VA Ratings by Condition

How the VA rates conditions: PACT Act presumptives, mental-health conditions, TDIU (paid at 100% without a 100% rating), and a 5-question eligibility check.

PACT Act 2022 — Toxic Exposure

Millions of Veterans
Now Qualify — Do You?

The PACT Act (Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics Act) was signed in August 2022. It is the largest expansion of VA benefits in decades. You do not have to prove the condition was service-connected — only that you served in the area during the exposure period.

Post-9/11

🔥

Burn Pit Exposure

Veterans who served in Southwest Asia (Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Djibouti, Egypt, Jordan, and others) after August 2, 1990 are now presumed to have been exposed to burn pit smoke. Over 3 million veterans may qualify. Covered conditions include many respiratory diseases, constrictive bronchiolitis, and certain cancers.

Vietnam Era

🌿

Agent Orange

Veterans who served in or near the Republic of Vietnam between January 9, 1962 and May 7, 1975 are presumed exposed to Agent Orange. PACT Act added bladder cancer, hypothyroidism, and Parkinson's-like disorders to the presumptive list. Navy Blue Water veterans are now also covered.

Gulf War Era

🏜️

Gulf War Syndrome

Veterans who served in Southwest Asia since August 2, 1990 with chronic, unexplained symptoms — fatigue, cognitive issues, musculoskeletal pain, gastrointestinal issues — may qualify under Gulf War Syndrome presumptives. You don't need a diagnosis; the symptoms themselves are ratable.

Marines / Navy

💧

Camp Lejeune Contamination

Veterans, reservists, and family members who lived or worked at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune between August 1953 and December 1987 for at least 30 days may qualify. Covered conditions include bladder cancer, kidney cancer, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, leukemia, and multiple myeloma.

Radiation

⚛️

Radiation Exposure

Veterans who participated in nuclear testing, were prisoners of war in Japan, or were part of occupation forces in Hiroshima or Nagasaki qualify for radiation presumptives covering numerous cancers and leukemia types.

All Eras

⚗️

Other Toxic Exposures

Contaminated water at other bases, PFAS chemicals, mustard gas testing, and various occupational chemical exposures may also qualify depending on documented service history. The PACT Act created a new pathway to request review for any toxic exposure.

Presumptive Service Connection — Legal Standard

Under the standard nexus framework (38 C.F.R. § 3.303), a veteran must establish a three-way connection: current diagnosis, in-service incurrence or aggravation, and a medical nexus linking the two. For presumptive conditions established by statute or regulation, the nexus element is legally satisfied by proof of service in the qualifying location during the qualifying period. The veteran must demonstrate only: (1) current diagnosis of a listed condition; and (2) qualifying service. The VA may not require additional nexus evidence for presumptive conditions. This legal distinction eliminates the single greatest evidentiary barrier most veterans face — and millions of eligible veterans have never filed because they did not know it existed.

Under 38 C.F.R. § 3.307 and § 3.309, the VA maintains a continuously updated list of presumptive conditions by era and exposure type. The PACT Act (Pub. L. 117-168) significantly expanded this list in 2022. Review the full presumptive list: va.gov/resources/the-pact-act-and-your-va-benefits/ ↗

Veterans Crisis Line — Available 24/7/365

If you are in crisis or know a veteran who is, reach out immediately. Trained responders are available around the clock — call, text, or chat.

988, Press 1 Call — Immediate Response

838255 Text — Confidential

Chat Online veteranscrisisline.net

Mental Health VA Claims

Mental Health Conditions
Are Ratable Disabilities

PTSD, major depression, anxiety disorders, and other mental health conditions caused or aggravated by military service are treated the same as physical disabilities — you can receive compensation and healthcare for them.

🛡️

PTSD Claims — 38 C.F.R. § 4.130, DC 9411

PTSD is rated under Diagnostic Code 9411 (38 C.F.R. § 4.130) at five levels — 0%, 10%, 30%, 50%, 70%, or 100% — based on the degree of occupational and social impairment. The claim requires three elements: (1) a current DSM-5 diagnosis of PTSD; (2) an in-service stressor event; and (3) a nexus linking the two. Combat veterans and Military Sexual Trauma (MST) survivors operate under a relaxed stressor standard under 38 C.F.R. § 3.304(f) — a veteran's own credible statement may be sufficient to establish the in-service event without corroborating documentation.

