(a) General rule.--Any resident of this Commonwealth shall be exempt from the payment of all real estate taxes levied upon any building, including the land upon which it stands, occupied by that person as a principal dwelling, if all of the following requirements are met:
(1) That person has been honorably discharged or released under honorable circumstances from the armed forces of the United States for service in any war or armed conflict in which this nation was engaged.
(2) As a result of such military service, that person is blind or paraplegic or has sustained the loss of two or more limbs, or has a service-connected disability declared by the United States Veterans' Administration or its successors to be a total or 100% permanent disability.
(3) The dwelling is owned by that person solely, with his or her spouse or as an estate by the entireties.
(4) The need for the exemption from the payment of real estate taxes has been determined by the State Veterans' Commission in compliance with the requirements of this chapter.
(b) Extension of exemption.--The exemption provided in subsection (a) shall be extended to the unmarried surviving spouse upon the death of the eligible veteran provided that the State Veterans' Commission determines that such spouse is in need of an exemption.