Virginia Line of Duty Act (LODA)

Program Overview 

The Virginia Line of Duty Act (LODA), established in Title 9.1 of the Code of Virginia and enacted in 1972, provides a waiver of undergraduate tuition and mandatory fees at any public institution of higher education to eligible family members of eligible employees and volunteers killed in the line of duty while serving under certain Virginian Commonwealth occupations (please see Code of Virginia link above for specific eligible state occupations).

Waiver Criteria

Institutions that grant waivers "shall waive the amounts payable for tuition, institutional charges and mandatory educational fees, and books and supplies1 but shall not waive user fees such as room and board charges."2

Eligibility Criteria

According to the Virginia Line of Duty Act, a waiver of undergraduate tuition and mandatory fees3 at any public institution of higher education under the following conditions:

  1. The chief executive officer of the deceased individual's employer certifies that such individual was so employed and was killed in the line of duty while serving or living in the Commonwealth; and
  2. The surviving spouse or child is admitted to, enrolls at, attends, and applies to such institution for the waiver. Waiver recipients who meet federal satisfactory academic progress (SAP)4 are eligible for renewal of such waiver.

Required Eligibility Documentation

  • Verification letter of line of duty death and benefits from employer.
  • Proof the deceased is the parent or spouse of the receiving student. 
    • Dependent: Copy of student’s birth certificate for dependent children
    • Spouse: Marriage license for spouse

Application Process

If you meet the eligibility criteria for Virginia Line of Duty Waiver, please submit required eligibility documents to SFS by email to [email protected]. Once received, we will review and follow up with an update within 5-15 business days of receipt. If eligible, the waiver will remain effective during the enrollment career as long as SAP continues to be met. 

1 Books and Supplies: If the books/materials are attached to the course, both the tuition and the books/material will be waived, however, books and supplies not billed by the institution will not be waived. For example, charges referred to a student account from the UVA bookstore are not waived because they are not attached to the course and a Board of Visitor approved fee. See more tuition and fees information at https://sfs.virginia.edu/tuition-billing/tuition-fees 
2 “§ 23.1-609. Surviving spouses and children of certain individuals; tuition and fee waivers.” Code of Virginia. https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title23.1/chapter6/section23.1-609/ 
3 Tuition and Fees: Waiver applies to undergraduate tuition and mandatory fees. The waiver excludes graduate tuition and fees, and additional charge categories such as Housing and Dining. See more tuition and fees information at https://sfs.virginia.edu/tuition-billing/tuition-fees 
4 SAP: To comply with federal satisfactory academic progress (SAP) requirements, at the end of the term of enrollment, the student’s grades will be reviewed to verify the student meets the SAP standards which is a requirement of all financial aid recipients. All undergraduate students must complete 67% of the attempted credits and maintain a 2.0 cumulative GPA. If a student is placed on financial aid suspension, the student is no longer eligible for financial aid, including the line of duty benefits, per the code of VA. More information about UVA’s SAP policy and process can be found here: https://sfs.virginia.edu/financial-aid-current-students/current-undergraduate-students/financial-aid-basics/eligibility/satisfactory-academic-progress