KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Maryland lets military retirees subtract up to $12,500 of retired pay from state income, or up to $20,000 at age 55 and older. Bills to raise the under-55 amount failed again in 2026.
- Veterans rated 100% permanent and total, or found permanently unemployable by VA, owe no state or local property tax on their home. Surviving spouses can keep the exemption.
- Montgomery, Anne Arundel and Frederick counties offer a 25% or 50% county tax credit to veterans rated 50% to 99%. A 2026 law removed the statewide $100,000 income cap and lets each county set its own.
- Since October 1, 2024, burial in Maryland’s five state veterans cemeteries is free for eligible veterans and their spouses and dependent children, including the plot, liner, headstone and interment.
- Every veteran gets free day-use entry to Maryland state parks, and Maryland residents rated 100% or found unemployable get a free lifetime hunting and fishing license.
- Maryland Income Tax for Veterans and Military Retirees
- Maryland Property Tax Exemptions for Veterans
- Education Benefits: Conroy and VAIC Scholarships
- State Hiring Preference
- Charlotte Hall Veterans Home
- Maryland State Veterans Cemeteries
- State Parks, Hunting and Fishing
- Driver’s Licenses, Plates and Vehicles
- Benefits for Surviving Spouses and Families
- How to Apply for Maryland Veteran Benefits
- Frequently Asked Questions
Maryland has one of the largest military communities in the country, with Fort Meade, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Joint Base Andrews, Pax River and the Naval Academy all inside its borders. Its veteran benefits are uneven. The full property tax exemption for 100% disabled veterans is among the best anywhere, and burial in a state veterans cemetery is now free for the whole family. Military retired pay is still only partly exempt, and most of the property tax help for veterans rated below 100% depends on which county you live in. This guide covers what Maryland offers in 2026, who qualifies and where to apply.
Maryland Income Tax for Veterans and Military Retirees
Maryland taxes military retired pay but lets you subtract part of it. Under Comptroller Technical Bulletin 51:
| Your age on December 31 | Military retirement subtraction |
|---|---|
| Under 55 | Up to $12,500 |
| 55 or older | Up to $20,000 |
The subtraction covers retired pay from active or reserve service, the Maryland National Guard, and the commissioned corps of the Public Health Service and NOAA. It also covers a spouse or ex-spouse receiving part of the retired pay, and death benefits. Claim it on Form 502 with Form 502SU. Anything above the subtraction is taxed at regular Maryland and county rates.
No change for 2026
Bills to raise the under-55 subtraction to $20,000, including HB 857, did not pass in the 2026 session. Plan on the current amounts.
If you are 65 or older or totally disabled, you may also qualify for Maryland’s separate pension exclusion on income from an employee retirement system. The Comptroller sets the cap each year, and the DVMF retirement tax page explains how it combines with the military subtraction.
Active-duty pay, spouses and disability pay
- Marylanders on active duty: your military pay is taxable in Maryland. Combat zone pay that is excluded from federal income stays excluded, because Maryland starts from federal adjusted gross income.
- Service members from other states stationed in Maryland: your military pay is taxed by your home state, not Maryland.
- Military spouses: under the Military Spouses Residency Relief Act, a spouse living in Maryland only because of the service member’s orders can keep their home-state residency for tax purposes.
- VA disability compensation is tax-free under federal law in every state.
Our military retirement pay calculator estimates your pension, and our military retirement benefits guide covers what else comes with retirement.
Maryland Property Tax Exemptions for Veterans
Full exemption for 100% disabled veterans
A veteran with a VA rating of 100% service-connected, permanent and total owes no Maryland real property tax on the dwelling house and surrounding yard. The State Department of Assessments and Taxation also grants it below 100% when VA finds the veteran permanently unemployable, so TDIU rated P&T counts. There is no income limit.
- Who else qualifies: disabled active-duty service members, the unremarried surviving spouse of a qualifying veteran, and the surviving spouse of a service member killed in the line of duty.
- How to apply: use the 100 Percent Disabled Veteran Exemption Application on the DVMF property tax page and send it to SDAT with your VA award letter. You can apply any time; the September 1 deadline that applies to other exemptions does not apply here.
- Refunds: you can get taxes back to the effective date of your rating if you request the refund within three years of the year you first became eligible, but SDAT cannot refund tax years before 2018-2019.
To speed up VA verification, DVMF suggests calling its service office at 800-446-4926, ext. 6450. If you are rated 90%, getting to 100% P&T or TDIU is worth more in Maryland than in most states; see our guide to a VA rating increase and the 100% VA disability guide.
County credits for veterans rated 50% to 99%
Maryland has no statewide break for partial ratings. State law lets counties and cities offer a credit against local property tax on the veteran’s home:
| VA rating | County or city credit |
|---|---|
| 75% to 99% (permanent) | 50% of the county or municipal property tax |
| 50% to 74% (permanent) | 25% of the county or municipal property tax |
A veteran with a nonpermanent 100% rating can also qualify. As of 2026, only Montgomery, Anne Arundel and Frederick counties had adopted the credit. Until this year it was limited to veterans with federal AGI of $100,000 or less; HB 1611, signed in May 2026, removed that statewide cap for tax years starting July 1, 2026, and lets each county set its own income limit or none. Check with your county finance office.
