Frequently Asked Questions

VA Disability Compensation is a program that gives a tax-free monthly payment to veterans who have an injury or disease that is service-connected (it happened while on active duty or it was made worse by active service). Your disability can be a physical condition like a chronic illness or injury, or a mental health condition like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). You can also get Disability Compensation for a disability that began after your active service ended, if your condition is related to a disability that began during your service, or if it was caused by the circumstances of your military service. Learn more about VA Disability Compensation.

Run by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), VA Disability Compensation is separate from the VA Pension program, which gives monthly payments and other benefits to low-income, wartime veterans age 65 or older, or who have a permanent and total disability (which does not have to be connected to their military service). For more details, read DB101’s article on the VA Pension.

If you have a service-connected disability and are still in military service, you can apply for VA Disability Compensation before you leave the military:

• If you have 180 to 90 days left on active duty, you can apply through the Benefits Delivery at Discharge (BDD) program. Learn more about BDD and how to file through BDD if you’re stationed overseas.
• If you are wounded, injured, or ill and can’t perform your duties, your doctor will refer you to the Integrated Disability Evaluation Systems (IDES) to file your claim and receive services. Learn more about IDES.
• If you have less than 90 days left on active duty or your case requires special handling, you can’t use the BDD program, but you can start the process before your discharge date. Learn how to file a claim less than 90 days before discharge.

If you have already left military service, there are several ways to apply for VA disability benefits. You can:

• File online, or
• Download VA Form 21-526EZ, print it out, complete it, and submit it
  • By mail to:
    Department of Veterans Affairs
    Claims Intake Center
    PO Box 4444
    Janesville, WI 53547-4444, or
  • In person at the VA's Phoenix Regional Office, or
  • By fax to 1-844-531-7818 if you are in the U.S., or 1-248-524-4260 if outside the U.S.
• Work with an accredited representative.

The Fully Developed Claims (FDC) program by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is an optional way of applying for VA Disability Compensation benefits. With a standard claim the VA must ask for relevant records from any federal agency that you clearly identify, and gather other relevant records from other sources (like a private doctor, hospital, state or local governments, or current or former employers).

The FDC process is typically faster than a standard claim because when you submit your application you must include all relevant records that you have, plus any records that are easy to get, like private medical records. The VA then makes it decision based on the evidence you provided.

The FDC process takes more work by you, but it can mean you might start getting your benefits sooner. And the FDC process is risk-free: if the VA decides it needs more evidence to process your claim, it just takes your claim out of FDC and handles it as a standard claim. Learn more about the Fully Developed Claims program.

When you apply for VA Disability Compensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), you will need to submit or give the VA permission to gather:

• Your DD214 or other separation documents
• Your service treatment records
• Medical records related to your illness or injury, like doctor’s reports, X-rays, and medical test results

You can also submit supporting statements from family, friends, coworkers, clergy, or law enforcement officers that tell how and when your disability happened or how it got worse.

Learn about evidence requirements so you know exactly what you need. Turn in copies (not your original documents, evidence or records), and make sure to keep your own copy of everything you submit. The VA explains how to upload your evidence online and lists additional forms you might need to file to support your claim or for specific types of conditions.

Note: As part of the evidence gathering process for a standard claim, the VA may order a claim exam (also called a Compensation & Pension or C&P exam), at no cost to you. Not everyone who files a claim goes to a VA claim exam, and if you are asking for benefits based on more than one disability, you might go to more than one claim exam. Learn more about VA claim exams.

When you apply for VA Disability Compensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), the VA gives you a specific disability rating (a percentage) for each disability you have, based on the evidence supporting your claim. The VA uses your disability rating to decide if you qualify for benefits and also to decide how much you get each month.

Ratings are given in amounts of 10%, starting at 0%, then 10%, 20%, and so on, up to 100%. If you have more than one disability, the VA uses a formula to calculate your combined disability rating. The VA formula is designed to make sure your total VA disability rating doesn’t add up to more than 100%, because a person can’t be more than 100% able-bodied.

