VA Disability Benefits Guide 2026

How VA Disability Ratings Work

A VA disability rating is a percentage that reflects the severity of a condition the VA has determined is connected to your military service. Ratings run from 0% to 100% in 10% increments.

A 0% rating means the VA acknowledges the service connection but finds the condition not severe enough to warrant compensation. It still matters: a 0% rating establishes the service connection, which becomes the foundation for future claims if the condition worsens.

Ratings that produce compensation begin at 10%. The compensation jumps substantially at each 10% tier, and the gaps between adjacent tiers can exceed $300–$400/month — meaning where you land within VA math matters enormously to your long-term financial picture.

Ratings are based on severity of symptoms as described in the VA's Schedule for Rating Disabilities (38 CFR Part 4). For most conditions, the VA evaluates how severely the disability limits your ability to function — in some cases using specific diagnostic criteria (range of motion measurements for joint conditions, audiometric thresholds for hearing loss, etc.).

VA Math — Why Your Ratings Don't Add Up

This is the concept that confuses almost every veteran who sees their combined rating for the first time.

The VA does not add disability ratings together. Instead, it uses the "whole person" method defined in 38 CFR § 4.25. The logic: your body starts at 100% functional capacity. Each disability reduces from whatever capacity remains, not from the original 100%.

Step-by-step example: 50% + 30%

1. Start: 100% whole person
2. Apply highest rating first (50%): 100 − 50 = 50% remaining
3. Apply next rating to what's left (30% of 50): 30% × 50 = 15 → remaining = 35%
4. Combined disability = 100 − 35 = 65%
5. Round to nearest 10%: 70%

The VA rounds once — at the very end — to the nearest 10%. Values ending in 1–4 round down; values ending in 5–9 round up. Rounding between steps produces the wrong answer.

Why this matters: At 65% (before rounding), the difference between 64.4% and 65% is the difference between a 60% rating ($1,435.02/month) and a 70% rating ($1,808.45/month) — a gap of $373.43/month or $4,481/year, tax-free. Knowing your exact combined value, not just the rounded rating, helps you understand how close you are to the next threshold and what an additional condition could do.

For a full mathematical walkthrough with multiple examples, see VA Disability Math Explained.

The Bilateral Factor

There is one adjustment in VA math that works in your favor: the bilateral factor under 38 CFR § 4.26.

If you have compensable ratings (greater than 0%) on both sides of a paired body part — both knees, both hips, both shoulders, both ankles, both hands, both feet, or both eyes — the VA applies a 10% increase to the combined value of those bilateral ratings before mixing them into the main calculation.

Example: Left knee 30% + Right knee 20% + PTSD 50%

Step 1 — Combine the bilateral pair first:

• Start: 100; Apply 30% → 70 remaining; Apply 20% to 70 → 70 × 0.80 = 56 remaining
• Bilateral combined value: 100 − 56 = 44%

Step 2 — Apply bilateral factor (+10%):

• 44 × 1.10 = 48.4% (this adjusted value replaces 44% in the main calculation)

Step 3 — Combine with PTSD:

• Sort highest first: 50%, 48.4%
• Start: 100; Apply 50% → 50 remaining; Apply 48.4% to 50 → 50 × 0.516 = 25.8 remaining
• Final combined: 100 − 25.8 = 74.2%
• Rounds to 70%

Without the bilateral factor, those three ratings combine to 71%, rounding to 70% — in this case the same result. But near a rounding boundary, the bilateral factor can push you across a threshold worth hundreds of dollars per month.

The key takeaway: if you have symptoms on both sides of any paired extremity, file for both. Even a 10% rating on the second side triggers the bilateral factor, and that can shift your combined rating by a full tier.

2026 VA Compensation Rates

All VA disability compensation is excluded from federal and state income tax.

2026 monthly rates (veteran alone, no dependents):

| Rating | Monthly | Annual | |--------|---------|--------| | 10% | $175.51 | $2,106 | | 20% | $346.95 | $4,163 | | 30% | $537.42 | $6,449 | | 40% | $774.16 | $9,290 | | 50% | $1,102.01 | $13,224 | | 60% | $1,395.93 | $16,751 | | 70% | $1,808.45 | $21,701 | | 80% | $2,102.15 | $25,226 | | 90% | $2,362.30 | $28,348 | | 100% | $3,938.58 | $47,263 |

Dependent additions — only at 30% and above:

Veterans rated at 10% or 20% receive the flat base rate regardless of dependents — dependent additions only kick in at a combined rating of 30% or higher. This is one of the most commonly misunderstood aspects of the VA compensation structure.

