Filing a VA Disability Claim

Are you eligible for VA disability compensation?

You may be eligible for VA disability benefits or compensation if you meet these requirements:

Both of these must be true:

  • You have a current illness or injury (known as a condition) that affects your mind or body

    AND

  • You served on active duty, active duty for training, or inactive duty training

And at least one of these must be true:

  • You got sick or injured while serving in the military—and can link this condition to your illness or injury (called an in-service disability claim)

    OR

  • You had an illness or injury before you joined the military—and serving made it worse (called a pre-service disability claim)

    OR

  • You have a disability related to your active-duty service that didn’t appear until after you ended your service (called a post-service disability claim)

Presumptive Conditions

For some conditions, the VA automatically assume (or “presume”) that your service caused your condition. We call these presumptive conditions. If you have a presumptive condition, you don’t need to prove that your service caused the condition. You only need to meet the service requirements for the presumption.

  • Be sure to fill out your claim completely.

  • Gather any evidence (supporting documents) you’ll submit yourself when you file your VA disability claim. We encourage you to send in all of your supporting documents along with your claim. This will help the VA to process your claim quickly.

  • Find out if you’ll need to turn in any additional forms with your claim.

Application

You can support your VA disability claim by providing these documents:

  • VA medical records and hospital records. These could relate to your claimed illnesses or injuries or they could show that your rated disability has gotten worse.

  • Private medical records and hospital reports. These could relate to your claimed illnesses or injuries or they could show that your disability has gotten worse.

  • Supporting statements. These could be from family members, friends, clergy members, law enforcement personnel, or people you served with. These statements could tell the VA more about your claimed condition and how and when it happened or how it got worse.

Evidence to Support a Claim

Depending on the type of claim you file, you may gather supporting documents yourself or you can ask for the VA’s help to gather evidence. The VA will also review your discharge papers (DD214 or other separation documents) and service treatment records.

Requirement to submit evidence with the claim?

No. You don’t have to submit any evidence to support your claim. But the VA may need to schedule a claim exam so they can learn more about your condition.

You should also know that you may have up to a year from the date they receive your claim to turn in any evidence (be sure to verify). If you start your application and need time to gather more supporting documents, you can save your application and come back later to finish it. They should recognize the date you started your application as your date of claim, as long as you complete it within 365 days (again, please be sure to verify).

How to File a Claim

You can file a disability claim (VA Form 21-526EZ) in any of these ways:

Print the form, fill it out, and send it to this address:

Department of Veterans Affairs Claims Intake Center
PO Box 4444
Janesville, WI 53547-4444

  • In person: Bring your application to a VA regional office near you.

With the help of a trained professional: You can work with a trained professional (called an accredited representative) from organizations like the DAV to get help filing a claim for disability compensation.

What happens after I file my VA disability claim?

You don’t need to do anything while you’re waiting unless they send you a letter asking for more information. If they schedule exams for you, be sure not to miss them.

How long does it take VA to make a decision?

Average number of days to complete disability-related claims as reported in July 2023:
104 days