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If you read 100 Percent VA Disability Explained
Reviewing Your Ratings and Filing for Every Evaluation You Can Support
If you read A VA Disability Claims Manual for the Rest of Us
Filing Your First VA Disability Claim
If you read AI and Your VA Claim
Reviewing Your Ratings and Filing for Every Evaluation You Can Support
If you read After the DD-214
Your First Year After the DD-214
If you read BDD Claims Guide
Filing a Pre-Discharge (BDD) Claim
If you read Beyond 100%
Identifying and Filing for Special Monthly Compensation (SMC)
If you read Buddy Statements for VA Claims
Writing and Collecting Buddy Statements
If you read Earn More on TDIU
Filing for TDIU (Total Disability Based on Individual Unemployability)
If you read Filed
Filing a Women Veterans Claim
If you read How to Use VA Healthcare
Enrolling in VA Health Care
If you read Left Standing
The First Weeks as a Survivor
If you read Military Sexual Trauma VA Claims
Filing a Military Sexual Trauma (MST) Claim
If you read Never Too Late
Filing a Claim Years After Service
If you read Nexus Letters for VA Claims
Requesting a Strong Nexus Letter
If you read Protect What You Earned
Protecting Your Rating From Reduction
If you read Ringing and Silence
Filing a Tinnitus and Hearing Loss Claim
If you read Stacking the Benefits
Applying for SSDI While Receiving VA Disability
If you read Still a Veteran
Protecting Benefits Through Incarceration and Reentry
If you read The Appeals Playbook
Choosing a Decision-Review Lane and Filing an Appeal
If you read The Caregiver's Playbook
Applying to the Caregiver Program (PCAFC)
If you read The Last Duty
The First Weeks as a Survivor
If you read The Long Game
Managing Your Ratings Over the Long Term
If you read The Military Discharge Upgrade Manual
Applying for a Discharge Upgrade or Correction
If you read The Military Retiree's VA Guide
Understanding Concurrent Receipt and Filing for CRSC
If you read The PACT Act Playbook
Filing a PACT Act Toxic-Exposure Claim
If you read The Sleep Apnea Claim
Filing a Sleep Apnea Claim
If you read The Survivor Benefit Plan Book
The First Weeks as a Survivor
If you read The VA C&P Exam Playbook
Preparing for Any C&P Exam
If you read The VA Debt Letter Playbook
Responding to a VA Debt Letter
If you read The VA Home Loan Playbook
Getting Your COE and Starting a VA Home Loan
If you read The VA Migraine Claims Playbook
Filing a Migraine Claim
If you read The VA PTSD Claims Playbook
Filing a PTSD Claim
If you read The VA TBI Claims Playbook
Filing a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Claim
If you read The VR&E Playbook
Applying for VR&E (Chapter 31)
If you read The Veteran Entrepreneur Playbook
Getting Your Veteran-Owned Business Verified
If you read The Veteran's Financial Playbook
Organizing Your Benefits and Money
If you read VA Aid and Attendance Guide
Filing for Aid and Attendance
If you read VA Back, Knee, and Joint Claims Guide
Filing a Back, Knee, or Joint Claim
If you read VA Claims for Guard and Reserve
Filing a Guard or Reserve Claim
If you read VA Disability Primer
Filing Your First VA Disability Claim
If you read VA Math
Checking Your Combined VA Rating
If you read VA Mental Health Claims Beyond PTSD
Filing a Mental Health Claim Beyond PTSD
If you read VA Secondary Claims Manual
Filing a Secondary Service-Connection Claim
If you read What He Earned
Filing a Surviving Spouse DIC Claim
If you read What to Do When a Veteran Dies
The First Weeks as a Survivor
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Worksheets & tools
Fillable sheets, checklists and handouts you can use today.
Free worksheet / tool
Buddy Statement Pack
Three versions of the same buddy statement: weak, strong and harmful. Includes a two-page fillable handout your witness can complete, sign and hand back, plus a checklist to run before you submit.
Free worksheet / tool
Check It Yourself
How to use AI tools on a VA claim without putting a made-up citation or detail in your file. Includes a fillable verification sheet and a citation-reading guide.
Free worksheet / tool
Five Ten Twenty
Five, ten and twenty years each protect something different. Explains rating reduction protections, the 30-day hearing and 60-day evidence windows, with a fillable rating inventory.
Free worksheet / tool
Flare Log
Your back is measured on one day. This log puts your bad days into the file. Covers the spine flexion bands and the painful-on-use rule, with a fillable flare log.
