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Disabled Veteran Benefits by Rating

Some of the biggest federal benefits unlock at specific VA disability rating levels, and a few high-value ones you can claim at any rating. Find your rating band below (or jump to a benefit) and you will land on exactly what you qualify for and the steps to claim it. Numbers that change (pay rates, limits) link to the official source; everything else is here on the page.

Education only. Not the VA, not a government agency, and not financial, tax, or legal advice. Help with a VA claim or rating is always free through a VA-accredited Veteran Service Officer.

Find your rating

Tap your rating band below to jump straight to the federal benefits you qualify for and how to claim each one. Below the rating bands are high-value benefits many veterans miss at any rating: Individual Unemployability (TDIU), VA dental, travel pay, and a tax refund on disability severance.

→ Rated 100 percent (Permanent and Total)

→ Rated 50 to 90 percent

→ Rated 10 to 40 percent

→ Individual Unemployability (TDIU): the 100 percent pay rate without a 100 percent rating

→ VA dental care and low-cost dental insurance

→ VA travel pay: get reimbursed for your appointments

→ Combat-Injured Veterans tax refund on disability severance

Rated 100 percent (Permanent and Total)

In this section

First, confirm your P&T status and get your proof letter

CHAMPVA: health coverage for your spouse and kids

Dependents' Educational Assistance (Chapter 35) and the Fry Scholarship

Total and Permanent Disability (TPD) discharge of federal student loans

VA home loan funding-fee waiver

Special Monthly Compensation (SMC)

Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay (CRDP) and Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC)

VA health care Priority Group 1

Commissary and exchange shopping privileges

Property tax relief (state-run)

If the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has rated you 100 percent Permanent and Total (P&T), or you're rated 100 percent through Individual Unemployability (IU, also written TDIU, Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability), a whole second layer of federal benefits opens up, mostly for your family, not just you. This guide walks through each one: what it is, who actually qualifies at your rating, and the exact steps to go get it. Individual Unemployability (IU) paid at the 100 percent rate counts as "100 percent" for almost everything below, but a couple of items need the Permanent and Total (P&T) box checked specifically, and we flag those. None of this is legal, tax, or financial advice, and none of it is a substitute for the VA's own guidance. We're not the VA and we're not the government. If anything here touches your underlying disability claim or rating itself, that goes to a free VA-accredited Veterans Service Organization (VSO), never to us and never to anyone charging a fee. Everything else below, though, is a benefit you can go claim yourself, and we walk you through it start to finish.

First, confirm your P&T status and get your proof letter

Almost every benefit below asks for proof of your rating and your Permanent and Total (P&T) status, so get this document once and reuse it everywhere.

Step 1 - Go to VA.gov: Download your VA benefit letters and sign in with ID.me, Login.gov, DS Logon, or My HealtheVet.

Step 2 - Confirm the mailing address on file is correct; VA will prompt you to check this first.

Step 3 - Open the Benefit Summary and Service Verification Letter. Before it generates, check the boxes for combined service-connected rating, service-connected disability status, and permanent and total (P&T) designation.

Step 4 - Save the PDF. This single letter is the proof nearly every agency below will ask you for.

Step 5 - If the letter does NOT show a Permanent and Total (P&T) designation and you believe you qualify for one, that question goes to a free accredited VSO (find one at VA.gov: Get help filing a claim), not to us. We never charge for claims help, and neither should anyone else.

CHAMPVA: health coverage for your spouse and kids

The Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs (CHAMPVA) is a cost-sharing health plan for the spouse and dependent children of a veteran rated 100 percent Permanent and Total (P&T). It is not free; think of it like a plan with a deductible and coinsurance, not a blank check. Your family cannot have CHAMPVA and TRICARE at the same time, they're mutually exclusive, so confirm which one actually applies to your household first.

Step 1 - Confirm eligibility: your CHAMPVA sponsor (you) must be rated Permanent and Total (P&T) for a service-connected disability, and your dependent must be a spouse or child (children generally lose eligibility at 18, or 23 if enrolled full-time in school). Confirm at VA.gov: CHAMPVA benefits.

Step 2 - Gather documents: your Benefit Summary Letter showing Permanent and Total (P&T) status, your dependent's Social Security number, a copy of your marriage certificate (for a spouse) or birth certificate/school enrollment proof (for a child), and Medicare Part A and B cards if your dependent is Medicare-eligible (Medicare-eligible dependents must be enrolled in Medicare to keep CHAMPVA).

Step 3 - Complete VA Form 10-10d, Application for CHAMPVA Benefits. Apply online at VA.gov: Apply for CHAMPVA benefits (Form 10-10d), or download the paper form at VA Form 10-10d (PDF).

Step 4 - If applying by mail, send the completed, signed form and copies of the documents above to the address printed on the form. There is no deadline to apply, but coverage starts only after VA processes and approves it, so don't wait.

Step 5 - Questions on eligibility or the form itself: call the CHAMPVA Help Line at 800-733-8387.

Step 6 - Once approved, file claims for care online rather than by paper. Go to VA.gov: File a CHAMPVA claim and sign in with Login.gov or ID.me. This is faster than mailing Form 10-7959a.

Step 7 - Put a reminder on your calendar for each dependent child's 18th and 23rd birthday. Coverage can lapse quietly if school-enrollment paperwork isn't kept current.

Dependents' Educational Assistance (Chapter 35) and the Fry Scholarship

Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA), also called Chapter 35, pays your spouse or child a separate monthly education benefit once you are rated Permanent and Total (P&T). It is its own program with its own lower pay rate, not your GI Bill transferred to them. The Fry Scholarship pays at the higher Post-9/11 GI Bill rate but is only for a spouse or child of a service member who died in the line of duty, not tied to your disability rating, so it doesn't apply just because you're rated 100 percent; it's listed here because the same application form covers both, and a family sometimes needs to choose.

Step 1 - Confirm eligibility: your spouse or child qualifies for Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA) once you're rated Permanent and Total (P&T) for a service-connected disability. On the timing, the rule turns on when you became eligible: if your Permanent and Total (P&T) rating (or the qualifying event) is dated before August 1, 2023, a spouse generally has 10 years from that date to use the benefit, and a child generally uses it between ages 18 and 26; for events on or after August 1, 2023, the fixed 10-year spouse deadline was removed. Confirm your exact window and the current child age band at VA.gov: Dependents' Educational Assistance.

Step 2 - Gather documents: your Benefit Summary Letter showing Permanent and Total (P&T) status, the dependent's Social Security number, and the school or training program's name if already chosen.

Step 3 - Complete VA Form 22-5490, Dependents' Application for VA Education Benefits. Apply online at VA.gov: Apply for DEA or Fry (Form 22-5490), or download the paper form at VA Form 22-5490 (PDF).

Step 4 - If the dependent could qualify under both Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA) and the Fry Scholarship for a different sponsor, know that VA generally requires an irrevocable election between the two programs at application. Read the current rules on the application page in Step 3 before submitting, since this choice usually can't be undone.

Step 5 - If you also have Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits you can transfer, the dependent uses VA Form 22-1990e to apply to use the transferred benefit at a specific school instead of Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA). Compare the two dollar amounts before choosing; Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA) pays a flat monthly rate, while transferred Post-9/11 GI Bill pays tuition plus a housing allowance. See current rate tables at VA.gov: DEA rates and VA.gov: Post-9/11 GI Bill rates.

Step 6 - Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA, Chapter 35) students now verify enrollment monthly to keep payments flowing. Set a recurring monthly reminder once your dependent is enrolled; the verification prompt and current method are on the program page at VA.gov: Dependents' Educational Assistance.

Step 7 - If your dependent's target school is private, out-of-state, or graduate-level, check whether it participates in the Yellow Ribbon Program (matching funds that cover tuition above the standard cap) at VA.gov: Find a Yellow Ribbon school.

Total and Permanent Disability (TPD) discharge of federal student loans

A Total and Permanent Disability (TPD) discharge is a U.S. Department of Education program, run through Federal Student Aid, that cancels your remaining federal student loan balance if you're rated 100 percent Permanent and Total (P&T), or rated 100 percent through Individual Unemployability (IU). There's no partial version and no lower-rating tier; it's this threshold or nothing. The best part: it can trigger automatically without you filing anything, but that also means it can silently stall if your paperwork doesn't line up. Check it yourself rather than waiting on a letter.

Step 1 - Log into studentaid.gov and check whether you already carry federal student loan debt and whether a Total and Permanent Disability (TPD) discharge is already flagged on your account. The Department of Education runs a data match with the VA on a recurring basis looking for borrowers with a 100 percent Permanent and Total (P&T) or Individual Unemployability (IU) determination on file.

Step 2 - Confirm your name, Social Security number, and current mailing address match exactly between your loan servicer's records and VA's records. Mismatches or an old address are the single biggest reason this stalls.

Step 3 - If you get a notification letter saying you were identified for automatic discharge, read it. You get a 60-day window to opt out before the discharge processes; if you don't want to opt out, you don't have to do anything else. Do not ignore or trash this letter thinking it's spam.

Step 4 - If nothing has been flagged automatically, apply directly. Start the Total and Permanent Disability (TPD) Discharge Application at studentaid.gov: Total and Permanent Disability Discharge, or see the step-by-step at studentaid.gov: How to qualify and apply for TPD discharge.

Step 5 - Gather documents: your VA Benefit Summary Letter showing the 100 percent Permanent and Total (P&T) or Individual Unemployability (IU) determination is the standard proof for a veteran applicant.

Step 6 - Submit online through the application in Step 4, or upload your signed application and documents via the Document Upload Tool at studentaid.gov (select "Total and Permanent Disability (TPD) Discharge" from the dropdown), or mail to: U.S. Department of Education, P.O. Box 300010, Greenville, TX 75403, or fax to 540-212-2415.

Step 7 - Before you count the forgiven balance as a clean windfall, know the federal tax exclusion on debt discharged through Total and Permanent Disability (TPD) discharge is currently treated as permanent, but state tax treatment varies. If your balance is meaningful, check with a tax professional in your state before assuming it's tax-free everywhere.

VA home loan funding-fee waiver

When you use a VA-backed home loan, VA normally charges a one-time funding fee at closing (a percentage of the loan added to your costs). If you receive VA disability compensation, that fee is waived entirely, which can save you thousands on a purchase or refinance. This is a claimable benefit tied to your rating, and it usually posts automatically, but it can be missed, so it's worth confirming yourself and knowing the refund path if you were charged in error.

Step 1 - Confirm eligibility: veterans receiving (or eligible to receive) VA disability compensation are exempt from the VA home loan funding fee. Read the rule at VA.gov: VA funding fee and loan closing costs.

Step 2 - Get your Certificate of Eligibility (COE), which is the document that tells your lender whether the funding fee applies to you. Request it online at VA.gov: How to request a VA home loan Certificate of Eligibility, and if you need the paper route, use VA Form 26-1880, Request for a Certificate of Eligibility.

Step 3 - Have your proof ready: your Benefit Summary Letter showing you receive VA disability compensation. Your lender uses this plus the Certificate of Eligibility to code the loan as exempt so the fee is never charged at closing.

Step 4 - Tell your lender up front, before closing, that you are exempt from the funding fee. Ask them to confirm in writing that the exemption is reflected on your Loan Estimate and Closing Disclosure, because catching it before closing is far easier than clawing it back after.

Step 5 - If you already closed and were charged the funding fee even though your disability claim was pending or approved as of the loan date, you can get it refunded. Contact your lender first, and if that stalls, contact your VA Regional Loan Center; find the current contact route at VA.gov: VA regional loan centers.

Special Monthly Compensation (SMC)

Special Monthly Compensation (SMC) is a higher tax-free payment layered on top of your standard 100 percent rate for specific severe losses, like loss of use of a limb, blindness, or needing daily aid and attendance, that the standard 0-to-100 percent rating scale doesn't fully capture. It is triggered by specific medical facts already on your record, not by a percentage, so some veterans already qualify and don't know it.

Step 1 - Review your own VA rating decisions for any of these already-documented conditions: loss or loss of use of a hand, foot, or a creative organ; blindness or severe vision loss; deafness in both ears; need for regular aid and attendance; or being housebound because of a service-connected disability. See the full ladder of triggers at VA.gov: Special Monthly Compensation rates.

Step 2 - If you think a condition on file might already qualify but you're not currently receiving a Special Monthly Compensation (SMC) add-on, gather your VA rating decision letters and any medical evidence describing the functional loss (a doctor's statement describing your need for aid and attendance, for example).

Step 3 - File a claim for Special Monthly Compensation (SMC) using VA Form 21-526EZ, Application for Disability Compensation and Related Compensation Benefits, the same general disability-claim form, noting the specific triggering condition and evidence in the claim. Start at VA.gov: File for disability compensation.

Step 4 - Because this is a claims action (asking VA to recognize a new or additional entitlement), do this with a free, VA-accredited Veterans Service Officer, not on your own and never with a paid "consultant." Find one at VA.gov: Find a VSO.

