Can Disabled Veterans Get on Base? VHIC, REAL ID, and Access

Yes. Disabled veterans can get on base. Any veteran with a VA-documented service-connected disability rating — even 0 percent — is eligible to enter military installations to shop at commissaries, use exchanges, and visit morale, welfare, and recreation (MWR) facilities. The right came from the Purple Heart and Disabled Veterans Equal Access Act of 2018, which took effect January 1, 2020.¹ What you need to actually get through the gate is a specific ID card and a background check.

Who Qualifies

Three groups gained access under the 2018 law: Purple Heart recipients, former prisoners of war, and veterans with any level of VA-rated service-connected disability.¹ A 0 percent rating counts. So does 10, 30, 70, or 90.

Veterans rated 100 percent service-connected and Medal of Honor recipients already had installation access before the 2018 Act, and their benefits continue through the DoD ID card program they were already using.¹

One caregiver category is included: the primary family caregiver formally designated under the VA’s Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers. That is a narrower group than “family.” Spouses, children, and other relatives do not receive these privileges in their own right, and the benefit does not transfer to survivors if the veteran dies.²

The ID Card You Need

Which card you carry depends on your rating.

If you are rated 0 to 90 percent, or you are a Purple Heart recipient or former POW, the credential is a Veteran Health Identification Card (VHIC). It has to show your eligibility status printed below the photo on the front: “SERVICE CONNECTED,” “PURPLE HEART,” or “FORMER POW.” Without that designation on the card, it won’t work at the gate.³

If you are rated 100 percent permanent and total, or you are a Medal of Honor recipient, you qualify for a DoD Uniformed Services ID card (USID), which carries broader privileges. That card requires enrollment in the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System (DEERS).³

Getting a VHIC

You have to be enrolled in VA health care before you can get a VHIC. If you aren’t enrolled, apply at VA.gov and wait for the welcome call. After that, request the card either in person at a VA medical center (schedule a photo appointment through the enrollment coordinator) or online through AccessVA.⁴ Bring a current government-issued photo ID that shows your name, address, and date of birth. Don’t submit the request twice through different channels; that slows things down.

There is a workaround for veterans with a 0 percent condition who cannot obtain a VHIC because of income-based enrollment restrictions in VA health care. The DoD will accept HEC Form H623A, issued by the VA Health Eligibility Center, when paired with a REAL ID-compliant driver’s license or U.S. passport.³

REAL ID at the Gate

As of May 7, 2025, REAL ID standards are enforced at military installations nationwide. A state driver’s license or ID card used for base access must be REAL ID-compliant, which you can verify by looking for a star in the upper right corner.⁵

If your license isn’t compliant, you have options. A U.S. passport or passport card works on its own. A non-compliant driver’s license can also be used together with another acceptable credential such as a VHIC or a federal personal identity verification card. Without any compliant or alternative credential, unescorted access is denied.⁵

Your First Visit, and the Ones After

The first time you go to a specific installation, start at the visitor control center, not the main gate lane. Bring your VHIC (or the HEC Form H623A alternative) along with a REAL ID-compliant driver’s license or U.S. passport. Staff will verify your identity, confirm eligibility electronically, and run a background check. Some installations also ask for vehicle registration and proof of insurance; requirements vary by base.

After that initial enrollment, most installations let you skip the visitor center on return trips. You present the VHIC or REAL ID directly at the gate.³ Recurring access typically lasts one to three years, or one year after your last visit to that installation, whichever comes first. If your VHIC or REAL ID expires during that window, you have to re-enroll with the new card.⁶

What Your Access Actually Includes

Commissaries sell groceries at prices averaging about 23.7 percent below commercial stores, after a 5 percent surcharge that Congress requires to fund store construction and modernization.²⁷ Exchanges (the PX, BX, or NEX, depending on the service) offer tax-free shopping.

MWR facilities are also open to you. That covers golf courses, bowling centers, recreational lodging and resorts, RV campgrounds, movie theaters, restaurants, marinas, equipment rental, and kennels.² Veterans with a 100 percent service-connected rating get the top reservation priority for MWR lodging, the same category as active-duty members on official travel orders.⁸

One important boundary: the 2018 Act does not open DoD medical facilities or TRICARE to newly eligible veterans. The privileges cover commissaries, exchanges, and MWR retail activities only.² Health care for service-connected conditions still runs through the VA system.

The Fee to Know About at the Commissary

Newly eligible patrons pay an additional credit or debit card user fee on commissary purchases, on top of the standard 5 percent surcharge everyone pays. Federal regulation requires that the cost of processing card transactions for these patrons not fall on the U.S. Treasury, and the rate is reviewed and adjusted every year.⁹

Purchases made with a MILITARY STAR card are exempt from that user fee.⁹ Exchange purchases don’t carry the extra fee regardless of how you pay.

Bringing Family or Guests

You can bring your spouse, children, or other guests onto the installation and into the facilities. Only the eligible veteran or the designated primary family caregiver can actually make the purchase, though. Guests cannot buy anything themselves.¹⁰

Every guest goes through standard security screening at the visitor control center and needs an acceptable credential, with a REAL ID-compliant driver’s license or U.S. passport being the simplest. Where the installation supports it, a guest with an enrollable ID can register for recurring access and skip the visitor center on later trips.¹⁰

When Access Can Be Denied

The background check at the visitor center is a real screen. Convictions for offenses such as espionage, sexual assault, homicide, arson, and armed robbery are typically lifetime disqualifiers across DoD installations. Listing on the National Sex Offender Registry, an active felony warrant, or a known or suspected terrorist flag also results in permanent denial.

Lesser issues can still block you. Veterans currently on felony probation, or released from incarceration within five years of a felony conviction, may be denied. A previous barment from any DoD or federal installation can disqualify you as well. Installation commanders generally control access decisions for their base, and appeals go through that command, not the VA.

Your enrollment for base access also terminates automatically if your VA eligibility changes — for example, if a rating is reduced to the point that you no longer have a service-connected condition.⁶

1
Dover Air Force Base. Implementation of the Purple Heart and Disabled Veterans Equal Access Act of 2018
2
Department of Defense Fact Sheet. Defense Department Expands Access to Military Commissaries, Exchanges and Recreation Retail Facilities
3
VA News. Veterans Need VHIC for In-Person Commissary, Military Exchange, MWR Access
4
Veterans Affairs. Get a Veteran Health Identification Card (VHIC)
5
Defense Logistics Agency. Real ID Standards for Military Base Access Start May 7
6
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. VA and DOD Announce Updates to Improve Veteran and Caregiver Access to Installations
7
The Defense Commissary Agency. Defense Commissary Agency (DeCA)
8
Marine Corps Community Services. Lodging Guest Eligibility
9
eCFR. Part 225 Commissary Credit and Debit Card User Fee
10
VA News. Commissary, Military Service Exchange, and MWR Access Extended to More Veterans Beginning January