Statewide & Federal
Crop Insurance Benefits for Veterans
Federal crop insurance costs less for veterans in their first years of farming, or in the first five years after leaving the service.
What It Offers
- Crop insurance is sold by private insurance agents and backed by USDA’s Risk Management Agency (RMA). Depending on the policy, it protects against losses from weather, disease, and falling prices.
- Policies are available for many New York crops and some livestock, plus Whole-Farm Revenue Protection for diversified farms that grow a little of everything. Shellfish growers can also buy USDA shellfish insurance.
- If your crop can’t be insured in your county, look at NAP disaster coverage instead.
Benefits for Veterans
- No administrative fee on catastrophic (CAT) or higher (buy-up) coverage.
- An extra 10 percentage points of premium subsidy on buy-up policies that have a subsidy, so USDA pays more of your premium.
- A better replacement yield after a bad year. When a disaster drags down your yield history, the substitute is 80% of the county transitional yield instead of 60%.
- Use the last farmer’s records. With their permission, you can use the previous operator’s production history on land you take over, as long as you’ve worked with that crop before.
- Benefits last for up to five crop years.
Who Qualifies
- You served on active duty in any branch, including the reserves, and were discharged under conditions other than dishonorable.
- And either you have farmed five years or less (or never), or you first became a veteran within the last five years, even if you farmed longer before you served.
- If you also qualify as a beginning farmer (10 years or less), you get the beginning-farmer benefits instead. They are equal or better.
- A farm business qualifies only if every owner with 10% or more qualifies. A business owned by a veteran and their spouse counts.
How to Get Started
- Find a crop insurance agent near you with RMA’s agent locator.
- Ask the agent for the Beginning or Veteran Farmer and Rancher application, and bring your DD-214 or other discharge papers.
- Sign up before the sales closing date for your crop. Your agent will tell you the date.
Source: USDA Risk Management Agency, Beginning and Veteran Farmer and Rancher FAQ (November 2025). Veteran benefits were not changed by the 2025 One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