Free worksheet / tool
Hearing Record
You are the worst witness to your own hearing loss. Explains the Maryland CNC exam rule and the single tinnitus rating, and includes a two-week log for the people you live with.
Free worksheet / tool
Night Record
Sleep apnea hides behind PTSD, and the 50 percent level turns on the word requires. Explains the four documents that matter and includes a night log for your bed partner.
Free worksheet / tool
Not All Five
Aid and Attendance does not require failing all five factors. Explains the real helplessness test, factor five on safety and the housebound routes, with a fillable two-week helper log.
Free worksheet / tool
Ownership Is the Easy Half
SDVOSB certification: 51 percent ownership is easy, control is where applications fail. Spells out SBA's control rules and timing, with a fillable self-audit and free help sources.
Free worksheet / tool
Prostrating
Migraine ratings never ask how much it hurts. They ask about prostrating attacks and how often they average. Includes a fillable attack log and the work evidence the 50 percent level needs.
Free worksheet / tool
The Card
A crisis card you fill in on a good day: three people, the numbers that are always open, and what helps. Includes a cut-out card and a page for whoever receives it.
Free worksheet / tool
The Frozen Record
Five review lanes, and two of them cannot see new evidence. Sorts supplemental claim, Higher-Level Review and the three Board dockets, with a fillable sorting worksheet and one-year deadline check.
Free worksheet / tool
The Reason Underneath
A tie goes to the veteran, and an opinion with no reasoning weighs nothing. Explains benefit of the doubt and includes a page to hand your doctor about nexus opinions.
Free worksheet / tool
The Year That Does Not Move
Accrued benefits must be claimed within one year of the death, and that deadline does not stretch. Lists every survivor benefit to ask about, with a fillable family inventory worksheet.
Free worksheet / tool
Thirty and Sixty
VA's access standards: 30 minutes and 20 days, 60 minutes and 28 days. Covers the six community care routes and emergency care clocks, with a fillable appointment log.
Free worksheet / tool
Two Boards
Discharge Review Board or Board for Correction: two boards, two clocks, and the three-year clock starts at discovery. Includes liberal consideration rules and a fillable record worksheet.
Free worksheet / tool
Two Clocks
A VA debt letter starts two clocks: thirty days to keep the money and one year to ask for a waiver. Covers dispute, waiver and appeal, with a fillable six-question waiver worksheet.
Free worksheet / tool
Two More Questions
A death certificate answers only one DIC question. Explains contributory cause and the ten-year total rating route, with a fillable record worksheet for surviving families.
Free worksheet / tool
Two Week Record
For a mental health C&P exam. Shows how a good morning can hide a hard year, and gives a two-week symptom log to fill in before the exam.
Free worksheet / tool
VA Math Worksheet
Why 50, 30 and 20 make 70, not 100. Walks through VA's combined ratings math, the bilateral factor and rounding mistakes, then gives a fillable worksheet to check your own decision letter.
Free worksheet / tool
Where You Were
With a presumption, the proof moves to your personnel file. Covers what you still have to establish, where to get your records, and a fillable service timeline worksheet.
Free worksheet / tool
Which Door
PTSD stressor proof has five routes, and four of them let your own account count. Sorts which route fits you and gives a fillable statement worksheet with crisis support built in.
Free worksheet / tool
Work History Record
TDIU is a different door, not a rating you climb to. Explains the percentage rules, marginal employment and the Census threshold, then gives a fillable job-by-job work history record.
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More field guides
Every field guide is free. Read it on the page or download the PDF.
Free field guide
Adding or Removing a Dependent (VA Form 21-686c)
Adding or Removing a Dependent walks seven steps: confirm your rating threshold, compare VA's dependent list with your household, complete VA Form 21-686c, add proof only where needed, file inside the one-year window, remove anyone who no longer qualifies, and confirm the change. Education only.
Free field guide
Applying for Ancillary Benefits
Applying for Ancillary Benefits walks you through nine steps: list your qualifying conditions, then screen and apply for the clothing allowance on time, the automobile allowance and adaptive equipment before you buy, and the SAH or SHA housing grants. Education only.
Free field guide
Applying for VA Pension (Wartime, Low Income)
Applying for VA Pension walks ten steps: confirm wartime service and the age-or-disability rule, document household income, assets and medical costs, avoid the asset-transfer look-back, compare pension with compensation, then file VA Form 21P-527EZ with any Aid and Attendance form. Education only.
Free field guide
Building a Complete VA Claim, Start to Decision
Building a Complete VA Claim, Start to Decision takes you through thirteen steps: protect your date, check your discharge, gather records and statements, line up the medical link, file Form 21-526EZ, attend your exam, and read the decision and codesheet. Education only.