Step 5 - Ask your VSO specifically whether your existing record supports the anatomical-loss tier, the housebound tier (100 percent plus a separate 60 percent-or-more disability), or a higher tier tied to needing daily personal care. The tiers and current rates are listed at the link in Step 1.

Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay (CRDP) and Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC)

If you're a military retiree who also draws VA disability compensation, federal law normally reduces your retired pay dollar-for-dollar by your VA compensation (the "VA Waiver"). Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay (CRDP) and Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC) are the two federal programs that restore some or all of that offset. A 100 percent rating clears the Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay (CRDP) ratings bar easily (the threshold is 50 percent combined), and this section matters only if you are a retiree, not every veteran qualifies.

Step 1 - Confirm you're a retiree: 20-plus years of creditable service (or a qualifying Chapter 61 medical retirement, or a Guard/Reserve retiree age 60-plus drawing retired pay) and currently receiving both retired pay and VA disability compensation.

Step 2 - Check whether Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay (CRDP) is already showing on your retiree account. It's designed to start automatically once the Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) has your 50 percent-or-more VA rating on file; log into myPay at mypay.dfas.mil and check your latest retiree account statement for a Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay (CRDP) line item.

Step 3 - If you believe you qualify for Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay (CRDP) and it isn't showing, call DFAS Retired and Annuitant Pay at 800-321-1080 and ask them to review your account.

Step 4 - Separately, if any of your service-connected conditions are combat-related (from armed conflict, hazardous duty like flight or diving, training that simulates war, or an "instrumentality of war" such as a combat vehicle, weapon, or Agent Orange exposure), you may also qualify for Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC), which is tax-free but requires an application and pays only on the combat-related portion of your rating.

Step 5 - Gather documents for Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC): your DD Form 214/215, your VA rating decision letters, VA medical records or physician reports tying each condition to a combat-related cause, and any relevant military medical records.

Step 6 - Complete DD Form 2860, Claim for Combat-Related Special Compensation, at DD Form 2860 (PDF), and mail it to your branch of service's Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC) office (Army: U.S. Army Human Resources Command, Attn: AHRC-PDP-C (CRSC), 1600 Spearhead Division Avenue, Dept. 480, Fort Knox, KY 40122-5408; Air Force: HQ AFPC/DPPDC, 550 C Street West, Randolph AFB, TX 78150-4708; Navy/Marine Corps: Secretary of the Navy Council of Review Boards, Attn: CRSC Branch, 720 Kennon Street SE, Suite 309, Washington Navy Yard, DC 20374-5023; Coast Guard: Commander (PSC-PSD-MED), 2703 Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20593-7200). Confirm the current mailing or email address for your branch at VA.gov: Combat-Related Special Compensation overview.

Step 7 - File Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC) as soon as you can. Filing within 6 years of your VA rating decision preserves your maximum retroactive back-pay window; filing later caps how far back you can be paid.

Step 8 - You can only be paid under Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay (CRDP) or Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC) in a given month, not both, for the same offset. Every December, the Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) mails an Open Season election letter; read it and compare the after-tax value of each program (Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay is taxable, Combat-Related Special Compensation is tax-free) before deciding whether to switch for the coming year.

VA health care Priority Group 1

VA health care enrollment is separate from your disability claim. Every enrollee gets sorted into one of VA's 8 Priority Groups, which controls how fast you're scheduled and what, if anything, you pay. At 100 percent (schedular or Individual Unemployability) you land in the top tier automatically.

Step 1 - Confirm the rule: a service-connected disability rated 50 percent or more, or a rating of unemployable due to service-connected conditions (Individual Unemployability), places you in Priority Group 1, VA's highest tier, with no copays for outpatient, inpatient, or medication tied to any condition. See VA.gov: Priority groups and VA.gov: Copay rates.

Step 2 - If you're not already enrolled in VA health care, complete VA Form 10-10EZ, Application for Health Benefits. Apply online at VA.gov: Apply for VA health care (Form 10-10EZ).

Step 3 - Alternatives to the online form: call 1-877-222-8387, visit any VA medical facility and ask for the enrollment coordinator, or mail your form to Health Eligibility Center, 2957 Clairmont Road, Suite 200, Atlanta, GA 30329.

Step 4 - Documents to have ready: your Social Security number, your DD-214 or other discharge paperwork, current insurance information (if any), and your Benefit Summary Letter showing your rating.

Step 5 - Once enrolled, ask specifically to be confirmed as Priority Group 1 at your local VA medical center; this drives your copay exemptions and scheduling priority.

Step 6 - At 100 percent (permanent, not a temporary 100 percent rating from something like a lengthy hospital stay), you also become eligible for VA dental Class IV (any needed dental care). Ask your VA medical center's dental clinic to confirm this eligibility once enrolled; see VA.gov: Dental care.

Step 7 - If your nearest VA facility is far away or has a long wait, ask your VA care team about a community care referral; VA has published drive-time and wait-time standards (roughly 30 minutes or 20 days for primary and mental health care, 60 minutes or 28 days for specialty care) that can qualify you to see a civilian provider paid by VA. See VA.gov: Community care eligibility.

Commissary and exchange shopping privileges

Veterans certified by VA as 100 percent disabled in connection with military service (this includes Medal of Honor recipients and, since a 2020 expansion, veterans with any service-connected disability rating, along with Purple Heart recipients and former prisoners of war) can shop at military commissaries and exchanges, and use Morale, Welfare and Recreation (MWR) retail facilities, the same as active-duty families.

Step 1 - Confirm you don't need to apply for this one; it's an access privilege tied to your existing VA rating, not a separate benefit application.

Step 2 - Get the right ID before you go: either your Veteran Health Identification Card (VHIC) or a copy of your VA benefit letter showing your disability rating, along with a state-issued photo ID (driver's license or passport).

Step 3 - If you don't yet have a Veteran Health Identification Card (VHIC), request one through your VA health care enrollment (see the VA health care section above); it's issued once you're enrolled.

Step 4 - At the installation gate or facility entrance, present your Veteran Health Identification Card (VHIC) or VA letter plus photo ID; most installations can verify eligibility on the spot. Confirm current entry requirements for the specific installation you plan to visit before driving out, since gate procedures vary by base.

Step 5 - For questions on eligibility or documentation, see VA.gov: Commissary and exchange privileges for veterans.

Property tax relief (state-run)

Many states cut or fully eliminate property tax on the home of a 100 percent Permanent and Total (P&T) veteran, but this is run entirely by your state and county, not the federal government, so the rules, forms, and deadlines are different everywhere. We've built a full state-by-state guide so you don't have to hunt for your own state's rule.

Step 1 - Go to Benefits by State and find your state's page for the exact rating threshold, the size of the break, the form, and your county's filing deadline.

Step 2 - Bring the same Benefit Summary Letter from the top of this guide; nearly every county asks for it as proof of your rating and Permanent and Total (P&T) status.

Print-and-take checklist

☐ Downloaded my Benefit Summary and Service Verification Letter from VA.gov: Download VA letters, with combined rating, service-connected status, and Permanent and Total (P&T) boxes checked.

☐ CHAMPVA: confirmed my family isn't already on TRICARE, gathered dependent documents, and filed VA Form 10-10d at VA.gov: Apply for CHAMPVA.

☐ Education: filed VA Form 22-5490 for my spouse or child's Dependents' Educational Assistance (Chapter 35) or Fry Scholarship at VA.gov: Apply for DEA/Fry, and checked whether transferred Post-9/11 GI Bill or Yellow Ribbon pays more.

☐ Student loans: logged into studentaid.gov to check my Total and Permanent Disability (TPD) discharge status, and confirmed my name, Social Security number, and address match VA's records.

☐ VA home loan: got my Certificate of Eligibility at VA.gov: Request a COE and told my lender in writing that I'm exempt from the funding fee (or requested a refund if I was charged in error).

☐ Special Monthly Compensation (SMC): reviewed my rating decisions for any already-documented losses (limb, vision, hearing, aid and attendance) and, if found, started a claim with a free accredited VSO.

☐ If I'm a military retiree: checked my myPay retiree account for a Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay (CRDP) line item, and if any condition is combat-related, filed DD Form 2860 with my branch's Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC) office.

☐ VA health care: enrolled (or confirmed enrollment) with VA Form 10-10EZ at VA.gov: Apply for VA health care and confirmed I'm coded Priority Group 1.

☐ Requested my Veteran Health Identification Card (VHIC) for commissary and exchange access.

☐ Property tax: visited Benefits by State for my state's exact form, threshold, and county deadline.

This guide is education only. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or a substitute for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department of Defense, the Department of Education, or any other government agency, and it is not legal, tax, or financial advice. Rules, rates, forms, and deadlines change; always verify at the official source linked above before you rely on it. If anything here touches filing or increasing your underlying VA disability claim or rating, that is claims work, and it is free through a VA-accredited Veterans Service Officer. Never pay anyone a fee to file or increase a claim, and never let anyone charge for help with CHAMPVA, Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA), Total and Permanent Disability (TPD) discharge, the VA home loan funding-fee waiver, Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay (CRDP), Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC), or VA health care enrollment either; these are all free, self-service federal processes. Be especially alert to "pension poaching": unaccredited people or companies who charge fees, push you toward moving money into trusts or annuities, or offer a lump-sum "buyout" of your future VA payments in order to qualify you for a benefit or to "help" with paperwork. Report suspected fraud to the VA Office of Inspector General hotline at va.gov/oig/hotline or by calling 1-800-827-1000.

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Rated 50 to 90 percent

In this section

Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay (50 percent or higher, military retirees only)

VA health care Priority Group 1 (50 percent or higher)

VA home loan funding-fee waiver (any compensable rating, not specific to 50 to 90 percent)

Federal civil-service hiring preference (10-point, the CP and CPS tiers, at 10 percent and 30 percent or higher specifically)

Veteran Readiness and Employment, Chapter 31 (20 percent with an employment handicap up through 90 percent, if it fits your situation)

Special Monthly Compensation (fact-triggered, not tied to a specific percentage band)

If you just landed anywhere in the 50 to 90 percent combined range from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), you crossed several real thresholds at once, not just a bigger monthly check. This band is where a lot of federal benefits click on for the first time. Top-priority VA health care, a home loan funding-fee waiver, a real leg up in federal hiring, and, if you are a military retiree, a fix for a pay offset that may be quietly costing you money every month. This guide walks through each one, tells you exactly which ones need 50 percent or higher specifically versus any compensable rating at all, and gives you the actual form, the office that handles it, and the steps to go get it. Nothing here is invented. Every dollar figure and threshold below links back to the official source so you can double-check it yourself before you act.

A couple of terms come up throughout, so let's define them once. Permanent and Total (P&T) means VA has determined your service-connected disability is both total (rated 100 percent) and unlikely to ever improve. Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) is the Department of Defense agency that pays military retirees. Individual Unemployability, sometimes written Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability, is a VA determination that pays you at the 100 percent rate because your service-connected conditions keep you from holding substantially gainful work, even when your schedular rating is lower. Keep those in your back pocket, because they show up more than once below.

One more thing before you dive in. This guide is education, not legal, tax, or financial advice, and it has no affiliation with the VA or any government agency. If anything here touches your actual disability rating (filing a new claim, appealing a decision, or arguing you deserve a higher percentage), that is claims work, and a free, VA-accredited Veteran Service Officer handles it at no cost. Never pay anyone for basic claims help. More on that in the disclaimer at the end.

Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay (50 percent or higher, military retirees only)

What it is: If you retired from the military with 20 or more years of service and you also draw VA disability compensation, federal law normally forces you to waive a dollar of retired pay for every dollar of VA compensation you receive (the "VA Waiver" or "VA offset"). Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay restores that waived retired pay. Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay specifically needs a VA combined rating of 50 percent or higher. There is no path to it below that line, no matter how many years you served. DFAS, Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay

Who qualifies: A regular 20-year-or-more retiree (or a Guard/Reserve retiree age 60 and up drawing retired pay, or a qualifying Chapter 61 medical retiree) with a VA combined disability rating of 50 percent or higher, who is currently having retired pay reduced by the VA Waiver.

Step 1 - Confirm you are even subject to the offset. Log in to myPay at myPay.dfas.mil with your military retiree account and pull your latest Retiree Account Statement. Look for a line labeled "VA Waiver" reducing your gross retired pay. If it is not there, you have nothing to restore. If you cannot log in, call DFAS Retired and Annuitant Pay at 1-800-321-1080.

Step 2 - Check whether Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay is already running. It requires no application if you meet the 50 percent rating and 20-year (or qualifying Chapter 61) rules, because DFAS is supposed to turn it on automatically. Look for a "CRDP" line on that same Retiree Account Statement restoring some or all of the waived amount.

Step 3 - If you meet the criteria and don't see it, call DFAS. Contact DFAS Retired and Annuitant Pay at 1-800-321-1080 (or write to the address on your Retiree Account Statement) and ask them to review your Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay eligibility. Have your VA rating decision letter and retiree account number ready.