At 30%+, the following dependent additions apply:

• Spouse only: $60–$160/month additional depending on rating
• Each child under 18: approximately $32–$96/month
• Dependent parent: approximately $47–$135/month

The gap from 90% to 100% ($1,576.28/month, $18,915/year) is by far the largest single step in the table. Veterans who are close to 100% — or who qualify for Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability (TDIU) — should understand how additional conditions could affect their combined rating.

TDIU — Paid at the 100% rate: Veterans whose service-connected conditions prevent them from maintaining substantially gainful employment may qualify for Total Disability Individual Unemployability (TDIU), which pays at the 100% compensation rate even if the combined schedular rating is lower. Eligibility generally requires a single disability rated 60%+ or a combined rating of 70%+ with at least one condition at 40%+. Contact an accredited Veterans Service Organization (VSO) to evaluate TDIU eligibility.

Filing Before Separation (Benefits Delivery at Discharge)

Most veterans who delay filing for VA disability benefits do so for the wrong reasons — either they think their condition will improve, they don't want to seem like they're "taking advantage of the system," or they simply don't know how the system works.

Filing early matters for two reasons:

1. Effective date = filing date. The VA pays back to the date of your original claim, not the date they made a decision. Filing on your last day of active duty establishes an effective date that protects your back pay if the decision takes months.

2. BDD is faster. The Benefits Delivery at Discharge program allows service members to file 90–180 days before separation using VA Form 21-526EZ. The VA begins processing your claim while you're still on active duty, which typically produces faster decisions (average 30 days for BDD vs. 90+ days for standard claims).

Your military medical records are the foundation of any service-connection claim. They are most accessible — and most complete — while you're still in uniform. Once you separate, requesting records from TRICARE or the National Personnel Records Center can take months.

See How to File VA Disability Before Separation for a step-by-step filing guide.

Rating stability protections: VA disability ratings are not always permanent — the VA can re-evaluate ratings if it believes a condition has improved. However, several procedural protections limit this over time: ratings in place for 5+ years receive a "stabilization" protection that raises the evidence threshold for reduction; ratings held for 10+ years cannot be severed unless fraud was involved; and ratings held for 20+ years are considered permanent and protected. Understanding these timelines matters when planning your long-term finances around VA compensation.

VA Disability and Military Retirement

For veterans who both retire from military service and receive VA disability compensation, the interaction between the two pay streams is one of the most financially significant — and most misunderstood — topics in military finance.

The historical rule: Until 2004, veterans had to waive one dollar of retirement pay for every dollar of VA disability compensation they received. Military retirement and VA disability were mutually exclusive above the VA amount.

CRDP (Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay): Since 2004, most veterans with a VA disability rating of 50% or higher who retired with 20+ years of service are eligible to receive both their full retirement pension and their full VA disability compensation, with no offset. This is called Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay.

CRSC (Combat-Related Special Compensation): Veterans whose disabilities are specifically combat-related may elect CRSC instead of CRDP. CRSC has the added benefit of not being taxable income, whereas retirement pay is taxable. Veterans whose disability is combat-related and have a lower disability rating (below 50%) may find CRSC more advantageous.

The decision between CRDP and CRSC requires calculating your specific numbers — see the Military Retirement Calculator and the Retirement & TSP Guide for the full framework.

Life Insurance After Service

SGLI (Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance) provides up to $500,000 in coverage at extremely competitive rates while you're on active duty — $25/month for maximum coverage. It terminates 120 days after separation.

Veterans have several options after separation:

VGLI (Veterans' Group Life Insurance): Converts automatically from SGLI. You apply within 240 days of separation, no medical exam required within the first 240 days. Premiums start low for younger veterans but increase substantially with age — by the mid-40s, VGLI often costs more than comparable private coverage.

Private term life insurance: For veterans in good health, private term life insurance frequently offers better value than VGLI by their mid-30s to 40s. The advantage of VGLI is guaranteed issuance if you apply promptly after separation, which matters if you have significant service-connected health conditions.

For a detailed comparison of SGLI, VGLI, and private coverage with 2026 premium rates, see SGLI, VGLI, and Private Life Insurance.

Related Guides

• Military Retirement & TSP Guide — How VA disability interacts with military pension through CRDP and CRSC
• Military Pay & Compensation Guide — Full picture of active duty compensation, including tax-free components