Free field guide
Do You Even Have a Claim
Do You Even Have a Claim takes you through eight steps: confirm qualifying service, check your discharge, list every condition, check the medical evidence, the in-service event, and the link, pick a path, and take close calls to accredited help. Education only.
Free field guide
File Online at VA.gov
File Online at VA.gov takes you through ten steps: sign in with a verified account, protect your effective date, start Form 21-526EZ, add every condition, upload labeled evidence, choose a claim type, review, submit, and track the claim. Education only.
Free field guide
File a Fully Developed Claim
File a Fully Developed Claim takes you through eight steps: confirm your private evidence is complete, gather records, opinions, and statements, list the federal records VA will get, select the program on Form 21-526EZ, submit everything together, and track it. Education only.
Free field guide
File on Paper, by Mail
File on Paper, by Mail takes you through nine steps: print the current Form 21-526EZ, file an Intent to File, fill in every part, attach copies, sign, copy the packet, mail it with tracking, and confirm VA received it. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing a Board Appeal Direct Review (VA Form 10182)
Filing a Board Appeal on Direct Review walks you through VA Form 10182 in seven steps: confirm the docket fits, mark the one-year deadline, check what was in the record when VA decided, file, and argue from that record. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing a Board Appeal Evidence Submission (VA Form 10182)
Filing a Board Appeal with Evidence Submission walks you through VA Form 10182 in eight steps: confirm the docket, mark the one-year deadline, gather new evidence, file the form, and get evidence in within the 90-day window. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing a Camp Lejeune Claim
Filing a Camp Lejeune Claim takes you through seven steps: proving 30 days at Camp Lejeune or MCAS New River, checking the eight presumptive conditions, filing VA Form 21-526EZ with evidence, and how the Justice Act and family tracks differ. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing a Claim for Common Secondary Conditions
Filing a Claim for Common Secondary Conditions walks you through eight steps: list your service-connected conditions, spot likely secondaries, get diagnoses and medical opinions, sort caused by from made worse, file VA Form 21-526EZ naming each primary, and confirm receipt. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing a Court Appeal to the CAVC
Filing a Court Appeal to the CAVC walks you through eight steps: confirm a final Board decision, calendar the 120-day deadline, find a court-admitted representative or free pro bono help, file the Notice of Appeal, and handle the fee. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing a Depression Claim
Filing a Depression Claim walks you through a VA depression claim in eight steps: Intent to File, diagnosis, the right path (direct, secondary, or aggravation), a concrete account of how it limits work and home, and the C&P exam. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing a Diabetes (Type 2) Claim
Filing a Diabetes (Type 2) Claim takes you through seven steps: Intent to File, checking the Agent Orange and one-year paths, documenting how your diabetes is managed, listing every complication, the medical link, VA Form 21-526EZ, and the exam. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing a Direct Service-Connection Claim
Filing a Direct Service-Connection Claim covers eleven steps: document your condition and the in-service event, record an Intent to File, gather records and statements, decide on a private nexus opinion, file VA Form 21-526EZ, and track the decision. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing a Flat Feet (Pes Planus) Claim
Filing a Flat Feet (Pes Planus) Claim walks seven steps: file an Intent to File, check your entrance exam, pick direct or aggravation, document severity, show in-service worsening, get a medical opinion, and file VA Form 21-526EZ. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing a GERD Claim
Filing a GERD Claim takes you through seven steps: Intent to File, a current diagnosis with any endoscopy or swallow study, choosing direct, secondary, or aggravation, the medical link, VA Form 21-526EZ, and describing swallowing problems at the exam. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing a Gulf War and Undiagnosed Illness Claim
Filing a Gulf War and Undiagnosed Illness Claim takes you through eight steps: Intent to File, proving service in a listed place, documenting six months of symptoms, matching the right illness group, VA Form 21-526EZ, and the C&P exam. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing a Hemorrhoids Claim
Filing a Hemorrhoids Claim walks seven steps: file an Intent to File, record the type, prolapse, and clotting episodes, document bleeding and anemia, tie it to service, get a medical opinion, file VA Form 21-526EZ, and prepare for the exam. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing a Hip Claim
Filing a Hip Claim walks seven steps: file an Intent to File, get motion measured in every direction, tie the hip to service, decide on secondary claims, get a medical opinion, file VA Form 21-526EZ, and prepare for the exam. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing a Hypertension Claim
Filing a Hypertension Claim takes you through eight steps: Intent to File, gathering readings from at least three different days, choosing direct, secondary, or Agent Orange, lining up the medical link, completing VA Form 21-526EZ, and the C&P exam. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing a Plantar Fasciitis Claim
