Can a surviving spouse remarry and keep DIC?

Details

• The age-55 remarriage protection applies to DIC and CHAMPVA; Chapter 35 education benefits and the home loan guaranty still use the older age-57 threshold, and Survivors Pension is governed separately.
• If a remarriage before age 55 ends by death, divorce, or annulment, 38 CFR § 3.55 allows DIC to be reinstated in many circumstances — this is a case-specific determination.
• Remarriage rules have changed over time — the age-57 rule dates to a 2003 amendment and was lowered to 55 for DIC and CHAMPVA in 2021 — so the date of remarriage matters.
• A surviving spouse considering remarriage, or who has already remarried, should have VA (or an accredited representative) review the specific facts before assuming DIC will stop or continue.