Step 4 - If you were medically retired under Chapter 61 with fewer than 20 years, don't assume you're covered. Chapter 61 retirees generally need to reach the point of having 20 or more years of service credit (commonly aligned with age 60 under Reserve retirement rules) before Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay applies. If you're not there yet, Combat-Related Special Compensation (covered below) may be your route instead, since it has no 50 percent floor.

Step 5 - Watch every December. If you ever qualify for both Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay and Combat-Related Special Compensation, DFAS runs an annual Open Season each December where you can switch your election for the following year. Read that letter when it arrives and don't let it sit. DFAS, December 2025 Retiree Newsletter, Open Season FAQs

A companion program, not gated to 50 percent: Combat-Related Special Compensation restores the same kind of waived retired pay, but it is tax-free, requires only a 10 percent or higher VA rating for a combat-related disability, and is never automatic. You apply with DD Form 2860 directly to your branch of service (not the VA, not DFAS). If any of your rated conditions trace to armed conflict, hazardous duty, an instrument of war, or war-simulating training, it is worth filing regardless of whether you also get Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay, since you can only be paid under one program at a time and DFAS or your branch will help you compare. File within 6 years of your VA rating decision to preserve full retroactive back pay.

Army: mail to Army Human Resources Command, ATTN: AHRC-PDP-V, 1600 Spearhead Division Avenue, Fort Knox, KY 40122

Air Force and Space Force: HQ AFPC/DPPDC (CRSC), 550 C Street West, Suite 6, Randolph AFB, TX 78150-4708

Coast Guard: Commander (PSC-PSD-MED), 2703 Martin Luther King Jr Ave SE, Washington, DC 20593-7200

Navy and Marine Corps: check current mailing instructions on the DFAS Combat-Related Special Compensation page before mailing, since branch contact details change

Get the current DD Form 2860 at esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/DD/forms/dd/dd2860.pdf and confirm your branch's current submission address on the DFAS Combat-Related Special Compensation overview before mailing, since these addresses do change.

VA health care Priority Group 1 (50 percent or higher)

What it is: VA sorts every health care enrollee into one of 8 Priority Groups, which determines how quickly you get scheduled and whether you owe copays. A service-connected rating of 50 percent or more puts you automatically in Priority Group 1, the top tier, with the broadest copay exemptions VA offers. VA.gov, Priority groups

Who qualifies: Any veteran with a service-connected disability rated 50 percent or more disabling (also Priority Group 1 if you're rated at the 100 percent rate based on Individual Unemployability, or you're a Medal of Honor recipient). Below 50 percent, you can still enroll, but you land in a different priority group with different copay rules. A 10 percent or higher rating already gets you $0 outpatient copays regardless of priority group, so this isn't an all-or-nothing gate, but 50 percent or higher is what gets you Priority Group 1 itself.

Step 1 - Check whether you're already enrolled. Log in at VA.gov, Manage your VA health benefits to see your current enrollment status and priority group. If you've never enrolled, move to Step 2.

Step 2 - Apply with VA Form 10-10EZ, Application for Health Benefits. Apply online at VA.gov, Apply for VA health care, by phone at 1-877-222-8387, by mail, or in person at your local VA medical facility. Online is fastest.

Step 3 - Have these ready before you start: your Social Security number (and your spouse's or dependents' if applicable), your DD-214 or other discharge paperwork, military service history, any hazard or toxin exposure information, current insurance card information, and prior-year gross household income for you and your spouse.

Step 4 - Submit and wait for confirmation. VA typically sends written notice of your enrollment status within 5 to 7 days. If your rating is 50 percent or higher, confirm the notice shows Priority Group 1. If it doesn't, call the Enrollment Coordinator at your local VA medical facility and flag the discrepancy, since priority group placement is based on VA's system data and this occasionally needs a manual fix.

Step 5 - Understand what Priority Group 1 buys you. As of the copay rates effective January 1, 2026: $0 outpatient primary care and specialty care copays for any veteran with a 10 percent or higher rating (this applies regardless of priority group), and Priority Group 1 veterans specifically pay $0 for prescription medications tied to non-service-connected conditions, where Priority Groups 2 through 8 pay a tiered copay. Preventive care, labs, and X-rays are free for everyone. VA.gov, Copay rates

Step 6 - If you're rated 100 percent Permanent and Total (P&T), or entitled to the 100 percent rate via Individual Unemployability, separately check VA dental Class IV. Full VA dental care (any needed treatment) is available at that level, but VA excludes temporary 100 percent ratings from this specific benefit, so confirm your rating is permanent, not temporary, before assuming you qualify. If instead you have a compensable, rated service-connected dental condition (any rating level, not tied to 50 to 90 percent specifically), you likely qualify for Class I dental care for that condition. Either way, apply through the same VA.gov health care application and ask your VA dental clinic which class applies to you.

VA home loan funding-fee waiver (any compensable rating, not specific to 50 to 90 percent)

What it is: The VA funding fee is a one-time percentage-of-loan-amount charge on most VA-backed home loans, meant to offset the cost of a program that requires no down payment and no private mortgage insurance. Any veteran receiving VA compensation for a service-connected disability is exempt from paying it, $0 funding fee. This waiver is tied to receiving compensable VA compensation at all, not to hitting 50 percent. Since compensation generally starts at the 10 percent rating level, in practice the exemption functions starting around 10 percent, and it absolutely still applies to you at 50, 60, 70, 80, or 90 percent. VA.gov, Funding fee and closing costs

Who qualifies for the waiver: You're receiving VA compensation for a service-connected disability (any compensable rating), or you're eligible for it but instead draw retirement or active-duty pay, or you're a surviving spouse receiving Dependency and Indemnity Compensation, or you have a pre-discharge proposed or memorandum rating showing entitlement before the loan closes, or you're an active-duty member with a documented Purple Heart before closing.

Step 1 - Get your Certificate of Eligibility before you shop for a lender. Apply using VA Form 26-1880, Request for a Certificate of Eligibility. Apply online through VA.gov, Request a Certificate of Eligibility (fastest, often issued immediately if VA's system has your data), or have any VA-approved lender pull it for you, or mail the paper form to the address listed on VA.gov's Certificate of Eligibility page (mail turnaround runs 4 to 6 weeks).

Step 2 - Confirm your Certificate of Eligibility shows funding-fee-exempt status. The certificate should reflect your exemption directly (VA folded this into the certificate back in 2011, so most veterans no longer need a separate form for this). Bring the certificate to every lender you shop, not just the one you pick.

Step 3 - Watch your Loan Estimate and Closing Disclosure. Before you sign anything, check that the funding fee line shows $0. Lenders pull VA eligibility data automatically, but errors happen, so this is your last checkpoint before closing.

Step 4 - If you already paid the fee and later got a new or increased rating, check for a refund. If your compensation's effective date is retroactive to before your closing date, you may be owed the fee back. Contact your loan servicer or your VA Regional Loan Center and provide your VA award letter (showing the effective date) plus your closing disclosure showing the fee paid. Find your regional loan center contact at VA.gov, Home loans and housing-related assistance. A proposed or memorandum rating issued after closing does not qualify for a refund. Only an effective date before your closing date counts.

Step 5 - If you don't yet have a Certificate of Eligibility and want to buy soon, start Step 1 now. It's a documentation step, not a waiting game, and having it in hand before you're under contract avoids a last-minute scramble.

Federal civil-service hiring preference (10-point, the CP and CPS tiers, at 10 percent and 30 percent or higher specifically)

What it is: In competitive federal government hiring (not private-sector jobs), veterans with a service-connected disability get extra points added to their examination or rating score, administered by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and applied through USAJOBS. At your 50 to 90 percent rating, you automatically qualify for the strongest tier. OPM, What is 10-point preference and who is eligible

Who qualifies (by tier): The 10-point compensable disability tier (CP) covers a compensable rating of 10 percent up to 30 percent. The 10-point compensable disability tier of 30 percent or more (CPS) adds extra procedural protections on top of the points. That 30-percent-or-more tier is the one you're in anywhere from 50 percent to 90 percent.

Step 1 - Get proof of your rating: your VA disability rating decision letter or your "Benefit summary and service verification letter," downloadable at VA.gov, Download your VA benefit letters. Sign in, and when generating the letter, check the boxes for your combined rating and service-connected status.

Step 2 - Fill out Standard Form 15 (SF-15), Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference. Download it directly at OPM, SF-15. This form, plus your supporting documents, is what agencies use to adjudicate your preference claim.

Step 3 - Assemble your documentation packet: your DD-214 (showing character of service), the completed Standard Form 15, and your VA rating letter showing your percentage of disability.

Step 4 - Submit the packet with each individual federal job application, not to OPM directly. Upload it as part of your application through USAJOBS for each position you apply to. Preference is claimed per application, not registered once centrally.

Step 5 - Know what the 30-percent-or-more tier gets you beyond points. At 30 percent or higher (your tier), if an agency wants to pass over you for someone without preference, or to medically disqualify you, it must notify OPM and you, and you get 15 days to respond to OPM before it rules. This is a real procedural backstop specific to the 30-percent-or-more tier, not just points on a test.

Step 6 - Also look into the Schedule A "30 Percent or More Disabled" appointing authority. This is a separate, non-competitive hiring path that lets a federal hiring manager appoint you directly, skipping the standard USAJOBS competitive process, at any grade you're qualified for. It requires a VA letter documenting your 30-percent-or-higher compensable rating (which you already have), but you still have to find and apply to an eligible position yourself. It removes competition, it doesn't place you in a job. Read more at OPM, Special Hiring Authorities for Veterans.

Veteran Readiness and Employment, Chapter 31 (20 percent with an employment handicap up through 90 percent, if it fits your situation)

What it is: Veteran Readiness and Employment, run by the VA, helps veterans with service-connected disabilities prepare for, find, and keep suitable work, or live more independently if working isn't realistic right now. It pays a monthly living-expense stipend plus tuition, fees, and books while you work a personalized plan with a VA Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor. You don't need 50 percent or higher specifically for this one. A 20 percent rating with an "employment handicap" finding (or 10 percent with a more serious finding) already gets you in the door, and everyone from 50 percent to 90 percent clears that bar on rating alone. VA.gov, Veteran Readiness and Employment overview

Who qualifies: A VA service-connected disability rating of at least 10 percent (with a "serious employment handicap" finding) or 20 percent or more (with a standard "employment handicap" finding), an other-than-dishonorable discharge, and, if you were discharged before January 1, 2013, application within a 12-year window from discharge or first rating notice (no time limit if discharged on or after January 1, 2013).

Step 1 - Apply with VA Form 28-1900, Application for Veteran Readiness and Employment. Apply online at VA.gov, Apply for Veteran Readiness and Employment, which is faster than paper.

Step 2 - If mailing instead, send the completed form to: Department of Veterans Affairs, Veteran Readiness and Employment Intake Center, P.O. Box 5210, Janesville, WI 53547-5210.

Step 3 - Or apply in person at any VA regional office, where a VA employee can walk you through it, or work with a free accredited Veteran Service Officer who can help you apply (they cannot decide your entitlement, but they can help you file cleanly).

Step 4 - Attend your scheduled meeting with a VA Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor. This is where VA determines whether you have an "employment handicap" and are entitled to actually use the program. Your rating gets you eligible to apply, but the counselor's finding is what grants entitlement.

Step 5 - Before locking in your monthly stipend rate, compare it against the Post-9/11 GI Bill housing-allowance election. If you're also eligible for the Post-9/11 GI Bill, you can elect to be paid the GI Bill's monthly housing-allowance rate instead of the standard Veteran Readiness and Employment subsistence rate. Ask your Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor which is higher for your ZIP code and dependent count before defaulting to either one. This doesn't cost you GI Bill months either way. Compare rate tables at Benefits.va.gov, Veteran Readiness and Employment Subsistence Allowance Rates.

Step 6 - Know your time and dollar limits. Veteran Readiness and Employment runs up to 48 months of services (extensions possible in certain circumstances), separate from and not drawing down your GI Bill entitlement.

Special Monthly Compensation (fact-triggered, not tied to a specific percentage band)

What it is: Special Monthly Compensation is an additional tax-free payment layered on top of standard VA compensation for veterans with specific severe losses, such as loss of use of a limb, blindness, being housebound, or needing daily aid and attendance, where the standard 0 to 100 percent schedule alone doesn't capture the real severity. Special Monthly Compensation eligibility turns on the specific medical fact, not your percentage rating, which means a veteran at any point in the 50 to 90 percent band, including alongside other ratings, could already qualify for a Special Monthly Compensation add-on without realizing it. VA.gov, Special Monthly Compensation rates

Who qualifies: It depends on the specific loss or need, not a percentage threshold. One relevant example at this band is the housebound rate (Special Monthly Compensation category S), which applies if you have one disability rated 100 percent plus a separate additional disability (or disabilities) rated 60 percent or more, or if you're permanently housebound due to a service-connected disability. That is a combination some veterans in the 50 to 90 percent combined-rating range can reach depending on how their individual conditions are rated. Remember, VA combines ratings using its own table, not simple addition, so two ratings can combine into a housebound-qualifying pattern even when the combined percentage itself looks lower than 100 percent.

