Wherever You Live, We'll Fight for Your Benefits

One team, all 50 states

Advocates for Benefits is based in Cabot, Arkansas, but our clients live from Alaska to Florida. VA disability claims, decision reviews, and Board appeals run through VA's national systems. Social Security disability claims run through SSA's national network. You never need to visit our office to work with us.

1. Start online. Our secure intake takes about 10 minutes, and you can upload decision letters and records.
2. Talk with us by phone or video at a time that works for your time zone.
3. Sign electronically: VA Form 21-22a (and SSA-1696 for Social Security) plus a fee agreement.
4. We go to work building the evidence, filing, and handling VA correspondence, and we keep you updated.

Veterans living abroad: you can still file, and you should

Thousands of veterans live overseas, whether retired abroad, married to a foreign national, working overseas, or settled near a former duty station. VA says it plainly: most VA benefits are payable regardless of where you live or your nationality, including disability compensation and pension.

Why service connection matters even more overseas

In the U.S., veterans can often get VA health care for many conditions. Overseas, it's different. VA's Foreign Medical Program (FMP) pays for medically necessary care abroad only for VA-rated service-connected disabilities (and conditions associated with and aggravating them). VA doesn't cover care abroad for conditions that aren't service-connected.

• If a condition isn't service-connected, you pay for treatment abroad yourself, through local insurance or out of pocket.
• Once a condition is service-connected (even at 0%), FMP can cover medically necessary care for it: office visits, hospital care, emergency care, prescriptions, physical therapy, and prescribed equipment.
• Under FMP you can choose any licensed provider in your country, and no referral or prior authorization is needed. Register with FMP before you file claims.

So getting each condition service-connected isn't just about monthly compensation. For veterans abroad, it's often the key to having VA pay for your care at all.

Getting paid while living abroad

• Compensation is payable abroad. Your rating and payment don't depend on where you live.
• International direct deposit is available to eligible foreign banks. Treasury's international services don't charge a currency conversion fee, though your bank may.
• FMP reimbursements currently go by direct deposit to U.S. bank accounts. VA has said it's working on international accounts.

C&P exams overseas

VA schedules your claim exam as close to your home as possible, through contract examiners where they're available, or through other arrangements such as a local provider completing VA's exam forms. To avoid delays:

• Give VA your physical address, not just a mailing address. VA suggests submitting it on VA Form 21-4138.
• Keep your phone number and email current. VA uses them to notify you of exam dates.
• Gather local medical records and have key documents translated where possible. VA translates foreign documents submitted with FMP claims.