How VA disability ratings work

If you have a health condition connected to your military service, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) may assign it a disability rating. That rating affects your monthly compensation and can affect access to other VA benefits.

This guide explains what a rating is, how VA decides it, and what happens when you have more than one condition.

What a disability rating is

A disability rating is a percentage. VA says it represents how much your disability decreases your overall health and ability to function.

Ratings run from 0% to 100%. Individual ratings are given in steps of 10, such as a 10% rating, a 30% rating or a 70% rating.

Definition

Service connection: A finding by VA that a current condition is linked to your military service. The condition may have started during service, been made worse by service, or appeared after service but still be related to it. VA generally needs to find service connection before it can rate a condition.

A 0% rating means VA has recognized the condition as service connected but has rated it as not severe enough for monthly payments on its own. It still matters. It is on your record, and it can be reviewed if the condition gets worse later.

How VA decides your rating

VA bases your rating on the evidence in your claim file. According to VA, that generally includes three things:

• Evidence you give VA, such as a doctor's report or medical test results.
• Results of a VA claim exam, also called a Compensation & Pension (C&P) exam, if VA decides you need one.
• Information from other federal agencies, such as your military service records.

VA looks at your current symptoms and how they affect your daily life and work. It compares that evidence to written rating criteria for your condition. The rating reflects how the condition affects you now, based on the evidence VA has.

You can read more about the exam in our guide, What is a C&P exam?

The VA rating schedule

The rules VA uses to rate conditions are published in federal regulations. They are known as the Schedule for Rating Disabilities, found in Title 38 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Part 4.

The schedule is organized by body system, such as the musculoskeletal system, mental disorders, or hearing. Each condition has a diagnostic code. Each code lists the symptoms or test results that match each available rating level.

Not every condition can be rated at every percentage. Some codes only offer a few levels. For example, one code might allow a 10%, 30% or 50% rating, but nothing in between.

VA also generally avoids rating the same symptoms twice under different codes. When two conditions share symptoms, VA decides how to rate them so that each symptom is counted once.

When you have more than one condition

Many Veterans have more than one service-connected condition. VA rates each one separately. Then it combines them into a single combined rating.

VA does not simply add the numbers together. It uses what is often called the whole-person method. For example, a 50% rating and a 30% rating combine to 65%, which VA rounds to a combined rating of 70%.

We walk through that math step by step in Understanding VA combined ratings.

Some Veterans cannot keep steady work because of their service-connected conditions. In some of those cases, VA may pay at the 100% rate through Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability (TDIU), even if the combined rating is lower. VA lists the eligibility rules on its Individual Unemployability page (opens in a new tab).

After you get a rating

Your rating is not always permanent. Conditions can change, and VA has rules for reviewing ratings over time.

• If a condition gets worse, you can file a claim for an increase.
• If you disagree with a decision, you can ask for a decision review. Time limits apply.
• VA may schedule a re-examination in some cases to check the current severity of a condition.

No one can promise a specific rating. The decision belongs to VA and depends on the evidence. What you can do is understand the process and make sure VA has a complete and accurate picture of your health.

If you are trying to make sense of your own rating, start with When can a VA disability rating be reviewed? If you would like help organizing your next step, you can talk with our team about your situation.