Step 1 - Pull your full VA rating decision letter and look at your individual disability ratings, not just your combined percentage. Download it at VA.gov, Download your VA benefit letters. Special Monthly Compensation triggers are about the specific conditions on file (loss of use of a hand or foot, need for aid and attendance, deafness in both ears, and similar), so review each rated condition individually.

Step 2 - Compare your conditions against the Special Monthly Compensation categories listed at VA.gov, Special Monthly Compensation rates. If anything looks like it might match (loss of use of an extremity, loss of a paired organ, regular need for aid and attendance, housebound status), that's worth raising.

Step 3 - If you think you may already qualify but it's not showing on your award, this specific step is a claims matter, because determining whether your medical facts meet a Special Monthly Compensation trigger is adjudicative, not something you self-certify with a form. Route it to a free accredited Veteran Service Officer, found through VA.gov's accredited representative search. They can review your file and, if warranted, help you file for Special Monthly Compensation recognition at no cost. Do not pay anyone for this.

Step 4 - If VA later adds Special Monthly Compensation to your award, confirm it shows up correctly on your compensation statement at VA.gov under your disability compensation records, and watch for a retroactive or back-pay adjustment if the underlying medical fact existed before the Special Monthly Compensation award date.

Print-and-take checklist

☐ Pull your DFAS Retiree Account Statement at myPay.dfas.mil and check for a "VA Waiver" line (military retirees only)

☐ If 20 or more years and rated 50 percent or higher, confirm Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay is already posted on that statement; call DFAS at 1-800-321-1080 if it's missing

☐ If any condition is combat-related, gather your rating decision, DD-214, and combat evidence, then file DD Form 2860 with your branch (not VA, not DFAS) within 6 years of your rating decision

☐ Log in to VA.gov and check your VA health care enrollment status and priority group

☐ If not enrolled, apply with VA Form 10-10EZ at va.gov/health-care/apply-for-health-care-form-10-10ez

☐ Confirm your enrollment notice shows Priority Group 1; call your local VA Enrollment Coordinator if it doesn't

☐ If rated 100 percent Permanent and Total (P&T), or at the 100 percent rate via Individual Unemployability, ask your VA dental clinic about Class IV dental eligibility; if you have a compensable dental condition, ask about Class I

☐ Request your VA home loan Certificate of Eligibility with VA Form 26-1880 at va.gov/housing-assistance/home-loans/request-coe-form-26-1880

☐ Confirm the Certificate of Eligibility shows funding-fee-exempt status before you shop lenders

☐ Check every Loan Estimate and Closing Disclosure for a $0 funding fee line before signing

☐ If you already paid a funding fee and got a later rating with an earlier effective date, call your servicer or VA Regional Loan Center about a refund

☐ Download your VA rating letter (with the combined-rating box checked) at va.gov/records/download-va-letters

☐ Fill out Standard Form 15 (SF-15) at opm.gov/forms/pdf_fill/sf15.pdf and attach it, your DD-214, and your rating letter to every individual USAJOBS application

☐ Look into the Schedule A "30 Percent or More Disabled" non-competitive federal hiring path

☐ If pursuing employment support, apply for Veteran Readiness and Employment with VA Form 28-1900 at va.gov/careers-employment/vocational-rehabilitation/apply-vre-form-28-1900

☐ Before locking in a Veteran Readiness and Employment subsistence rate, ask your Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor to compare it against the Post-9/11 GI Bill housing-allowance election

☐ Review your individual disability ratings (not just your combined percentage) against the Special Monthly Compensation categories at va.gov/disability/compensation-rates/special-monthly-compensation-rates

☐ If any Special Monthly Compensation trigger looks like it might apply, take your file to a free accredited Veteran Service Officer for review

☐ If you live in a state with a property-tax or other state-run veteran benefit, check Benefits by State for your state's specific rules

This is education, not legal, tax, or financial advice, and this site has no affiliation with the VA or any other government agency. Every program above is free to apply for directly through the official federal agency shown, and no legitimate benefit here ever requires paying a fee. If anything in this guide touches your actual disability rating (filing a new claim, appealing a decision, or arguing for a higher percentage), that is claims work, and a free, VA-accredited Veteran Service Officer handles it at no cost (find one at VA.gov). Never pay anyone, ever, for basic claims preparation or filing help; charging an upfront fee for that is against federal law. Be alert to "benefits planners," pension-poaching schemes, and annuity or insurance salespeople who use free seminars about VA benefits as a lead-in to sell you an annuity, trust, or long-term-care insurance product, sometimes falsely implying VA affiliation or claiming a purchase is required to unlock a benefit. No legitimate program described in this guide ever requires you to buy a financial product, sign over a share of your benefit stream, or pay a "processing fee." If someone approaches you with an offer to buy out your future VA payments for a lump sum today, or pressures you to restructure your finances around a benefit application, treat it as a red flag and report it to the VA Office of Inspector General hotline (https://www.va.gov/oig/hotline).

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Rated 10 to 40 percent

In this section

The VA home loan funding-fee waiver (and getting a refund if you already paid it)

VA health care enrollment

Annual clothing allowance

Federal hiring: 10-point veteran preference and Schedule A "30% or more disabled" hiring

Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (VR&E, Chapter 31)

If your rating should be higher: get it reviewed

If you just got a rating letter from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and it landed somewhere between 10% and 40%, here is the thing most people never get told: that letter does more than set your monthly check. It flips a whole set of separate switches, and every single one of them takes its own paperwork to turn on. Nothing here happens automatically just because you're rated. This is the one-stop guide to actually claiming what that rating unlocked, in plain English, with the real forms and the real links.

A quick note on words before we start. Service-connected means VA has already agreed a condition is connected to your military service. Compensable means the rating pays you a monthly check (VA generally starts paying at 10%; a 0% rating is service-connected but not compensable). Combined rating is your overall percentage after VA math combines all your rated conditions (it is not simple addition). Everything below assumes you already have an official VA rating decision letter in hand.

The VA home loan funding-fee waiver (and getting a refund if you already paid it)

What it is: If you use a VA-backed home loan, VA normally charges a one-time VA funding fee at closing. Any veteran receiving VA compensation for a service-connected disability, at any compensable rating (10% and up counts), pays $0 of that fee. This is one of the single biggest dollar benefits at this rating band, and it is easy to miss if your lender's paperwork doesn't catch it.

Step 1 - Pull your Certificate of Eligibility (COE). This is the document that proves to any lender you're eligible for a VA loan and shows your funding-fee-exempt status. Request it free, online, in minutes, at VA.gov: Request a Certificate of Eligibility, or your lender can request it for you.

Step 2 - Confirm your exemption before you sign anything. Bring your VA disability award letter and your COE to every lender you shop. On the Loan Estimate and the Closing Disclosure, look for the funding fee line. If you're compensation-rated, it should show $0.00 / exempt. Do not assume the lender's system caught it. Ask them to point to the exemption code on the document.

Step 3 - If you already paid the funding fee, check your rating's effective date. If VA later approved (or increased) your compensation with an effective date that falls before your loan's closing date, you can get that fee refunded. This is common: many vets close on a home before their claim decision comes back, then discover the rating was retroactive.

Step 4 - Request the refund. Contact your loan servicer first and give them your VA disability award letter (showing the effective date) and your closing documents (showing the fee you paid). If the servicer doesn't act, your lender submits VA Form 26-8937, Verification of VA Benefits to VA, or you can contact your regional VA Regional Loan Center directly. Find your regional loan center and get help at VA.gov: VA funding fee and loan closing costs.

Step 5 - Know where the refund lands. If your loan is still active, the refund is typically applied as a reduction to your loan's principal balance. If the loan has already been paid off, VA issues the refund directly to you. Processing generally takes several weeks after your servicer or lender submits the request.

Step 6 - Watch the timing rule. A refund only works if the compensation's effective date is before your closing date. A proposed or memorandum rating obtained after you closed does not qualify for a refund under this rule, even if it's issued shortly after.

Deadline: No hard cutoff to request a refund once you're eligible, but don't sit on it. Bring documentation the moment you learn your effective date predates your closing.

VA health care enrollment

What it is: VA health care is a separate benefit from your disability compensation check. Enrolling gets you access to VA medical facilities and, in some cases, VA-paid care from civilian providers. Your rating determines your Priority Group (1 through 8), which drives how fast you're scheduled and whether you owe copays. At 10-20%, you land in Priority Group 3. At 30-40%, you land in Priority Group 2. Both groups get meaningfully better copay treatment than an unrated veteran.

Step 1 - Gather your documents. You'll need your Social Security number, your DD214 or other discharge paperwork, insurance card information for any other coverage you carry, and your prior year's gross household income.

Step 2 - File VA Form 10-10EZ, Application for Health Benefits. Apply online (fastest), by phone, in person at a VA medical center, or by mail. Start here: VA.gov: Apply for VA health care (Form 10-10EZ). Download a paper copy at VA Form 10-10EZ (PDF) if you'd rather mail it in.

Step 3 - Wait for your enrollment decision. VA typically sends written notice of your enrollment and priority group within about 5-7 days of a complete online application.

Step 4 - Check your outpatient and prescription copay status. At 10% or higher, you generally pay $0 for outpatient primary and specialty care. Confirm your exact copay tier and current rates at VA.gov: VA health care copay rates.

Step 5 - If income-based limits ever matter to you, look up your specific number. VA's income limits for certain priority groups are set by ZIP code, not one flat national number. Look yours up at VA.gov: Income limits for VA health care.

Step 6 - If you need help with the application, call VA directly at 877-222-8387 rather than paying anyone for enrollment assistance. Enrollment help is free.

Deadline: No deadline to enroll, but enroll as soon as you're rated. Priority group and copay benefits start from your enrollment and rating status going forward, not retroactively.

Annual clothing allowance

What it is: If a VA-rated prosthetic or orthopedic device (or a skin medication tied to a service-connected condition) wears out or stains your clothing, VA pays a yearly cash allowance to offset that cost. This one is not gated by your overall combined percentage. It's gated by having a specific qualifying device or medication, so check it even at a lower combined rating if you use a brace, prosthetic, continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) mask straps, orthotics, or a topical medication for a service-connected skin condition.

Step 1 - Confirm you have a qualifying device or medication on file. It must be VA-rated (tied to your service-connected disability) and it must actually cause wear-and-tear damage or irreparable staining to your outer clothing.

Step 2 - File VA Form 10-8678, Application for Annual Clothing Allowance, with your local VA Prosthetic & Sensory Aids Service (PSAS). Get the form and instructions at VA.gov: VA Form 10-8678 or download it directly at VA Form 10-8678 (PDF).

Step 3 - Submit it. Hand-deliver it to your local PSAS office, mail it to your VA medical facility marked "ATTN: PSAS," send it via secure messaging on My HealtheVet if your facility supports it, or ask your PSAS office to confirm the correct mailing address for your file.

Step 4 - File by the deadline: August 1. Miss it and you wait for next year's payment window.

Step 5 - Get paid between September 1 and October 31 of that same benefit year, once approved.

Step 6 - Check if you qualify for more than one allowance. Up to 4 clothing allowances are possible in a benefit year (2 for an upper-body garment type, 2 for a lower-body garment type) if you have multiple qualifying devices or medications.

Step 7 - If your condition and device are permanent (static) and unchanged, you may not need to re-file every year. VA can now auto-renew a static clothing allowance without a new application each year. Confirm your status is on auto-renew rather than assuming it.

Deadline: August 1 each year to be paid that benefit year (payment arrives September through October).

Federal hiring: 10-point veteran preference and Schedule A "30% or more disabled" hiring

What it is: Two separate federal-hiring levers open up here, both run by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM), not VA. First, a compensable service-connected rating gives you 10-point preference in competitive federal hiring (extra points added to your qualifying score, plus placement protections). Second, at 30% or more, you unlock the Schedule A "30% or More Disabled" appointing authority, which lets a federal agency hire you directly, without a competitive job posting, into any position you're qualified for.

Step 1 - Get your documents ready. You'll need your DD214 (showing character of service) and a letter from your VA regional office stating your disability percentage. Your VA award letter works for this.

Step 2 - Fill out Standard Form 15 (SF-15), Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference. Download it at OPM: SF-15 (PDF). Submit SF-15 plus your DD214 and VA rating letter with each individual federal job application through USAJOBS, since this isn't a one-time filing, you attach it to each application.

Step 3 - Know which preference tier you're in. A compensable rating of 10-29% gets you the "CP" 10-point tier; 30% or more gets you "CPS," which carries extra procedural protection against being passed over. Details at OPM: What is 10-point preference and who is eligible.

Step 4 - If you're rated 30% or more, also pursue Schedule A hiring. Identify a federal position you want and are qualified for (it does not need to be posted on USAJOBS). Contact that agency's Selective Placement Program Coordinator (SPPC), a role every federal agency has whose job is to help disabled veterans navigate hiring outside the normal competitive process.

