VA Disability Tools & Guides

Calculate your real combined rating with 2026 pay, dependents, bilateral factor, SMC-K and SMC-S.

Model your combined rating from multiple ratings using 38 CFR §4.25.

Estimate retroactive pay using historical rates with annual COLA adjustments 2014–2026.

Special Monthly Compensation K through T, aid & attendance, housebound, 2026 rates.

Survivor benefit payment estimator.

VA Pension (MAPR, A&A, Housebound), military retirement, CRDP and CRSC explained side-by-side.

What you get at 10%, 30%, 50%, 70%, 100%: health, education, dependents.

Side-by-side comparison of education benefits.

Data tool. How often does a rating go up, down, or stay the same?

How VA rates PTSD, depression, anxiety, and other mental-health conditions.

725 diagnostic codes in plain English. Describe symptoms to research the right code.

Musculoskeletal, mental health, respiratory, cardiovascular, and more.

580 conditions mapped to the exact 21-526EZ dropdown label.

What veterans actually file for, ranked by frequency.

Real impact language pulled from BVA decisions, by condition.

DeLuca / 38 CFR §4.40 / §4.45: when pain alone justifies a higher rating.

Rating a condition that doesn't have its own diagnostic code.

Disability Benefits Questionnaire forms by condition.

What examiners look for, condition by condition.

What happens at the exam, what 38 CFR Part 4 requires examiners to record, what to bring.

The legal standard for an inadequate VA exam and the case law that defines it.

Conditions that commonly stem from a service-connected primary.

1,135 military jobs rated for noise exposure. "Highly Probable" = VA concedes.

13-step walkthrough from filing to decision.

What happens after you file. The 8 phases explained.

Paste your VA decision letter, get plain English back.

What VA needs to grant: current diagnosis, in-service event, nexus.

Direct, secondary, presumptive, aggravation, 1151, and more.

When a private medical opinion makes the difference.

When your own statement (and your buddy's) is evidence.

C-File, DD-214, military medical records, and how to request them.

When the VA can't find your records and you need to reconstruct.

5 web addresses that show your ratings, claims, appeals, straight from VA.gov.

File 90–180 days before separation so benefits start day one.

First step to challenge a decision: same evidence, fresh reviewer.

HLR vs Supplemental Claim vs Board Appeal. Pick the right lane.

When your benefits start, and how to fight for an earlier date.

Why VA won't rate the same disability twice.

Inside the rater's playbook.

What's getting denied this month, and why.

Original, FDC, Standard, Increase, Secondary, Supplemental, Deferred, Inferred, 1151.

All 8 internal VA workflow stages and the 5-step VA.gov tracker mapping.

Narrative + codesheet anatomy. Spot miscoded ratings and missing SMC.

What the VA must do under 38 USC 5103A, and the McLendon C&P exam test.

10 eligibility pathways for expedited claim handling, and what it does not speed up.

Categorical bars and the narrow exceptions that open the door.

What the 38 USC 1154(b) combat presumption does, and what it does not do.

AD vs. ACDUTRA vs. INACDUTRA, veteran status, Title 10 vs. Title 32.

Effective-date trap, refile windows by lane, and the path back.

When VA can schedule a future exam, the over-55 / 5-year bars, and how to challenge a notice.

NPRC, DRB, BCMR, PDBR, DARB: which board handles which fix or discharge upgrade.

Every condition presumed under the PACT Act, by exposure.

Enter your condition + service era to see if it's presumed.

Forever-chemical contamination by base.

38 CFR §3.309(d): atomic vets and radiogenic conditions.

38 CFR §3.311: when dose reconstruction matters.

38 CFR §3.317: undiagnosed and medically unexplained conditions.

38 CFR §3.309(e): Vietnam-era herbicide presumption + PACT Act 2022 additions.

38 USC 1119: PACT Act post-9/11 presumptive cancers and respiratory conditions.

38 CFR §3.309(f): eight presumptive conditions for veterans stationed Aug 1953 - Dec 1987.

38 CFR §3.309(a): time-since-separation windows for diabetes, arthritis, hypertension, MS, ALS, and more.

38 CFR §3.309(c): base list and the 30-day-detention expanded list.

What chemicals, hazards, and noise your MOS was exposed to.

When the Toxic Exposure Risk Activity exam is skipped.

22,998 BVA TERA appeals analyzed.

Service connection and rating for cancer claims.

Stressor verification, rating criteria, common pitfalls.

Direct and secondary service-connection paths.

Audio thresholds, MOS noise concession, common denials.

Prostrating attack standard, frequency tracking.

Military Sexual Trauma: markers, evidence, sensitivity.

Total Disability Individual Unemployability, paid at 100%.

What the SMC-L examiner is looking for.

Full-text search by year, outcome, code, judge, branch.

Aggregate grant / deny / remand patterns.

Per-judge disposition rates and top conditions.

Grant / deny / remand split per diagnostic code.

Interactive map of which conditions co-occur, by body system.

Conditions rated after a service-connected cancer's 100% rating ends.

13,375 SMC appeals analyzed.

Weekly snapshot of claim trends.

Eligibility, priority groups, copays.

In-home care benefits and how to qualify.

Who qualifies, what's covered.

Mileage reimbursement for VA appointments.

VA care abroad: eligibility, claims, Philippines rules.

Dependency and Indemnity Compensation overview.

VA's life insurance program for service-connected veterans.

Property tax breaks, tuition waivers, state-only benefits.

License plates, ID cards, fee waivers by state.

Park passes, retail discounts, hidden eligibility.

VA Loan, IRRRL refinance, NADL, SAH and SHA adapted-housing grants, funding-fee exemption.

One-time vehicle grant (38 CFR 3.808) + repeatable equipment grant for loss-of-use conditions.

Tax-free yearly allowance for prosthetic or skin-medication garment damage. Form 10-8678.

Free help filing or appealing a claim.

Reps and VA facilities by location.

Every VA-accredited VSO organization.

Phone, secure-message, in-person VA contact options.

Anonymously contribute your claim result to help other vets.

5-year, 10-year, 20-year rules: when VA can't reduce.

When a claim for an increase puts your existing rating at risk.

The honest answer to a common worry.

NOD, HLR, SOC, SSOC, nexus, lay evidence, every acronym defined.