-PDF upload through QuickSubmit, mail, in-person submission at a regional office, or help from an accredited representative.

Mail: Department of Veterans Affairs, Pension Intake Center, PO Box 5365, Janesville, WI 53547-5365.

Fax: VA's benefit intake directory on Form 20-0995 lists 844-655-1604 for Pension and Survivors intake. This is a benefit-level number; 21P-527EZ itself prints online and mail routes. Confirm fax routing with VA if your notice gives different instructions.

Keep a copy and submission receipt. Check for missing service records, incomplete income rows, duplicated income, unreimbursed expenses lacking details, missing care worksheets and unsigned certifications. Respond to evidence requests and attend any examination VA requires. VA's application page gives no fixed decision time.

For unfamiliar evidence language, Ask Raven offers source-linked explanations, with starter messages in a free account. Use it to prepare focused questions, then verify the answer against your pension instructions. To arrange representation, read Claim Raven's 21-22 and 21-22a guide.

Sources and scope

Verified October 2, 2026: all 17 pages of the December 2025 PDF, official form and pension guidance, benefit intake directory and linked Claim Raven pages. Differences in the age and asset-transfer wording are explained above. No individual eligibility or payment calculation is offered. The example is fictional.

Where to go next

Claim Raven is data analysis, not legal, medical, or VA-accredited advice. Consult an accredited representative about eligibility, financial reporting or a disputed pension decision.

-Landon Founder, Claim Raven | U.S. Army Veteran