Buying in Maryland? Our VA loan guide covers $0-down financing, and disabled veterans are exempt from the VA funding fee.
Education Benefits: Conroy and VAIC Scholarships
Edward T. and Mary A. Conroy Memorial Scholarship
The Conroy scholarship pays tuition and mandatory fees at a Maryland college, capped at the resident undergraduate tuition and fees of the most expensive University System of Maryland school. For 2025-26 the maximum award was $13,689. It is not need-based. Eligible groups include:
- Veterans with a service-connected disability of 25% or more who have used up or are no longer eligible for federal VA education benefits
- Sons and daughters of service members who died from military service or have a 100% permanent service-connected disability
- Vietnam-era POW/MIAs and their children
- Families of 9/11 victims and of Maryland public safety personnel killed or 100% disabled in the line of duty
This is narrower than many guides say: a veteran without a 25% rating, or with GI Bill months left, does not qualify. Awards last up to five years full-time or eight years part-time, and you apply through your school by July 15 each year.
Douglas J.J. Peters VAIC Scholarship
The Veterans of the Afghanistan and Iraq Conflicts Scholarship is for Maryland residents who served in Afghanistan on or after October 24, 2001, or in Iraq on or after March 19, 2003, and for their sons, daughters, stepchildren and spouses. It pays up to 50% of tuition, mandatory fees and room and board, capped in 2025-26 at $8,699 a year for students living on campus, $5,637 off campus and $5,067 living with parents. It can be stacked with the GI Bill, but total aid cannot exceed cost of attendance. For 2026-27, applications closed October 15, 2026, and renewal students get priority.
Our Post-9/11 GI Bill guide explains the federal benefit these scholarships supplement, and GI Bill transferability covers passing it to a spouse or child.
State Hiring Preference
Maryland adds 10 points to the selection test score of an eligible veteran, the spouse of a veteran with a service-connected disability, or the surviving spouse of a deceased veteran. A former prisoner of war gets 2 more. Veterans rated 30% or more for a service-connected disability can also be certified for a list that lets agencies hire them without a competitive selection process. See the DVMF job seeker page.
Federal jobs are often the bigger opportunity in Maryland, with NSA, Cyber Command, NIH, the Social Security Administration and dozens of agencies nearby. Our guide to federal jobs for veterans explains federal veterans’ preference, which is separate from Maryland’s.
Charlotte Hall Veterans Home
Maryland has one state veterans home, Charlotte Hall Veterans Home in St. Mary’s County. It has 126 assisted living beds and 318 skilled nursing beds, including a 16-bed women’s unit and secure memory care.
- Eligibility: Maryland residents who served on full-time active duty, other than training, with a discharge under honorable conditions, and who are 62 or older or found disabled by Social Security or VA. Certain reservists and non-veteran spouses can also qualify.
- Cost: VA pays a per diem, and the state covers part of the rest. In assisted living, veterans generally pay 90% of net monthly income and keep 10%. Veterans rated 70% or more may have their full nursing home care covered by VA.
- Apply: call 301-884-8171, ext. 5112, and complete the admission application.
For care paid by VA, see our guides to VA pension with Aid and Attendance and VA health care enrollment.
Maryland State Veterans Cemeteries
Maryland runs five state veterans cemeteries:
| Cemetery | Location | Phone |
|---|---|---|
| Cheltenham | Cheltenham, Prince George’s County | 301-372-6398 |
| Crownsville | Crownsville, Anne Arundel County | 410-987-6320 |
| Eastern Shore | Hurlock, Dorchester County | 410-943-3420 |
| Garrison Forest | Owings Mills, Baltimore County | 410-363-6090 |
| Rocky Gap | Flintstone, Allegany County | 301-777-2185 |
Since October 1, 2024, eligible veterans and their eligible dependents receive a plot, grave liner, headstone and interment at no cost. The $978 fee that remains applies only to dependents of National Guard and Reserve members. Eligibility follows VA national cemetery rules plus Maryland residency, which you can show with a Maryland home of record on your DD-214 or two years of Maryland tax records. Funeral home and transportation costs are not covered; see the DVMF cemetery program and our VA burial allowance guide for what VA pays toward them.
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State Parks, Hunting and Fishing
- State parks: day-use entrance charges are waived year-round for all veterans, resident or not. The waiver covers the veteran only, unless the park charges per vehicle. Active-duty and Maryland National Guard members get the same with a military ID.
- Free lifetime hunting and fishing license: for Maryland residents rated 100% service-connected, found unemployable by VA, or former POWs. It covers the non-tidal angler’s license, trout stamp, Chesapeake Bay sport fishing license and recreational oyster license, but not the Migratory Game Bird Stamp. Apply at a DNR Licensing and Registration Service Center with your VA letter.
