How the VA Puts a Number on Your Condition

Every rating starts in the VA's Schedule for Rating Disabilities, the part of federal regulations at 38 CFR Part 4. It is organized by body system, and each condition sits under a four-digit diagnostic code. The code lists levels, usually in steps of 10, with the findings the rater has to see in your records or exam report before assigning each one.

A few things about the schedule surprise people:

• Some codes stop early. Tinnitus tops out at 10%. Migraines top out at 50%. Mental health conditions can reach 100%.
• 0% is a real rating. It means the VA agrees the condition is service-connected but doesn't think it is severe enough to pay yet. If it worsens, you ask for an increase instead of starting over.
• No exact code? The VA borrows one. A condition missing from the schedule gets rated "by analogy" under the closest code for a similar condition.
• One set of symptoms counts once. The VA won't rate the same symptoms under two codes, which is why depression and PTSD usually share a single mental health rating.

Once you have more than one rating, the VA runs them through its combined ratings table instead of adding them. It starts with your highest rating and applies each next one only to what is left over.

Take a veteran with ratings of 40%, 40% and 20%. On paper that is 100. The VA's math goes like this:

1. The first 40% leaves 60% of the person treated as unaffected.
2. The second 40% applies to that 60, adding 24. Running total: 64.
3. The 20% applies to the remaining 36, adding about 7. Running total: 71.
4. The VA rounds to the nearest 10 (a 5 rounds up), so the final rating is 70%.

For a veteran with no dependents at 2026 rates, 70% pays $1,808.45 a month, while 100% pays $3,938.58. The gap explains why one added condition, or one rating corrected upward, can matter more than it looks. When rated conditions affect both arms or both legs, the VA also adds a small bilateral adjustment.

Plug in your own ratings with the VA disability calculator. It runs the same table the VA uses.

Reading the criteria tells you where you might land. What you do next depends on where your claim stands today:

• Never filed? Start with filing a first claim.
• Rated, but your condition has gotten worse? See rating increases.
• Got a denial or a number that looks wrong? See denied claims for your review options.
• Exposed to burn pits, Agent Orange or other toxins? The PACT Act page covers presumptive conditions.
• Can't hold steady work because of service-connected conditions? Read about TDIU.

Filing with the VA costs nothing, and Wisconsin veterans can get free help from their county veterans service office or from service organizations like the American Legion, DAV and VFW. If you'd like a second set of eyes first, our free case review walks through where you stand. For the paperwork side (exams, medical opinions, witness statements, back pay), see claims help.