Step 5 - Give the agency your VA letter showing 30%+ and your discharge documentation. That's the full eligibility package for Schedule A; there's no separate long-form application beyond identifying the role and connecting with the SPPC.

Step 6 - Learn more and find agency-specific guidance at OPM: Special Hiring Authorities for Veterans and FedsHireVets: Veterans and Transitioning Service Members.

Deadline: No filing deadline, but attach SF-15 to every federal application you submit, and it's worth re-checking your preference tier any time your rating changes.

Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (VR&E, Chapter 31)

What it is: Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (VR&E), sometimes called "Chapter 31," is a VA program that pays you a monthly living-expense stipend plus tuition, fees, and books while you work a personalized plan with a VA counselor to prepare for, find, and keep suitable employment (or build independent-living skills if working isn't currently realistic). It is a different program from the GI Bill, with different rules and its own money.

Step 1 - Check your minimum eligibility. You need a service-connected disability rating of at least 10% and a discharge that isn't dishonorable.

Step 2 - Understand the entitlement gate, which is separate from just being eligible to apply. A 20% rating or higher needs an "employment handicap" finding. A 10% rating needs a more significant "serious employment handicap" finding. Either way, a VA Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor (VRC) makes that determination after you apply, not you.

Step 3 - File VA Form 28-1900, Application for Veteran Readiness and Employment. Apply online, start here: VA.gov: Apply for Veteran Readiness and Employment (Form 28-1900). Or mail the paper form, downloadable at VA Form 28-1900 (PDF), to: Department of Veterans Affairs, Veteran Readiness and Employment (VR&E) Intake Center, P.O. Box 5210, Janesville, WI 53547-5210.

Step 4 - Attend your initial evaluation. Once VA determines you're eligible to apply, you'll get a letter scheduling an evaluation with a VRC, who determines your actual entitlement (approval to use the program) and builds your rehabilitation plan with you.

Step 5 - Know your time window. If you were discharged before January 1, 2013, you generally have a 12-year window from the later of your discharge date or the date you were first notified of a VA rating (extendable in some cases). Discharged on or after January 1, 2013? No time limit applies, as long as you still meet the disability and employment-handicap criteria.

Step 6 - Once approved, ask your VRC about the subsistence-allowance vs. Post-9/11 GI Bill housing-rate election. If you also qualify for the Post-9/11 GI Bill, you may be able to elect to be paid at the GI Bill's housing-allowance rate instead of the standard Veteran Readiness and Employment (VR&E) subsistence rate if that number is higher for your ZIP code and dependent count. This doesn't burn GI Bill months, so it's worth asking about, not defaulting past.

Step 7 - Learn more or get help from a VRC directly at VA.gov: Veteran Readiness and Employment (Chapter 31) overview or VA.gov: How to apply for Veteran Readiness and Employment.

Deadline: No annual deadline, but the 12-year basic eligibility window (pre-2013 discharges only) is a real clock. Don't sit on this one if it applies to you.

If your rating should be higher: get it reviewed

What it is: Every benefit above scales with your rating. 30% opens Schedule A federal hiring and Priority Group 2 health care. 20% (with the right finding) opens Veteran Readiness and Employment (VR&E) entitlement. If you believe your current 10-40% rating undersells your actual condition, or a condition got worse, or VA missed evidence, there's a free process to have it reviewed, and it can retroactively unlock every benefit above at the higher rating.

Step 1 - Get your rating decision letter and figure out which situation you're in. If VA had all the right evidence but you think they made the wrong call on it, that's a Higher-Level Review. If you have new and relevant evidence VA didn't see, or your condition has since worsened, that's a Supplemental Claim.

Step 2 - For a Higher-Level Review, file VA Form 20-0996, Decision Review Request: Higher-Level Review, within 1 year of your decision. No new evidence is submitted here; a senior reviewer looks at the same record with fresh eyes. Start at VA.gov: Higher-Level Reviews.

Step 3 - For a Supplemental Claim, file VA Form 20-0995, Decision Review Request: Supplemental Claim, any time, with new and relevant evidence attached (unless it's based on a change in law). Start at VA.gov: Supplemental Claims.

Step 4 - Not sure which path fits? Use VA's own comparison tool before you file anything: VA.gov: Choosing a decision review option.

Step 5 - Do this with a free, VA-accredited Veteran Service Officer (VSO), not alone and never for a fee. A VSO from DAV, VFW, American Legion, your county veterans service office, or another accredited organization will review your file, help identify missing evidence, and file the paperwork with you at no cost. Find one at VA.gov: Get help from an accredited representative or VSO. This part of the process, the actual claim or rating strategy, is the one piece of this whole guide we will not walk you through step by step. It belongs with a free accredited VSO, not a website, a paid "claims consultant," or a "benefits planner."

Step 6 - If your rating goes up, and especially if the new effective date reaches back before something you already paid for (like a home closing), revisit the funding-fee refund section above. A rating increase can trigger money you're owed on a past transaction, not just a bigger future check.

Deadline: 1 year from your decision date for a Higher-Level Review. Supplemental Claims have no fixed deadline, but filing promptly protects an earlier effective date under VA's "factually ascertainable" worsening rule.

Print-and-take checklist

☐ Pull your Certificate of Eligibility (COE) at VA.gov before shopping for any VA home loan

☐ Confirm every lender's Loan Estimate and Closing Disclosure shows $0.00 funding fee

☐ If you already paid the funding fee and your rating's effective date predates your closing, call your servicer and request a refund (or have your lender file VA Form 26-8937)

☐ File VA Form 10-10EZ to enroll in VA health care

☐ Confirm your VA health care Priority Group and your outpatient/prescription copay rate

☐ If you use a rated prosthetic, orthopedic device, or service-connected skin medication, file VA Form 10-8678 for the clothing allowance by August 1

☐ Fill out SF-15 (10-point veteran preference) and attach it to every federal job application on USAJOBS

☐ If rated 30% or more, contact a federal agency's Selective Placement Program Coordinator (SPPC) about Schedule A direct hiring

☐ If rated at least 10%, consider filing VA Form 28-1900 for Veteran Readiness and Employment (VR&E, Chapter 31) and talk to a VA counselor about your entitlement

☐ If your rating seems too low, or new evidence exists, or a condition worsened, contact a free accredited VSO about a Higher-Level Review (VA Form 20-0996) or Supplemental Claim (VA Form 20-0995)

☐ Revisit the funding-fee refund step again if a rating increase or new grant carries a retroactive effective date

Education only. Not affiliated with the VA or any other government agency, and nothing here is legal, tax, or financial advice. Benefit rules, forms, and dollar figures change, so verify every detail at the official links above before relying on them. For anything about filing or increasing your VA disability claim or rating itself, work with a free, VA-accredited Veteran Service Officer (VSO), attorney, or claims agent, never a paid "claims consultant" or "benefits planner." VA never charges a fee for basic claims help, and no legitimate representative asks you to buy a financial product as a condition of "helping" you. Be especially careful of anyone using a free seminar about VA benefits, disability pay, or this guide's contents as a pitch for annuities, high-fee investment products, or a "benefits buyout" that trades your future monthly VA payments for a lump sum today. Those offers are not affiliated with VA, and walking away costs you nothing.

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Individual Unemployability (TDIU): the 100 percent pay rate without a 100 percent rating

In this section

What TDIU actually is

The schedular path: the percentage math

The extraschedular path: qualifying below the percentage thresholds

The income test: marginal employment vs. substantially gainful employment

The forms you need to gather

File through a free VA-accredited representative, not on your own

Downstream benefit 1: CHAMPVA health coverage for your spouse and dependents

Downstream benefit 2: Class IV VA dental care

Downstream benefit 3: Total and Permanent Disability (TPD) discharge of federal student loans

Downstream benefit 4: state property tax exemptions

Downstream benefit 5: Chapter 35 Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA)

If your service-connected conditions keep you from holding down a steady job, you may qualify for Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability, called TDIU. It pays you at the same monthly rate as a 100% disability rating, even though your combined schedular rating (the math the Department of Veterans Affairs, or VA, does by adding up your individual rated conditions) is below 100%. TDIU is a real VA claim with real paperwork, and it opens the door to several other benefits people don't realize are tied to it. This guide walks through eligibility, the income test, the forms, and the downstream benefits, then tells you exactly where to take it to get filed for free.

What TDIU actually is

Step 1 - Understand the core idea. Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability (TDIU) lets the VA pay you at the 100% disability compensation rate without your schedular rating (the rating from VA's combined-ratings table) actually reaching 100%. The test is not "can you work at all," it's whether your service-connected disabilities prevent you from holding substantially gainful employment, meaning a job that pays enough to support yourself, not just occasional or part-time work. Read VA's own plain-language explanation at Individual Unemployability if you can't work before you go further.

Step 2 - Know that TDIU is not automatic. You have to be already service-connected for at least one condition, and then you have to affirmatively file the unemployability claim. VA will not grant it just because your combined rating is high or because you stopped working. It's a separate legal determination layered on top of your existing ratings.

The schedular path: the percentage math

Step 1 - Check the one-condition route. You qualify on the schedular path (meaning your existing disability ratings alone meet a fixed rule in VA's regulations) if you have one single service-connected disability rated at 60% or more.

Step 2 - Check the combined-conditions route. You also qualify schedular if you have two or more service-connected disabilities, with at least one of them rated at 40% or more, and your combined rating comes to 70% or more. This is the rule most veterans use when no single condition hits 60% on its own.

Step 3 - Confirm your current combined rating and individual condition ratings before you file, so you know which route (if either) you already meet. Log in and view them at VA.gov: View your VA disability ratings, get your numbers there, then come back here and continue to the extraschedular path below if you fall short of the thresholds.

The extraschedular path: qualifying below the percentage thresholds

Step 1 - Know this exists even if you don't hit the numbers above. VA's own regulation, 38 CFR 4.16(b), lets a rating board send your case up to VA's Director of Compensation Service for extraschedular consideration (meaning outside the normal percentage formula) if your service-connected disabilities make you unemployable but your ratings fall short of the 60% or 70%/40% thresholds.

Step 2 - Understand what VA looks at. For an extraschedular referral, VA weighs your specific disabilities, your employment history, your education and vocational background, and every other fact bearing on whether you can actually hold a job, not just the percentages on paper.

Step 3 - Don't self-select out. If your ratings don't meet the schedular math but you genuinely cannot sustain gainful work because of your service-connected conditions, gather your evidence (the Forms section below tells you what) and take it to a free VA-accredited Veterans Service Officer (VSO) to file anyway, letting the evidence make the extraschedular case. This determination is made by VA, not decided by you or a VSO in advance.

The income test: marginal employment vs. substantially gainful employment

Step 1 - Understand the standard. VA is not asking whether you're totally idle. It's asking whether you have substantially gainful employment, a job that pays enough to support yourself at a normal, non-poverty standard of living. Sporadic, low-paying, or sheltered work is called marginal employment, and marginal employment does not disqualify you from Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability (TDIU).

Step 2 - Know there is a poverty-level income marker VA uses as a guidepost (not an absolute cutoff) when deciding whether work counts as marginal versus substantially gainful. This figure is published and updated by VA and changes over time, so don't rely on a number from a blog. Confirm the current federal poverty guideline VA is using directly with a Veterans Service Officer (VSO, a free accredited advocate covered in the Filing section below) or at Individual Unemployability if you can't work when you file.

Step 3 - Gather your actual work history and earnings before you file, since VA will ask for it directly on the forms in the next section. If you're still working in any capacity, write down your hours, pay, and how your condition affects your ability to keep doing it. This becomes part of your evidence, not a reason to avoid filing.

The forms you need to gather

Step 1 - Locate VA Form 21-8940, "Veteran's Application for Increased Compensation Based on Unemployability." This is the form you, the veteran, complete. It asks about your service-connected disabilities, your work history, your education, and the jobs you've tried or held. Get the form and instructions at VA Form 21-8940, get it there, then come back here and continue with Step 2.

Step 2 - Locate VA Form 21-4192, "Request for Employment Information in Connection with Claim for Disability Benefits." This one goes to your most recent employer, not to you, and it asks them to confirm your dates of employment, pay, and why your employment ended or changed. Get the form at VA Form 21-4192, get it there, then come back here and continue with Step 3.

Step 3 - Line up your medical evidence. Pull together current treatment records and any statements from your doctors connecting your service-connected conditions to your inability to work. If you don't already have a private doctor's statement (a "nexus" or unemployability opinion), a free VSO can tell you whether your existing VA medical records are enough or whether you should ask a treating provider for a written statement.

Step 4 - Note that both forms can be completed and submitted online through your VA.gov account, or printed and mailed or faxed, per the instructions on each form's page above. You do not need to mail anything before talking to a VSO.

Step 5 - Bring both forms, blank or drafted, to your VSO appointment (see the Filing section) and finish them together.

File through a free VA-accredited representative, not on your own

Step 1 - Do not file a TDIU claim solo and do not pay anyone to "coach" you through it. Free help exists and is specifically trained on this exact claim.