- Purple Heart recipients: 50% off Maryland hunting and fishing licenses.
- Active duty on leave: Maryland residents on leave with orders can fish without a license, and hunt without a hunting license or deer stamps, though migratory bird stamps and a furbearer permit are still required.
Details are on the DNR military one-stop shop. Every veteran also gets a free lifetime pass to national parks; see our national park pass guide.
Driver’s Licenses, Plates and Vehicles
- Veteran on your license: bring a DD-214, honorable discharge certificate or a veteran status letter to an MVA branch to add the veteran designation. Our guide to veteran IDs and proof of service covers other options.
- Disabled veteran plates: free for veterans rated 100% or paid at 100% for individual unemployability, on a car, multipurpose vehicle or truck of one ton or less, with permanent registration so you do not renew in person.
- Other military plates: $25 application fee with form VR-120 and proof of service or the medal.
- Boats: active-duty members transferred to Maryland are exempt for one year from the 5% vessel excise tax on a boat registered elsewhere and brought into the state. New purchases do not qualify.
See the DVMF license and plates page for forms.
Benefits for Surviving Spouses and Families
- Property tax: the unremarried surviving spouse of a 100% P&T veteran keeps the full exemption, and the surviving spouse of a service member killed in the line of duty qualifies on their own.
- Income tax: a surviving spouse or ex-spouse receiving military retirement income or death benefits can use the same $12,500 or $20,000 subtraction.
- Education: children of service members who died from military service or are 100% permanently disabled can use the Conroy scholarship, and spouses and children of Afghanistan and Iraq veterans can use VAIC.
- State jobs: the surviving spouse of a deceased veteran gets the 10-point preference.
- Burial: spouses and dependent children of veterans are buried free in state veterans cemeteries.
Federal survivor benefits usually matter more. See our guides to VA benefits for a veteran’s widow, the Survivor Benefit Plan and CHAMPVA.
How to Apply for Maryland Veteran Benefits
- Gather documents: your DD-214 (member 4 copy) and a current VA benefit summary letter showing your rating and whether it is permanent and total.
- Call DVMF. The Maryland Department of Veterans and Military Families has benefits specialists who help with VA claims and state programs for free; call 800-446-4926 or 410-260-3838.
- File the property tax exemption with SDAT if you are 100% P&T or TDIU, and ask your county about the partial-rating credit if you are 50% or more.
- Claim the retirement subtraction on Form 502SU when you file your state return.
- Apply for scholarships through your college by July 15 for Conroy, and on MHEC’s schedule for VAIC.
Our VA disability ratings guide explains how ratings are set. Comparing states? See our guides to Virginia, Pennsylvania and Delaware, or the veteran benefits by state guide for all 50.
RELATED READING
Property tax relief, the military retirement subtraction and state programs across the Potomac.
Eligibility, entitlement, funding fees, and how the $0-down program works.
Property tax breaks, income tax exemptions and state programs in all 50 states.
Frequently Asked Questions
Partly. Maryland lets you subtract up to $12,500 of military retirement income if you are under 55 on the last day of the tax year, or up to $20,000 if you are 55 or older. The rest is taxed at regular state and county rates. Bills to raise the under-55 subtraction to $20,000 failed in the 2026 session.
No, on their home. A veteran rated 100% service-connected, permanent and total, or found permanently unemployable by VA, is exempt from all real property tax on the dwelling house and yard, with no income limit. Apply to SDAT with your VA award letter at any time of year.
Only if your county offers the local credit. In Montgomery, Anne Arundel and Frederick counties, a permanent rating of 50% to 74% gets a credit of 25% of county property tax, and 75% to 99% gets 50%. A 2026 law removed the old $100,000 statewide income cap and lets each county set its own. There is no statewide exemption below 100%.
Only if you have a service-connected disability of 25% or more and have used up, or are no longer eligible for, federal VA education benefits. Children of service members who died from military service or are 100% permanently disabled are the larger eligible group. The 2025-26 maximum was $13,689, and you apply through your school by July 15.
Yes, for eligible veterans and, since October 1, 2024, for their eligible spouses and dependent children: the plot, liner, headstone and interment cost nothing. Dependents of National Guard and Reserve members pay a $978 fee. Funeral home and transport costs are the family’s responsibility.
Yes. Maryland waives day-use entrance charges year-round for all veterans, including nonresidents. The waiver covers the veteran only, unless the park charges per vehicle. Maryland residents rated 100%, found unemployable by VA, or former POWs can also get a free lifetime hunting and fishing license.
This article is provided by USMilitary.org, an independent educational resource. We are not affiliated with the Maryland Department of Veterans and Military Families, the Comptroller of Maryland, SDAT, the Maryland Higher Education Commission, the Department of Defense, VA, or any government agency. Amounts and program rules change; confirm current terms with the Maryland Department of Veterans and Military Families.