What VA disability compensation is
Disability compensation is a monthly, tax-free payment for veterans who became sick or injured while serving, or whose existing condition was made worse by service. VA assigns each service-connected condition a rating from 0% to 100% in 10% steps. It then combines those ratings into one overall rating using its combined ratings table. Your payment depends on that combined rating and on your dependents.
VA updates compensation rates every year with the cost-of-living adjustment. See the current amounts on VA's official rates page.
The three things VA needs to see
Most claims for direct service connection come down to three elements:
- A current diagnosis. A medical professional has diagnosed the condition you're claiming. A few conditions, like tinnitus, can be established by your own description of symptoms.
- An in-service event, injury, or illness. Something happened during service: an injury, an exposure, a period of symptoms, or a stressor.
- A link ("nexus") between the two. Medical evidence showing it is at least as likely as not (a 50% or greater probability) that your current condition is related to that event.
Ways to establish service connection
| Type | What it means |
|---|---|
| Direct | The condition began in, or was caused by, an event during service. |
| Secondary | A service-connected condition caused or worsened another condition (38 CFR § 3.310). Learn more. |
| Presumptive | VA presumes the connection for certain conditions, like chronic diseases that appear within a year of discharge, or conditions tied to toxic exposures under the PACT Act. |
| Aggravation | A condition that existed before service got permanently worse beyond its natural progression because of service. |
How a claim is filed
- Intent to File (VA Form 21-0966). This sets a potential effective date. If you then file a complete claim within one year, VA may pay benefits back to the intent-to-file date.
- Application (VA Form 21-526EZ). This is the formal claim for disability compensation, filed online, by mail, or through your representative.
- Evidence. Service treatment records, VA and private medical records, buddy and lay statements (VA Form 21-10210), and medical opinions.
- C&P exam. VA usually schedules a Compensation & Pension exam. Preparing for it, and showing up, matters. Our resource center explains what to expect.
We'll look at your service history and conditions and tell you honestly what we see.
How Advocates for Benefits helps
- We review your service records and medical history to find every condition that may be claimable, including secondary and presumptive conditions.
- We identify gaps in the evidence and the kind of medical opinion that would address them. See nexus letters.
- We prepare and submit the claim and evidence, and we handle correspondence with VA as your appointed representative (VA Form 21-22a).
- When the decision arrives, we review it with you, including the effective date and each rating.
About fees: VA rules don't allow accredited agents to charge for help with a claim before VA issues its first decision on it. See how our fees work.
Official sources
VA: How to file a disability claim · VA: Eligibility · 38 CFR Part 3
This page is general information, not legal advice, and VA rules change. Last reviewed October 2026.