Step 2 - Find a free, VA-accredited Veterans Service Officer (VSO) or Claims Agent using VA's own directory. Go to Get help from a VA accredited representative or VSO and use the Find a VA Accredited Representative or VSO search tool to find one near you or one you can work with remotely. Get connected there, then come back here and continue with Step 3.

Step 3 - Bring everything from the Forms section (your draft 21-8940, the blank 21-4192 for your last employer, your medical evidence, and your work history notes) to that VSO appointment. VSO services on VA claims are always free by law. Let the VSO review your specific ratings against the schedular thresholds, decide whether an extraschedular argument is worth making, and submit the completed claim on your behalf.

Step 4 - Ask the VSO to also confirm, at the time of filing, whether you should be filing for a Permanent and Total (P&T) designation alongside TDIU. Many of the downstream benefits below depend specifically on your TDIU being permanent, not just total, so this is worth confirming case by case rather than assuming.

Downstream benefit 1: CHAMPVA health coverage for your spouse and dependents

Step 1 - Know what unlocks it. If your Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability (TDIU) is rated permanent and total, your spouse and dependent children may become eligible for CHAMPVA (Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs), a health insurance program that shares the cost of their medical care.

Step 2 - Confirm you're not also eligible for TRICARE first, since you cannot hold both CHAMPVA and TRICARE at the same time. Your VSO or the CHAMPVA program can confirm which applies to your household.

Step 3 - Once your TDIU permanent-and-total award letter is in hand, start at CHAMPVA benefits for the application, required documents, and where to send it. Get the application there, then come back here and continue with Step 4.

Step 4 - Keep a copy of your TDIU award letter on hand. CHAMPVA will need proof of your permanent and total rating as part of the enrollment packet.

Downstream benefit 2: Class IV VA dental care

Step 1 - Know what unlocks it. Veterans rated 100% disabled from a service-connected condition, or receiving Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability (TDIU) because of a service-connected condition, are placed in Class IV for VA dental eligibility, which qualifies you for any dental care you need, not just care tied to a specific rated condition.

Step 2 - Note the exception. A temporary 100% rating (for example, during hospitalization or a surgical recovery period) does not qualify you for Class IV. It has to be your standing TDIU or permanent 100% rating.

Step 3 - Apply for VA health care enrollment if you're not already enrolled, since dental eligibility runs through your VA health care enrollment. Start at Dental care and Special dental care eligibility, get enrolled there, then come back here and continue with Step 4.

Step 4 - Once enrolled, call or schedule through your local VA medical center's dental clinic to get on the schedule. Your Class IV eligibility should already be reflected in your VA health record once your TDIU award is processed.

Downstream benefit 3: Total and Permanent Disability (TPD) discharge of federal student loans

Step 1 - Know what unlocks it. The U.S. Department of Education treats a Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability (TDIU) determination the same as a 100% Permanent and Total VA rating for purposes of discharging federal student loans, under its Total and Permanent Disability (TPD) discharge program. It's the VA's unemployability determination that controls, not just your schedular percentage.

Step 2 - Check whether you're discharged automatically first. The Department of Education periodically runs a data match directly with the VA. If you're identified in that match, they mail you a notice and you have a window to opt out; if you don't opt out, your eligible federal loans are discharged without you filing anything. This match is not real-time, so don't assume it has already caught your award.

Step 3 - If you'd rather not wait on the data match, confirm your status and apply directly at Total and Permanent Disability Discharge and How to qualify and apply for TPD discharge. Get the application there, then come back here and continue with Step 4. You'll need documentation showing your VA disability determination and the date it was awarded.

Step 4 - Note that only federal loan types are covered (Direct Loans and, with some servicer variation, FFEL Program loans). Private student loans are not covered by this program, and a discharge under this program is not treated as taxable income federally.

Downstream benefit 4: state property tax exemptions

Step 1 - Know what unlocks it. Most states that offer a full or partial property tax exemption to "100% disabled veterans" extend that same treatment to veterans paid at the 100% rate through Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability (TDIU), even though the underlying schedular rating is below 100%. This is a state-by-state benefit, not a VA benefit, so the rules and paperwork differ by state.

Step 2 - Do not assume your state includes TDIU automatically. Confirm your specific state's rule and application before you count on it.

Step 3 - Start with VA's own overview at Unlocking Veteran tax exemptions across states and U.S. territories, then go to your own state's Department of Revenue or county property tax assessor's page (search "[your state] disabled veteran property tax exemption") for the actual application. Find your state's program there, then come back here and continue with Step 4.

Step 4 - Apply directly with your county tax assessor's office, not with the VA. You'll typically need your TDIU permanent-and-total award letter, proof of homeownership, and proof of residency, and most states require you to file this annually or at least the first year you qualify.

Downstream benefit 5: Chapter 35 Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA)

Step 1 - Know what unlocks it. If you're rated permanently and totally disabled from a service-connected disability, including through Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability (TDIU), your spouse and children may qualify for the Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance program, known as Chapter 35 or DEA, which helps pay for their college or training.

Step 2 - Confirm your award includes the permanent component, not just total, since Chapter 35 (DEA) depends on the permanent and total finding, the same one that unlocks CHAMPVA above. Ask your VSO to confirm this is checked on your award.

Step 3 - Start at Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance for eligibility, benefit rates, and the application. Get your dependent's application there, then come back here and continue with Step 4.

Step 4 - Have your spouse or adult child apply directly through that page using your TDIU permanent-and-total award as the qualifying event. A free VSO can also help your dependent with this application the same way they help you with the TDIU claim itself.

Print-and-take checklist

☐ Confirm my current service-connected ratings and combined rating at va.gov/disability/view-disability-rating

☐ Check whether I meet the schedular thresholds: one condition at 60%+, or 70%+ combined with at least one condition at 40%+

☐ If I don't meet those thresholds, note that an extraschedular referral under 38 CFR 4.16(b) may still be possible

☐ Write down my current and recent work history, hours, and pay to address the marginal vs. substantially gainful employment question

☐ Download and start VA Form 21-8940 (my application) at va.gov/find-forms/about-form-21-8940

☐ Download VA Form 21-4192 (employer information request) at va.gov/find-forms/about-form-21-4192 to bring to my most recent employer

☐ Gather medical records and, if available, a doctor's statement connecting my service-connected conditions to my inability to work

☐ Find a free VA-accredited Veterans Service Officer (VSO) or Claims Agent at va.gov/get-help-from-accredited-representative/find-rep

☐ Bring both forms and my evidence to the VSO and file the Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability (TDIU) claim through them

☐ Ask the VSO to confirm whether my claim also supports a Permanent and Total (P&T) designation

☐ Once awarded, apply for CHAMPVA for my spouse or dependents if permanent and total (va.gov/family-and-caregiver-benefits/health-and-disability/champva)

☐ Confirm my Class IV VA dental eligibility and get enrolled or scheduled at my local VA dental clinic

☐ Check my Total and Permanent Disability (TPD) student loan discharge status at studentaid.gov/manage-loans/forgiveness-cancellation/disability-discharge

☐ Look up my state's property tax exemption rule for TDIU or 100% veterans and apply with my county assessor

☐ If I have a spouse or dependent child, apply for Chapter 35 Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA) once my award is permanent and total

This guide is general information, not legal, tax, or benefits advice, and rates, income thresholds, and state rules change over time. It does not create or imply representation before VA. File your actual TDIU claim, and get help interpreting how it applies to your specific ratings and evidence, through a free VA-accredited Veterans Service Officer or Claims Agent, not through this guide or any paid claims coach.

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VA dental care and low-cost dental insurance

In this section

Why VA health enrollment does not automatically include dental

The dental eligibility classes, plainly

How to apply for VA dental care if you fit a class above

VADIP: low-cost dental insurance for everyone else

How to enroll in the VA Dental Insurance Program (VADIP)

If you have ever tried to get a cleaning covered by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and hit a wall, you are not imagining it. Dental is the one VA health benefit that does not come along for free just because you are enrolled in VA health care. It runs on its own eligibility rules, called Classes, and unless you land in one of the generous classes, the VA will not fill your cavity. The good news is there is a real, affordable backup plan for everyone else: the VA Dental Insurance Program (VADIP), low-cost private dental insurance you buy through the VA. This guide walks you through both paths plainly, with the actual forms, the actual links, and the actual steps, so you can act today instead of getting lost on VA.gov.

Why VA health enrollment does not automatically include dental

This is the biggest point of confusion, so let's clear it up first. Enrolling in VA health care (the general medical benefit) does not, by itself, make you eligible for VA dental treatment. Dental eligibility is decided separately, through a set of Classes (I through VI, plus sub-classes) defined in VA regulation. Most veterans who are enrolled in VA health care, but are not rated for a dental condition, not rated 100 percent, and not a former prisoner of war, get no routine VA dental coverage at all. That is exactly the gap the VA Dental Insurance Program (VADIP) exists to fill, which is why this guide covers the free classes and the paid insurance option side by side.

The dental eligibility classes, plainly

Here is every way to qualify for VA-provided dental treatment. Find yours, or confirm you do not have one, before deciding whether to pursue a class or just enroll in the VA Dental Insurance Program (VADIP) instead.

Class I (service-connected, compensable dental condition): you have a dental or oral condition the VA rates as its own service-connected disability at a compensable level (more than 0 percent) under 38 CFR Section 4.150. If so, you qualify for any needed dental care, ongoing, for as long as you're enrolled in VA health care.

Class II (one-time care after discharge): you apply within 180 days of discharge or release from active duty, you did not receive a dishonorable discharge, your DD214 does not show that you got a complete dental exam and all needed treatment before discharge, and you served the required minimum time (90 days or more active duty during a period that includes Gulf War era service, or 180 days or more for other periods). If you qualify, you get a one-time course of dental care to bring your mouth to a healthy baseline. Miss the 180-day window and this door closes for good, so if you are newly separated, treat this one as time-sensitive.

Class IIA (combat-related or service-trauma dental conditions): you have a noncompensable service-connected dental condition, or a dental disability that resulted from combat wounds or other service trauma. You may need a Dental Trauma Rating, filed on VA Form 10-564-D, to establish this. If approved, you get dental care needed to maintain a functioning, healthy mouth on an ongoing basis.

Class IIB (homeless veterans in a VA-sponsored program): if you're participating in certain homeless veteran programs, you can get a one-time course of dental care aimed at relieving pain, treating gum disease, or supporting a return to employment.

Class IIC (former prisoners of war): if you were a prisoner of war, you qualify for any needed dental care, no compensable rating required, for as long as you are enrolled in VA health care.

Class III (dental condition aggravating a service-connected medical condition): if a dental or oral problem is directly making a separate service-connected medical condition worse, you can get the dental care needed to treat that specific oral condition, even without a compensable dental rating.

Class IV (100 percent service-connected disability rating, or Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability): if you are rated 100 percent permanent and total for a service-connected condition, or you are paid at the 100 percent rate because you are unemployable due to service-connected conditions even though your combined rating is below 100 percent (the VA calls this Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability, often shortened to unemployability status), you qualify for comprehensive, any-needed dental care, ongoing, no separate dental rating required. This is the class most veterans rated 100 percent, and most veterans on Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability, do not realize they already qualify for.

Class V (enrolled in Veteran Readiness and Employment, Chapter 31): if you are actively participating in a VA Veteran Readiness and Employment (VR&E) program, you can get the dental care necessary to reach the goals of your rehabilitation plan, for the length of that program.

Class VI (dental care needed to treat a condition you're already being treated for at VA): if VA is treating you for a medical condition and a dental problem is complicating that specific treatment, you can get the dental care tied directly to it.

Inpatient status: if you are receiving VA inpatient care or are in certain domiciliary or nursing settings, dental services that support your current medical treatment may also be covered.

If none of these fit, you are not stuck. Keep reading for the VA Dental Insurance Program (VADIP), the low-cost insurance option open to essentially every VA health care enrollee regardless of rating.

How to apply for VA dental care if you fit a class above

Step 1 - Confirm you are enrolled in VA health care. If you are not yet enrolled, that is the prerequisite for dental care in every class above. Go to VA health care application (VA Form 10-10EZ) and apply online (about 30 minutes), by phone at 877-222-8387 (877-222-VETS), by mail, or in person at a VA medical center. Get it submitted there, then come back here and continue with Step 2.

Step 2 - Confirm which class applies to you. Match your situation to the list above. If you're not sure whether your discharge paperwork (DD214) already shows a completed dental exam, or whether you have a compensable dental rating, pull your DD214 and your latest VA disability rating decision letter before moving on, since both get checked.

Step 3 - If you're claiming Class IIA on combat or service-trauma grounds and don't already have a dental rating on file, file a Dental Trauma Rating claim on VA Form 10-564-D. Get the form and instructions at VA Form 10-564-D, complete it, and submit it the way the form instructs, then come back here and continue with Step 4.

Step 4 - If you're within 180 days of discharge and pursuing Class II, do not wait. Apply for VA health care (Step 1) and then call or visit your nearest VA medical center to request the one-time dental exam before the 180-day window closes. Use Find a VA location to locate the nearest VA dental clinic, get an appointment scheduled there, then come back here and continue with Step 5.