Filing a Plantar Fasciitis Claim walks seven steps: file an Intent to File, record one or both feet, document each treatment and result, tie it to service, get a medical opinion, file VA Form 21-526EZ, and prepare for the exam. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing a Presumptive Service-Connection Claim
Filing a Presumptive Service-Connection Claim covers ten steps: document your qualifying service, check the current presumptive lists on va.gov, get the right medical records, record an Intent to File, file VA Form 21-526EZ, and keep a direct path open. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing a Radiculopathy or Sciatica Claim
Filing a Radiculopathy or Sciatica Claim walks seven steps: file an Intent to File, confirm your spine condition, document the nerve findings, name each affected limb, get a medical opinion, file VA Form 21-526EZ, and prepare for the exam. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing a Scars Claim
Filing a Scars Claim walks seven steps: file an Intent to File, photograph and measure each scar, mark which are painful or unstable, state each cause, note any limited motion, file VA Form 21-526EZ, and prepare for the exam. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing a Shoulder or Arm Claim
Filing a Shoulder or Arm Claim walks eight steps: file an Intent to File, record the diagnosis and dominant side, get your motion measured, pick your path, get a medical opinion, file VA Form 21-526EZ, and prepare for the exam. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing a Sinusitis or Rhinitis Claim
Filing a Sinusitis or Rhinitis Claim takes you through seven steps: Intent to File, checking your service against the burn pit places and dates, documenting episodes the way VA counts them, rhinitis details, VA Form 21-526EZ, and the exam. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing a Supplemental Claim (VA Form 20-0995)
Filing a Supplemental Claim walks you through VA Form 20-0995 in eight steps: confirm the lane, mark the one-year window, line up new and relevant evidence against the denial reason, file online or by mail, and know your next options. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing a VA Character of Discharge Determination
Filing a VA Character of Discharge Determination has seven steps: find a free representative, read your DD-214, choose this or an upgrade, apply on VA Form 10-10EZ or 21-526EZ, write your statement, add evidence, and plan your next step. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing an Aggravation Claim
Filing an Aggravation Claim walks you through ten steps: sort whether a pre-service condition or a service-connected condition made things worse, document the starting level and the worsening, get a medical opinion, and file VA Form 21-526EZ under that theory. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing an Ankle Claim
Filing an Ankle Claim walks seven steps: file an Intent to File, document lost motion and instability, tie the ankle to service, decide on secondary joint claims, get a medical opinion, file VA Form 21-526EZ, and prepare for the exam. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing an Anxiety Claim
Filing an Anxiety Claim walks you through a VA anxiety claim in eight steps: the Intent to File, diagnosis, the right path (direct, secondary, or aggravation), a concrete account of panic and avoidance, a medical opinion, and the C&P exam. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing an Eczema or Dermatitis Claim
Filing an Eczema or Dermatitis Claim walks seven steps: file an Intent to File, document skin coverage during a flare, record treatment over the past year, photograph flares, pick your path, file VA Form 21-526EZ, and prepare for the exam. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing an Erectile Dysfunction Claim
Filing an Erectile Dysfunction Claim takes you through six steps: Intent to File, naming the service-connected cause, getting the record and medical link, asking for special monthly compensation for loss of use by name, VA Form 21-526EZ, and the exam. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing an IBS Claim
Filing an IBS Claim takes you through seven steps: Intent to File, choosing the Gulf War, secondary, or direct path, logging pain days and bowel changes the way VA counts them, matching your evidence, VA Form 21-526EZ, and the exam. Education only.
Free field guide
Filing as You Leave Service
Filing as You Leave Service has twelve steps: check your DD-214, copy your records, pick BDD, a standard claim, or an intent to file, list every condition, file VA Form 21-526EZ, prepare for the exam, and watch the one-year window. Education only.
Free field guide
Gather Your Evidence, the Three Legs
Gather Your Evidence, the Three Legs takes you through seven steps: gather current medical evidence, document the in-service event, line up the medical link, check presumptive rules, add statements on Forms 21-4138 and 21-10210, index everything, and get help. Education only.
Free field guide
Get Your C-File
Get Your C-File takes you through eight steps: decide what to request, submit VA Form 20-10206 online or by mail, ask for the complete claims file, track the request, follow up, then read and organize the file for your claim. Education only.
Free field guide
How VA Disability Ratings Work
How VA Disability Ratings Work covers nine steps: get your rating decision and codesheet, learn what a rating measures, match each condition to its diagnostic code, learn the doubt, higher-evaluation and pyramiding rules, and compare each evaluation with your evidence. Education only.