This final combined rating usually isn’t the same as just adding together the ratings for each individual condition. For example, one condition with a 30% rating and another with a 20% rating would only give a combined rating of 40%, not 50%. Some people call this “VA math.”

The VA explains its disability ratings and also offers a video on Compensation 101: How did I get this Rating?

Learn more about how the VA calculates your Disability Compensation benefits.

You can’t get VA Disability Compensation and a VA Pension at the same time. However, it’s good to apply for both, because if you qualify for both, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) pays you whichever benefit is higher.

• VA Disability Compensation gives a tax-free monthly payment to veterans who have an injury or disease that is service-connected (it happened while on active duty or it was made worse by active service). Learn more about VA Disability Compensation.
• VA Pension gives monthly payments and other benefits to low-income, wartime veterans age 65 or older, or who have a permanent and total disability (which does not have to be connected to their military service). For more details, read DB101’s article on the VA Pension.

In most cases, when you retire from the military you can’t get both VA Disability Compensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and military retired pay. Instead, you have to waive your military retired pay, dollar for dollar, in order to get VA Disability Compensation benefits. However, there is an exception to this rule: Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay (CRDP). CRDP lets retirees with 20 or more years of military service and a VA disability rating of 50% or higher get both VA Disability Compensation and military retirement payments. Learn more about CRDP.

It’s possible to get both VA Disability Compensation and either Supplemental Security Income (SSI) or Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits from the Social Security Administration (SSA). However, the VA and Social Security use different definitions of disability, so you may qualify under one set of rules but not the other. Also, you must apply separately to the VA and Social Security.

• SSI treats VA disability benefit payments as “countable unearned income,” so your SSI benefit goes down a dollar for each dollar you get from the VA (except for the first $20, known as the general exclusion). Learn about SSI in DB101’s SSI article.
• SSDI benefits are not affected by VA disability payments, and your SSDI will not go down no matter how much you get from the VA. Social Security has a fact sheet comparing VA Disability and SSDI.

Note: If you qualify for both, you can get both VA Disability Compensation and Social Security Retirement (which is based on how much you worked and paid in Social Security taxes, and has no connection to your disability). The Social Security Administration offers an overview of Military Service and Social Security.

If the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) turns down your claim for VA Disability Compensation benefits and you don’t agree with them and think they made a mistake, you have three options:

• File a Supplemental Claim: If you have new and relevant evidence to submit, or you think you qualify now under new laws (like the PACT Act). Learn more about supplemental claims.
• Ask For a Higher-Level Review: If you want a new review of your case by someone at a higher level within the VA. (You can’t submit new evidence with a Higher-Level Review.) Learn more about Higher-Level Reviews.
• File a Board Appeal: If you want to ask the Board of Appeals in Washington, D.C. to have your case reviewed by a judge who is an expert in Veterans law. Learn more about Board Appeals.

You can only use one of these options at a time, but if you aren’t happy with the results of the first option you choose, you may be able to try another option.

The VA explains how to choose a decision review option and recommends that you get accredited help with a decision review request.

If you get VA Disability Compensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and your disability rating is less than 100%, but you can’t get or keep a job that pays as much as the Federal Poverty Guidelines (FPG) because of your service-related disability, the Individual Unemployability (IU) program may let you get benefits at a higher level, as if you have a 100% disability rating. Your disability rating doesn’t change, but you are paid at the higher rate.

Even if you have a job, you might qualify for IU. For example, you can get IU if you make less than FPG (called “marginal employment”) or if you have a job where, because of your disability, you don’t have to do exactly the same work or meet the same standards as someone else doing that job (called “sheltered employment”). Learn more about Individual Unemployability.

If you get VA Disability Compensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), you might be able to get a temporary increase in your benefits if all of these apply:

• Your service-connected condition requires that you have major surgery or one or more major joints immobilized by a cast
• You have to take at least a month off work or school to recover
• Your disability rating is less than 100%, and
• You are not eligible for Individual Unemployability (IU).

The VA may give you a temporary 100% rating for one to three months. If your case is severe, the 100% rating could be extended for up to another three months. Learn more about getting a temporary disability rating.