💙

MST — Military Sexual Trauma

Military Sexual Trauma (MST) is defined in 38 U.S.C. § 1720D as sexual assault or sexual harassment that occurred during military service. By statute, VA must provide free mental health treatment for MST-related conditions regardless of disability rating status or whether a compensation claim has been filed. For disability claims, the evidentiary threshold is reduced under 38 C.F.R. § 3.304(f)(5): "markers" documented in your service record — behavioral changes, requests for transfer, sudden decline in performance — may establish the stressor even absent a contemporaneous report.

🧩

TBI — Traumatic Brain Injury

TBI from blast exposure, vehicle accidents, or other combat events is service-connected and can be rated from 0% to 100%. TBI often co-occurs with PTSD, depression, and seizure disorders — each of which can be rated separately, increasing your combined rating.

💤

Sleep Disorders & Secondary Conditions

Many mental health conditions cause secondary disabilities — insomnia, sleep apnea, hypertension, and chronic pain are common. If a service-connected condition caused or aggravated a secondary condition, that secondary condition can also be service-connected and rated separately. This is one of the most underused paths to a higher combined rating.

📖

How to Document Your Claim

Your VA examiner rates you based on how your worst days look — not your best. Document: relationship difficulties, inability to maintain employment, social isolation, panic attacks, nightmares, flashbacks, and inability to be in crowds. Use our free PTSD Documentation Worksheet to capture this before your C&P exam.

🏥

VA Mental Health Treatment

Even without a disability rating, veterans can access VA mental health services for conditions related to their service. MST survivors receive care at no cost regardless of rating. Call your local VA medical center and ask for mental health services — no referral needed.

Individual Unemployability

TDIU — Paid at 100%
Without Being 100%

If your service-connected disabilities make it impossible to hold a substantially gainful job, VA can pay you at the 100% rate regardless of your combined rating. Many veterans who qualify never file for TDIU.

Statutory Eligibility Criteria — 38 C.F.R. § 4.16

Under 38 C.F.R. § 4.16(a), you must meet one of the following rating thresholds and demonstrate that your service-connected disabilities render you unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation:

Single Condition — § 4.16(a) One service-connected disability rated at 60% or higher. The disability alone must be the cause of unemployability.

Multiple Conditions — § 4.16(a) Combined rating of 70% or higher with at least one individual disability rated at 40% or higher. All service-connected disabilities are considered together.

Extraschedular TDIU — § 4.16(b) If you fall below these thresholds but cannot work due to service-connected disabilities, the VA may refer your claim for extraschedular consideration. This requires documented evidence that your disabilities create an exceptional occupational limitation not adequately captured by the rating schedule.

Procedural requirement: File using VA Form 21-8940 (Veteran's Application for Increased Compensation Based on Unemployability). Document every employer who has declined to hire you, every position you have been unable to maintain, and your complete employment history since the onset of your service-connected conditions. Your treating physician's statement linking your disabilities to your inability to work is critical evidence — it should be specific, dated, and reference the occupational limitations your conditions impose.

Note on concurrent benefits: TDIU compensation under 38 C.F.R. § 4.16 is paid at the 100% statutory rate under 38 U.S.C. § 1114(j). Receiving TDIU does not preclude receipt of Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) — these are separate federal programs with different eligibility standards, and approval for one does not automatically qualify or disqualify you for the other.

Step 1 — Start Here

5-Question Eligibility Tool

Answer 5 quick questions and we'll show you the benefits most relevant to your situation. No personal information is collected or stored.

Q1 of 5 — Did you serve in the U.S. military?

Q2 of 5 — What was your discharge status?

Q3 of 5 — Do you have a service-connected health condition?

Q4 of 5 — What era did you primarily serve?

Q5 of 5 — What is your current VA disability rating?

Millions of VeteransNow Qualify — Do You?