Free field guide
Intent to File, Lock Your Date
Intent to File, Lock Your Date takes you through six steps: choose how to submit, name the benefit type, file one Intent to File, save the date, calendar the one-year deadline, and file your complete claim with every condition. Education only.
Free field guide
Preparing for a Board Hearing (VA Form 10182, Hearing Docket)
Preparing for a Board Hearing walks you through ten steps on the Hearing docket of VA Form 10182: settle your hearing type, review your C-file, prepare your points and witnesses, protect your date, testify, and send evidence within 90 days. Education only.
Free field guide
Protecting Your Effective Date and Understanding Back Pay
Protecting Your Effective Date and Understanding Back Pay covers nine steps: record an Intent to File, learn the general rule, separation-year rule and increase look-back, keep reviews on time, see how back pay is figured, and keep filing proof. Education only.
Free field guide
Read and Understand Your Decision Letter
Read and Understand Your Decision Letter covers seven steps: find the summary of decisions, note each evaluation and effective date, read the reasons and favorable findings, calendar your one-year deadline, check for errors, and match any disagreement to a review lane. Education only.
Free field guide
Requesting a Higher-Level Review (VA Form 20-0996)
Requesting a Higher-Level Review walks you through VA Form 20-0996 in seven steps: confirm the lane is open, meet the one-year receipt deadline, pinpoint the error in the existing record, decide on the informal conference, and file. Education only.
Free field guide
Requesting an Increased Rating for a Worsening Condition
Requesting an Increased Rating for a Worsening Condition walks you through ten steps: document the worsening, read the criteria in 38 CFR Part 4, file an Intent to File and VA Form 21-526EZ, and prepare for the exam. Education only.
Free field guide
Responding to a Proposed Reduction and Protecting Your Rating
Responding to a Proposed Reduction walks you through twelve steps after VA proposes a cut: mark the 30-day hearing and 60-day evidence deadlines, match your rating to its protection rules, gather records, decide on the hearing, and submit early. Education only.
Free field guide
The Accrued Benefits and Substitution Guide
The Accrued Benefits and Substitution Guide walks survivors through eight steps before the one-year wall: mark the date, find an open claim, confirm the order of survivors, choose VA Form 21P-0847, 21P-534EZ, or 21P-601, file with proof, track deadlines. Education only.
Free field guide
The Burial and Military Honors Guide
The Burial and Military Honors Guide walks a family through eight steps: find the DD214, ask for funeral honors and the flag, choose a cemetery, order the marker, request the memorial certificate, and claim burial allowances on VA Form 21P-530EZ. Education only.
Free field guide
The CHAMPVA Guide for Survivors
The CHAMPVA Guide for Survivors walks ten steps: find what coverage ended, rule TRICARE in or out, check your veteran's VA status, keep Medicare Parts A and B, file VA Forms 10-10d and 10-7959c, and handle claims after enrollment. Education only.
Free field guide
The DIC Guide for Survivors
The DIC Guide for Survivors walks ten steps: check the month-of-death payment, find the DIC path that fits, check the survivor rules, protect the first-year date, get free accredited help, file VA Form 21P-534EZ, and read the decision. Education only.
Free field guide
The Survivor Education Benefits Guide
The Survivor Education Benefits Guide covers Chapter 35 (DEA) and the Fry Scholarship in seven steps: write down key dates, match each person to a program, find time limits, check the DIC effect, and apply on VA Form 22-5490. Education only.
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The Survivors Pension and Aid and Attendance Guide
The Survivors Pension and Aid and Attendance Guide walks ten steps: check service and survivor rules, see how pension and DIC fit, list income and care costs, avoid asset-transfer traps, document care needs on VA Form 21-2680, and file. Education only.
Free field guide
Using AI Tools Safely to Prepare Your Claim
Using AI Tools Safely to Prepare Your Claim covers ten steps: sort safe and unsafe uses, strip personal details from prompts, write your own statement, check every citation at its source, and bring your work to a free accredited representative. Education only.
Free field guide
Working Without Losing TDIU or Pension
Working Without Losing TDIU or Pension covers eleven steps: confirm your benefit, find the Census poverty line for TDIU, track earned income, model the pension offset and net worth, keep a symptom log, and report changes in writing. Education only.
Free field guide
Write Your Personal Statement (VA Form 21-4138)
Write Your Personal Statement takes you through eight steps on VA Form 21-4138: get the current form, pick your conditions, describe each symptom by what it limits, stick to what you saw and felt, match your records, sign, and submit. Education only.
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