Help for you and your family

We can help veterans and veteran families in many different ways. We help people based on their service.

Who is an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander veteran?

An Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander veteran is a person who:

• Served or is serving in the Australian Defence Force either full-time or as a reservist; and
• is of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent; and
• identifies as an Aboriginal person or Torres Strait Islander person and
• is accepted as an Aboriginal person or Torres Strait Islander person in the community that they live or have lived.

You do not need to identify as being Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person to make a claim for assistance. 

Tell us if you are an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander veteran

You can contact us to let us know you want your records to show that you identify as an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person. This helps us:

• ensure services are being accessed by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander veterans.

How we help

As an Australian Government agency, we provide support to:

• veterans and their dependants
• widowed partners
• Aboriginal people who were in and around Maralinga, Emu Fields and the Montebello Islands in the 1950s and 1960s at the time of the British Nuclear Tests in Australia
• certain members of Territory, State and Federal Police forces who were members of peacekeeping forces outside of Australia.

We want to make sure that anyone who eligible can access entitlements from us.

You may be able to receive:

• counselling services through Open Arms – Veterans & Families Counselling
• education assistance for dependent students of veterans
• health care, including treatment for mental health conditions
• home assistance
• help with housing, including loans at a low-interest rate and home insurance
• financial support and compensation
• rehabilitation support
• help when you return to civilian life
• help for the community to commemorate events such as Anzac Day, Remembrance Day and Vietnam Veterans’ Day
• recognition through the Australian Defence Veterans' Covenant.

The Office of Australian War Graves take care of memorials and war graves for veterans. They can also help you locate specific war graves and cemeteries.

We also provide a range of resources for students, teachers and historians.

If you need help with your claim

You can get help with your claim or speak to someone about the services we provide.

If you need help you can contact an ex-service organisation.

To find the best person to talk to about the services we provide, you can contact us. 

What to tell us

Some changes in your life can affect your benefits.

You may need to tell us if you:

• change your living arrangements
• change your bank details
• become partnered, or separate from your partner
• plan to go overseas
• move to a residential age-care facility
• go to hospital for an extended period of time.

These changes can affect the amount we pay you. If you do not tell us about a change, we could pay you money that you are not entitled to. 

If we pay you money you are not entitled to, you will have to pay it back.

In the event of your passing

Your family or the executor of your estate need to tell us as soon as they can. There is a bereavement period during which your dependants may continue to receive payments.

Your partner or family may be able to get benefits such as:

• a war widow(er)s pension
• financial help for your dependants
• help with funeral costs
• a memorial plaque or headstone in a public or private cemetery.