About this tool
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.
Details
- PDF, 8 pages, 77 fillable fields
- Free download. No email, no account.
Pairs with
- 100 Percent Pay Without a 100 Percent Rating (book, coming soon)
- 100 Percent VA Disability Explained (book, coming soon)
- A VA Disability Claims Manual for the Rest of Us (book, coming soon)
- After the DD-214 (book, coming soon)
- BDD Claims Guide (book, coming soon)
- Beyond 100% (book, coming soon)
- Earn More on TDIU (book, coming soon)
- Filed (book, coming soon)
- Never Too Late (book, coming soon)
- Protect What You Earned (book, coming soon)
- The Appeals Playbook (book, coming soon)
- The Long Game (book, coming soon)
- The Military Retiree's VA Guide (book, coming soon)
- The PACT Act Playbook (book, coming soon)
- The VA C&P Exam Playbook (book, coming soon)
- The VA Home Loan Playbook (book, coming soon)
- The VA Migraine Claims Playbook (book, coming soon)
- The VA PTSD Claims Playbook (book, coming soon)
- The VA TBI Claims Playbook (book, coming soon)
- The Veteran's Financial Playbook (book, coming soon)
- VA Aid and Attendance Guide (book, coming soon)
- VA Claims for Guard and Reserve (book, coming soon)
- VA Mental Health Claims Beyond PTSD (book, coming soon)
Never a cut of your claim.
In crisis? Veterans Crisis Line: dial 988, then press 1, or text 838255. Free, confidential, 24/7.
About the author: J. Erickson is a service-disabled Air Force veteran. He served as a military firefighter and as a veteran service officer, where he spent years walking veterans through the same claims process he writes about now. He holds an MBA and writes plain-language guides for veterans who want to understand the system without a translator.
Keep building your plan
Keep using the free resources. A book is optional, not a requirement for preparing your claim or getting accredited help.
Read the free guide
Optional reading on this topic
Field guides focus on a task; books offer a longer reading format. PDF book editions are coming to this site, with Kindle and paperback editions coming to Amazon. Purchases are not open yet. Free guides and worksheets need no purchase, email, or account.
Written by J. Erickson, a service-disabled Air Force veteran and former veteran service officer. Last reviewed October 2026.