Step 5 - Once your VA health care enrollment and any needed class documentation (dental trauma rating, discharge dates, 100 percent or unemployability rating) are on file, schedule your dental appointment directly through your local VA medical center's dental clinic. Use Find a VA location to find the clinic tied to your enrollment, call them, and ask to be scheduled as a Class [your number] dental patient so the front desk pulls the right benefit category.

Step 6 - If VA denies your dental eligibility and you believe you qualify, you can appeal the same way you'd appeal any VA benefit decision. Start at VA decision reviews and appeals and follow the option that matches the type of decision letter you received.

VADIP: low-cost dental insurance for everyone else

If you do not fit one of the classes above, or you fit a limited one-time class and want ongoing coverage too, the VA Dental Insurance Program (VADIP) is built for exactly this. It is not free VA-provided care. It is private dental insurance, sold by two VA-vetted carriers, that you pay a monthly premium for, at negotiated group rates that are typically cheaper than buying an individual plan on the open market. There is no separate income test and no disability rating required. Enrollment is open year-round, there is no annual open-enrollment window you can miss.

Who can enroll: any veteran enrolled in VA health care, or any beneficiary enrolled in the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the VA (CHAMPVA, the VA's health coverage for certain spouses and dependents), can enroll. No compensable dental rating, no 100 percent rating, and no combat service requirement.

What it costs: you pay the full monthly premium for each person you enroll (there's no VA subsidy on the premium itself), plus copays at the time of service. Exact premiums and copay amounts vary by carrier, plan tier, and your location, so confirm current numbers directly on the carrier's site before enrolling rather than relying on any figure printed elsewhere.

What it covers: typically diagnostic exams, cleanings and other preventive care, fillings and other restorative work, root canals, oral surgery, and emergency dental care. Coverage details and annual maximums differ by plan tier, so compare tiers on the carrier's plan-comparison page before choosing.

You choose one of two carriers. Pick based on which one's network and plan tiers fit you best; you can compare both before committing.

How to enroll in the VA Dental Insurance Program (VADIP)

Step 1 - Confirm you're enrolled in VA health care or in the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the VA (CHAMPVA), since that's the entry requirement. If you need to enroll in VA health care first, go to VA Form 10-10EZ online application, get that submitted there, then come back here and continue with Step 2. If you need the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the VA (CHAMPVA) instead, go to CHAMPVA eligibility and application, get that submitted there, then come back here and continue with Step 2.

Step 2 - Compare the two VA Dental Insurance Program (VADIP) carriers side by side. Go to VA Dental Insurance Program (VADIP) overview and review both options, then come back here and continue with Step 3.

Step 3 - If you want to compare or enroll with Delta Dental, go to Delta Dental VADIP, review the Enhanced, Comprehensive, and Prime plan tiers and current rates for your area, enroll online there or request the paper enrollment application, then come back here and continue with Step 5. Delta Dental support: 855-460-3302, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern.

Step 4 - If you want to compare or enroll with MetLife instead, go to MetLife VADIP, review plan tiers and current rates for your area, and enroll online there, then come back here and continue with Step 5. MetLife support: 1-888-310-1681.

Step 5 - Complete enrollment with your chosen carrier, including your first month's premium payment. The carrier verifies your VA health care or CHAMPVA enrollment status directly with VA before your coverage becomes final, so make sure the enrollment details you enter (name, SSN or VA file number, address) match what VA has on file to avoid a verification delay.

Step 6 - Once enrolled, register your online member account with the carrier (Delta Dental member portal or MetLife member portal, depending on who you picked) so you can find in-network dentists, see your plan documents, and track claims.

Step 7 - If you enrolled in the original VADIP pilot years ago (2013 to 2017) and let it lapse, note that this is a new, permanent enrollment, not a reactivation. You'll need to enroll fresh through Step 3 or Step 4 above.

Step 8 - If you have general eligibility questions about the VA Dental Insurance Program (VADIP) itself (not the carrier's plan details), call VA directly at 877-222-8387 (877-222-VETS) rather than the carrier.

Print-and-take checklist

☐ Confirmed whether I fit a VA dental eligibility Class (I, II, IIA, IIB, IIC, III, IV, V, VI, or inpatient) using the list above

☐ Confirmed I am enrolled in VA health care (or applied via VA Form 10-10EZ at va.gov/health-care/apply-for-health-care-form-10-10ez)

☐ Pulled my DD214 and latest VA disability rating decision letter to check dates and rating percentage

☐ If claiming Class II: confirmed I am still inside the 180-day window since discharge

☐ If claiming Class IIA on combat/trauma grounds: filed VA Form 10-564-D (Dental Trauma Rating) if not already rated

☐ If claiming Class IV: confirmed my 100 percent permanent-and-total rating, or my Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability status, is current on file with VA

☐ Located my nearest VA dental clinic at va.gov/find-locations and called to schedule, naming my eligibility Class

☐ If no Class fits (or I want ongoing coverage beyond a one-time class): compared Delta Dental and MetLife VA Dental Insurance Program (VADIP) plan tiers and current rates for my area

☐ Enrolled in the VA Dental Insurance Program (VADIP) online with my chosen carrier and paid the first month's premium

☐ Registered my member portal account with the carrier and confirmed an in-network dentist near me

This guide is educational and reflects VA dental eligibility rules and VA Dental Insurance Program (VADIP) details as confirmed against va.gov, Delta Dental, and MetLife sources at the time of writing. Eligibility classes, forms, premiums, and covered services can change, and your individual case depends on your discharge record, rating decisions, and VA determinations. Confirm current rates, plan details, and eligibility directly with VA (877-222-8387) or the carrier before relying on any figure. This is not legal, medical, financial, or claims-filing advice; for help with a VA disability claim or appeal, consult VA directly or an accredited veterans service organization or attorney.

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VA travel pay: get reimbursed for your appointments

In this section

What VA travel pay reimburses

Who qualifies (every way to qualify)

The deductible, explained

The 30-day filing deadline

How to file online through the Beneficiary Travel Self-Service System via AccessVA (the fast way)

How to file by phone

How to file in person or by mail (paper option)

If you drive to VA appointments, or to appointments VA sent you to, there's a good chance VA owes you money for that trip. It's called Beneficiary Travel, and it covers mileage, tolls, parking, and in some cases lodging and meals for travel to VA health care. Most veterans I know have never filed for it, either because they don't know it exists or because they assume it's only for veterans with a high disability rating. It isn't. This is recurring money, appointment after appointment, and it adds up over a year. This guide walks you through exactly who qualifies, what's covered, and how to file, step by step, so you can actually collect it.

What VA travel pay reimburses

Beneficiary Travel pays you back for the cost of getting to and from VA health care, meaning care at a VA medical facility or care VA referred you to in the community. Here's what's covered:

Mileage in your own vehicle, reimbursed at VA's current per-mile rate. This is the everyday claim most people file and it needs no preapproval. VA sets and updates the exact cents-per-mile rate, so confirm the current figure at the official link below.

Tolls and parking, also with no preapproval needed.

Public or commercial transportation (bus, taxi, rideshare, subway, light rail, train, or even plane) if you get preapproval first.

Special mode transportation, like an ambulance or wheelchair van, when medically required and preapproved.

Meals and lodging, when your trip requires an overnight stay or extended travel and it's preapproved.

Confirm the current mileage rate and full expense list any time at Reimbursed VA travel expenses and mileage rate, since VA updates the rate periodically.

Who qualifies (every way to qualify)

You must be traveling for VA care or VA-approved community care, and you must also meet at least one of these categories. Check every one, you may qualify under more than one:

You have a service-connected disability rating of 30% or higher (any purpose of travel qualifies, not just travel tied to the rated condition).

You're traveling for treatment of a service-connected condition, at any disability rating, even 0%.

You receive a VA pension.

Your income is below the maximum annual VA pension rate, even if you don't currently receive a pension.

You're traveling for a scheduled Compensation & Pension (C&P) exam VA requested.

You're traveling in connection with donating or receiving an organ, tissue, or bone marrow transplant through VA.

You need a service dog and are traveling for training or care related to it through VA.

VA has determined you're unable to afford the cost of your travel, under VA's financial-hardship guidelines.

You're a qualifying caregiver: an approved Family Caregiver under the VA caregiver program, a medically required attendant traveling with a veteran, or a transplant donor or support person.

If you're not sure which category fits you, file anyway. The Beneficiary Travel Self-Service System (BTSSS), the online filing system explained below, checks your eligibility automatically when you submit.

The deductible, explained

Beneficiary Travel has a small deductible, but many veterans qualify to have it waived automatically. Here's the structure:

A standard VA deductible applies per appointment, charged as a one-way amount, with a round trip charged at twice the one-way amount. VA sets the exact dollar figures, so confirm the current amounts at the official link below.

The deductible caps at a set total per calendar month. Once you've paid that monthly cap in deductibles, VA pays 100% of your approved travel costs for the rest of that month.

You get an automatic deductible waiver (meaning no deductible at all) if you receive a VA pension, if you're traveling for a scheduled Compensation & Pension (C&P) exam, if you're a non-service-connected veteran whose income is below the maximum annual VA pension rate, or if you're a service-connected veteran whose income is below VA's national health care income limit.

If you think you qualify for a waiver but it wasn't applied, you can request one in person or in writing at the VA facility where you received care.

The current deductible dollar amounts and monthly cap are confirmed at Reimbursed VA travel expenses and mileage rate.

The 30-day filing deadline

File within 30 days of the date you completed your trip. VA's own guidance says claims filed after the 30-day window are usually denied, so don't sit on these. The good news is filing is fast, especially online, so make it a habit: file the claim the same day as the appointment, or that week at the latest. See File and manage travel reimbursement claims for the deadline language directly from VA.

How to file online through the Beneficiary Travel Self-Service System via AccessVA (the fast way)

The Beneficiary Travel Self-Service System (BTSSS) is VA's online portal for submitting and tracking travel claims, and it's the fastest way to get paid, often in a few business days if you use direct deposit. Here's exactly how to use it.

Step 1 - Go to the AccessVA sign-in page for the Veteran Travel Claim Entry system at AccessVA - BTSSS sign-in. Get to that page, then come back here and continue with Step 2.

Step 2 - Sign in with one of the accepted credentials: your Login.gov account, your ID.me account, your My HealtheVet account, or your VA PIV (Personal Identity Verification) card. If you don't have any of these yet, create a free Login.gov or ID.me account at the sign-in screen and verify your identity there, then come back here and continue with Step 3.

Step 3 - The first time you log in, the Beneficiary Travel Self-Service System will have you set up your claimant profile. Confirm your home address (this is what mileage is calculated from) and enter your direct deposit bank account and routing number. Direct deposit is what gets you paid in days instead of weeks, so don't skip it.

Step 4 - Select "file a new claim" (sometimes labeled "create claim") and choose the VA appointment you're claiming travel for from your list of scheduled or completed appointments.

Step 5 - Enter your trip details: date of travel, starting address (usually your home), and whether it was a one-way or round trip. The system calculates the mileage reimbursement automatically from the distance to the facility.

Step 6 - If you're claiming tolls, parking, or preapproved transportation, meals, or lodging, upload your receipts as image or PDF attachments at this step.

Step 7 - Review the claim summary, confirm the deductible shown (or waiver, if you qualify), and submit.

Step 8 - The Beneficiary Travel Self-Service System is self-adjudicating, meaning most mileage-only claims process automatically without a person reviewing them. Check your claim status anytime by logging back into the same AccessVA sign-in link and viewing "my claims."

Some VA facilities also let you file a mileage-only claim right from your smartphone during check-in for the appointment itself, if you're only claiming mileage from your home in your own vehicle. Ask at the check-in kiosk or front desk whether your facility offers this.

How to file by phone

Step 1 - Call the Beneficiary Travel Self-Service System toll-free call center at 855-574-7292 (TTY, text telephone: 711). Hours are Monday through Friday; VA's national page lists 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern time, though some facility pages list 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., so confirm current hours when you call.

Step 2 - Have ready: the date or dates of your appointment, the VA facility name, your starting address, and any receipts for tolls, parking, or other approved expenses.

Step 3 - The representative will file the claim on your behalf and give you a claim number. Write it down so you can follow up if needed.

How to file in person or by mail (paper option)

Step 1 - Get VA Form 10-3542, "Veteran/Beneficiary Claim for Reimbursement of Travel Expenses," at VA Form 10-3542. Get it there, then come back here and continue with Step 2.

Step 2 - Fill in your travel dates, starting address, destination VA facility, and the expenses you're claiming (mileage, tolls, parking, or preapproved lodging and meals).

Step 3 - Attach your receipts for anything other than a plain mileage claim (tolls, parking, transportation, lodging, meals).

Step 4 - Either mail the completed form and receipts to the Beneficiary Travel office at the VA facility where you received the care, or bring it in person to that office's beneficiary travel window.

Step 5 - Keep a copy of everything you submit for your own records before you send or hand it in.

