Types of VA Disability Claims

An Overview of VA Disability Claims

The VA disability system compensates veterans for injuries and illnesses connected to their military service. In practice, that covers an enormous range of conditions, physical, mental, and those tied to toxic exposure. Two claims are rarely identical, because each depends on your service history, your diagnoses, and the medical evidence linking them.

This page groups our work into the condition areas veterans ask about most and links to a dedicated page for each. Whether you are filing for the first time, seeking a higher rating, or appealing a denial, start with the area that fits your situation and follow the links for detail.

Conditions and Claim Types We Handle

Explore the practice-area page that matches your condition:

• PTSD — post-traumatic stress disorder from combat, military sexual trauma, and other stressors.
• Mental health conditions — depression, anxiety, and related diagnoses.
• Traumatic brain injury (TBI) — lasting effects of head injuries and blasts.
• Back and spine injuries — chronic back pain, disc disease, and radiculopathy.
• Sleep apnea — including claims secondary to other conditions.
• Hearing loss and tinnitus — among the most common service-connected conditions.
• Agent Orange exposure — presumptive herbicide conditions from Vietnam-era and related service.
• Gulf War Syndrome — undiagnosed and medically unexplained chronic illnesses.
• Burn pit exposure — airborne-hazard conditions covered by the PACT Act.
• TDIU / unemployability — 100%-level pay when service-connected conditions prevent you from working.
• Total and Permanent (P&T) disability — the protective 100% P&T status and its family benefits.

For newer toxic-exposure presumptions across many of these areas, see our PACT Act overview.

How Service Connection Works

Every disability claim rests on service connection, the link between your condition and your military service. There are four main ways to establish it:

• Direct service connection — the condition began during or was caused by your service. This requires a current diagnosis, an in-service event or injury, and a medical nexus tying the two together.
• Secondary service connection — a service-connected condition caused or aggravated a second condition. For example, service-connected knee damage that leads to a back problem, or a physical disability that contributes to depression.
• Presumptive service connection — for certain conditions and service, the VA presumes the link without a nexus opinion. This covers many Agent Orange, Gulf War, and burn pit claims.
• Aggravation — a condition that existed before service, or a nonservice-connected condition, was made permanently worse by service or by a service-connected disability. The VA compensates the increase in severity.

Choosing the right theory, or pursuing more than one, is often the key to a successful claim.

How Ratings and Combined Ratings Work

Once a condition is service-connected, the VA assigns a disability rating in 10% increments based on how severely the condition affects you. Each condition is rated under a schedule that describes the symptoms at each level.

When you have more than one rated condition, the VA does not simply add the percentages. It uses VA math, sometimes called combined ratings, which accounts for the fact that each disability applies to the portion of you that remains. Two 50% conditions do not equal 100%; they combine to 75%, which then rounds to the nearest 10%. This is why understanding the combined-ratings table matters, especially near thresholds like 70% (often relevant for TDIU) or 100%.

To estimate your combined rating and monthly payment, use our VA disability calculator and our back pay calculator, and review the current rates.

Filing, Increasing, and Appealing

Wherever you are in the process, there is a path forward:

• New claims — identify your conditions and the strongest theory of service connection, then gather diagnoses and evidence.
• Higher ratings — if your condition worsened, our page on increasing your rating explains how to seek a higher evaluation.
• Denied claims — a denial is not the end. See denied VA claim and your options to appeal a VA decision.
• Appeal lanes — including higher-level review and supplemental claims, the Board of Veterans' Appeals, and the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims.
• Effective dates — the date your benefits start can be worth thousands. See effective date appeals.

To learn more about the firm and how we work, visit our about page or contact us.

Frequently Asked Questions