The paper route takes longer to process than filing online, so use it only if you can't get online or don't have a Login.gov or ID.me account. The main filing overview, including the mileage-during-check-in option, is at File and manage travel reimbursement claims.

Print-and-take checklist

☐ Confirm you qualify under at least one eligibility category (30% or higher rating, service-connected treatment at any rating, VA pension, low income, Compensation & Pension exam, transplant, service dog, financial hardship, or qualifying caregiver).

☐ Set up (or confirm you already have) a Login.gov, ID.me, or My HealtheVet account, or have your VA PIV (Personal Identity Verification) card ready.

☐ Log in to the Beneficiary Travel Self-Service System through AccessVA - BTSSS sign-in and confirm your direct deposit info is on file.

☐ File your claim within 30 days of each appointment, ideally the same day.

☐ Save receipts for tolls, parking, transportation, meals, or lodging and upload or attach them to the claim.

☐ Know your deductible structure (a per-appointment amount, capped monthly) and check if you qualify for an automatic waiver; confirm current dollar figures at Reimbursed VA travel expenses and mileage rate.

☐ If filing by phone, call 855-574-7292 (TTY, text telephone: 711) with your appointment date, facility, and address ready.

☐ If filing on paper, use VA Form 10-3542 and mail or hand-deliver it to the Beneficiary Travel office at the facility where you were seen.

☐ Check your claim status by logging back into the Beneficiary Travel Self-Service System and viewing "my claims."

☐ Make it a habit: file after every VA appointment you drive to, not just the big ones.

This guide is for general education about the VA Beneficiary Travel program and is not legal, tax, financial, or medical advice, and it is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Department of Veterans Affairs. Reimbursement rates, deductible amounts, and eligibility rules can change, so confirm current details at va.gov or with your VA facility's Beneficiary Travel office before filing. This information does not create any right to benefits, and final eligibility and claim decisions are made solely by VA.

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Combat-Injured Veterans tax refund on disability severance

In this section

Step 1 - Confirm this is the right refund, not a look-alike

Step 2 - Check every way you can qualify (all four must be true)

Step 2a - Understand the DoD/IRS notice letters

Step 3 - Find your old DoD letter first (if you have one)

Step 4 - Get replacement proof if you don't have the DoD letter

Step 5 - Decide: standard refund amount, or compute the actual amount

Step 6 - Fill out Form 1040-X for the correct year

Step 7 - Attach your proof and mail it (this claim cannot be e-filed)

Step 8 - Know your deadline: this law created a special extended window

Step 9 - Don't confuse this with a VA rating-increase refund

Step 10 - Track your refund after you mail it

If you got a lump-sum disability severance payment from the Department of Defense (DoD) when you separated for a combat-related injury, there's a real chance the government withheld or reported federal income tax on that money that it should never have taxed. The Combat-Injured Veterans Tax Fairness Act (CIVTFA) of 2016 exists specifically to fix that. This guide walks you through exactly who qualifies, how to get your paperwork, and how to file the amended return yourself. I'll also flag the one thing people mix this up with (a VA rating-increase refund), because it's a different process with a different form of proof.

Step 1 - Confirm this is the right refund, not a look-alike

This refund is narrow and specific. It applies ONLY to a one-time, lump-sum disability severance payment paid to you by DoD when you separated from service, where DoD determined your injury was combat-related and federal tax was withheld from or included as income on that specific payment. It is completely separate from, and should never be confused with, a refund tied to a later VA rating increase or retroactive VA determination on military retired pay. That's a different situation (covered in Step 9 below) with its own paperwork and its own deadline math. Don't let anyone tell you these are the same claim.

Step 2 - Check every way you can qualify (all four must be true)

You qualify for this specific CIVTFA refund if ALL of the following are true:

You received a one-time, lump-sum disability severance payment from DoD when you separated from military service (not monthly retired pay, not VA disability compensation, and not Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC) or Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay (CRDP)).

DoD determined the disability was combat-related (per the criteria described in the 1991 federal court settlement known as the St. Clair case: incurred as a direct result of armed conflict, while in extra-hazardous service, in simulated war exercises, or caused by an instrumentality of war).

The payment date fell after January 17, 1991 and before January 1, 2017.

That severance payment was reported as taxable income on your original tax return for the year you received it (meaning tax was withheld or you paid tax on it).

If any one of those four is not true for you (for example, your severance was on or after January 1, 2017, or your disability wasn't determined combat-related), this specific program does not apply to you. Source: IRS Newsroom - Time is running out for some combat-injured veterans to claim tax refunds.

Step 2a - Understand the DoD/IRS notice letters

In July 2018, the IRS mailed notice letters (IRS Letter 6060-A or Letter 6060-D) to over 130,000 veterans DoD had identified as having received a combat-related disability severance payment during the qualifying window. These letters explained the refund and gave the standard amount for that veteran's situation. If you got one of these letters, it is your single best piece of proof and dramatically simplifies filing. If you never got one, or you can't find it now, that does NOT disqualify you. Go to Step 4 for the workaround.

Step 3 - Find your old DoD letter first (if you have one)

Before doing anything else, search your own paper files, an old address's forwarded mail, or any scanned/filed documents for a letter dated around July 2018 referencing "disability severance payment" and a dollar refund amount. This is Step 3, and it only requires searching what you already have on hand, so there's no need to go anywhere else yet. If you find it, keep it, note the date on it (it starts your filing clock, see Step 8), and continue with Step 5. If you don't have it, continue with Step 4.

Step 4 - Get replacement proof if you don't have the DoD letter

If you don't have the original DoD/IRS letter, you can still file, but the IRS needs two things in its place: (1) documentation showing the exact amount and reason for your disability severance payment, and (2) documentation confirming the combat-related determination. Get these two documents, then come back here and continue with Step 5:

For the severance-payment proof: contact the Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) at 800-321-1080 (Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern) and ask for a letter documenting your disability severance payment, or pull your DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty), which also shows separation pay. Get it there, then come back here and continue with Step 5. DFAS retired military info: dfas.mil/RetiredMilitary.

If DFAS can't locate your record, request your military personnel/pay file from the National Archives, National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) at archives.gov/personnel-records-center. Request it there, then come back here and continue with Step 5.

For the combat-related determination proof: get a copy of your VA disability determination letter confirming the injury, or any VA/DoD document stating the injury was incurred as a direct result of armed conflict, extra-hazardous service, simulated war exercises, or an instrumentality of war. Pull your VA decision letter at VA.gov - View your VA letters and documents, then come back here and continue with Step 5.

Step 5 - Decide: standard refund amount, or compute the actual amount

You have two options for how much to claim. Pick whichever is simpler or larger for your case.

Option A, the standard (simplified) refund amount. The IRS lets you skip reconstructing your old tax return and instead claim a flat, standardized amount based on the tax year you received the severance payment: $1,750 for payments received in tax years 1991 through 2005, $2,400 for tax years 2006 through 2010, or $3,200 for tax years 2011 through 2016. This is the easiest path, especially if you no longer have your old return.

Option B, the actual computed amount. If your actual overpaid tax was more than the standard amount for your year, you can instead reconstruct the real numbers: figure out what your taxable income and tax would have been WITHOUT the severance payment included, compare that to what you actually paid, and claim the real difference. This takes more documentation (your original return, W-2/1099 for that year, proof of the severance amount) and is worth doing only if you have reason to think it's meaningfully bigger than the standard amount. A tax professional or VITA/MilTax preparer (Step 7) can help you run this calculation. Source for both options: IRS Newsroom - CIVTFA refunds up to $3,200.

Step 6 - Fill out Form 1040-X for the correct year

Get Form 1040-X, Amended U.S. Individual Income Tax Return from the IRS, then come back here and continue with Step 7 once you have it. Use a separate Form 1040-X for each tax year in which you received a qualifying severance payment (most veterans only have one year to amend).

At the top of the front page, write "Veteran Disability Severance" or "St. Clair Claim" so the IRS routes it correctly.

If claiming the standard amount (Option A): enter the standard dollar amount for your year on line 15, column B, and again on line 22. Leave the other lines on the form blank. You do not need to refile the whole return or attach a corrected Form 1040.

If claiming the actual computed amount (Option B): complete the form normally, showing the corrected income, tax, and refund calculation, with your supporting documents attached.

Sign and date the form. If married filing jointly for that year, both spouses generally need to sign.

Step 7 - Attach your proof and mail it (this claim cannot be e-filed)

Unlike a regular Form 1040-X, a CIVTFA claim must be filed on paper and mailed to a special IRS unit set up just for these claims, not the standard amended-return address. Attach either your original DoD/IRS notice letter (Step 3) or your replacement documentation (Step 4).

Mail the completed Form 1040-X and attachments to: Internal Revenue Service, 333 W. Pershing Street, Stop 6503, P5, Kansas City, MO 64108.

Questions before or after filing: call the IRS's dedicated combat-injured veterans line at 833-558-5245, extension 378 (7 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time).

If you'd rather have a free professional check your figures or file it for you, use a VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance) site or MilTax (the Department of Defense's free tax service for the military community) instead of paying a preparer. Find a site or start MilTax at militaryonesource.mil/miltax or a VSO/VITA location through VA.gov or irs.gov/individuals/free-tax-return-preparation-for-qualifying-taxpayers.

Step 8 - Know your deadline: this law created a special extended window

Normally a Form 1040-X refund claim has to be filed within 3 years of the original filing deadline or 2 years of paying the tax, whichever is later, and for old severance payments from the 1990s or 2000s that window would already be closed. The Combat-Injured Veterans Tax Fairness Act overrides that by giving you whichever deadline is LATEST of the following three:

One year from the date on your DoD/IRS notice letter (or, if you never got one, from when you first obtain the replacement documentation), OR

Three years from the due date of the original return for the year you got the severance payment, OR

Two years from the date the tax for that year was actually paid.

This is the whole reason veterans with severance payments going back to 1991 can still file today. Do not sit on an old letter. If you have one dated in 2018, get your claim in now rather than later. Source: IRS Newsroom - CIVTFA refunds.

Step 9 - Don't confuse this with a VA rating-increase refund

This is a completely different situation from CIVTFA, and it uses different proof:

VA disability compensation itself is never taxed, at any rating, so there's nothing to amend on the compensation payments themselves.

If you are a military retiree and the VA later issued you a retroactive disability rating (a first award or an increase covering back time), any of your military retired pay that was taxed during that retroactive window, up to the amount that should have been offset by VA compensation, may be excludable from income for those years. That also uses Form 1040-X, but the required attachment is your VA determination letter showing the effective date and amount, not a DoD severance letter, and it runs on its own special statute of limitations (generally extended by 1 year from the date of the VA's determination letter, but not reaching back more than 5 years before that letter). See IRS Publication 525, "Special statute of limitations" and IRS - FAQs regarding disabled veterans pension income.

If that's your situation instead of a combat-related lump-sum severance, follow that separate process using your VA decision letter, not this guide's CIVTFA steps.

Step 10 - Track your refund after you mail it

About 3 weeks after mailing, you can check status using the IRS's "Where's My Amended Return?" online tool, or by calling 866-464-2050. You'll need your Social Security number, date of birth, and ZIP code. Processing typically takes 8 to 12 weeks, sometimes up to 16 weeks, so don't be alarmed if it takes a while given this is a paper-only, manually routed claim.

Print-and-take checklist

☐ Confirmed my severance was a one-time lump-sum DoD disability severance payment, combat-related, paid after 1/17/1991 and before 1/1/2017, and taxed on my original return

☐ Searched my files for the July 2018 IRS Letter 6060-A or 6060-D from DoD/IRS

☐ If no letter: called DFAS (800-321-1080) or pulled my DD Form 214 for severance-payment proof

☐ If no letter: pulled my VA determination letter at va.gov for the combat-related proof

☐ Decided standard refund amount ($1,750 / $2,400 / $3,200 by year) or actual computed amount

☐ Filled out Form 1040-X for the correct tax year, wrote "Veteran Disability Severance" or "St. Clair Claim" at the top

☐ Entered the refund amount on line 15 column B and line 22 (standard method) or completed full computation (actual method)

☐ Attached my DoD letter or replacement documentation

☐ Mailed to IRS, 333 W. Pershing Street, Stop 6503, P5, Kansas City, MO 64108 (paper only, no e-file)

☐ Noted my deadline (later of: 1 year from letter date, 3 years from original due date, or 2 years from date tax was paid)

☐ Confirmed this is NOT my situation if it's actually a VA rating-increase / retired-pay case, and switched to that process instead

☐ Set a reminder to check status at irs.gov/filing/wheres-my-amended-return in about 3 weeks

This guide is for education only and is not tax advice. Every situation is different, and tax law changes. For help filing, use a free VA-accredited Veterans Service Officer (VSO) found through VA.gov, or a free VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance) site or MilTax preparer, or a licensed CPA/enrolled agent. Never pay anyone a percentage of your refund or give banking credentials to a firm claiming to be affiliated with the IRS or VA, that's a scam pattern, not how this program works.

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