How to file a VA PTSD claim — the diagnosis, the in-service stressor rules of 38 CFR 3.304(f), VA Form 21-0781 and how PTSD is rated
VA pays disability compensation for posttraumatic stress disorder when a qualified professional has diagnosed PTSD, a traumatic event (the stressor) happened during your service, and medical evidence links your symptoms to it (38 CFR 3.304(f)). VA counts combat, fear of hostile military or terrorist activity, sexual assault or harassment, physical assault and other traumatic events such as accidents, disasters, burn-ward or graves-registration duty. For combat, fear of hostile activity, prisoner-of-war and in-service-diagnosed cases your own statement can establish the stressor; personal-assault claims may be corroborated from sources outside service records. File on VA Form 21-526EZ with VA Form 21-0781 (revised March 2024, now one form for every type of event). PTSD is rated 0% to 100% under the General Rating Formula for Mental Disorders in 38 CFR 4.130 on the basis of occupational and social impairment.
What you'll need
- VA Form 21-526EZ
- VA Form 21-0781 (Statement in Support of Claimed Mental Health Disorder(s) Due to an In-Service Traumatic Event(s), March 2024)
- A PTSD diagnosis from a VA, Vet Center or private psychiatrist, psychologist or other qualified mental health professional, or VA's claim exam
- Service records that place you where the event happened (DD-214, unit, dates, deployments, awards) and any records of the event
- Lay statements (VA Form 21-10210) from people who knew you before and after
- A free accredited representative (CVSO or VSO); for assault-related claims, a representative or counselor you trust
Step-by-step
Step 1: Know what VA counts as a traumatic event
VA lists combat experiences (engaging the enemy, fear of hostile military or terrorist activity, serving in an imminent-danger area, serving as a drone aircraft crew member); sexual assault or harassment; traumatic personal interactions such as physical assault, robbery, stalking, harassment or domestic abuse; and other events such as a vehicle accident, a natural disaster, burn-ward or graves-registration work, witnessing death, injury or a threat to yourself or others, and friendly fire on a gunnery range. The event must have happened during your service, and a doctor must have diagnosed PTSD.
Step 2: Get the diagnosis
Service connection requires a PTSD diagnosis that conforms to the current diagnostic manual (38 CFR 4.125(a)). VA mental health clinics, Vet Centers (free counseling for combat veterans and survivors of military sexual trauma, no VA enrollment needed) and private clinicians can diagnose and treat you; VA will also schedule a claim exam with a psychiatrist or psychologist to confirm the diagnosis and the link to the stressor. VA notes the exam is a screening for benefits, not treatment.
Step 3: Prove the stressor — when your statement is enough
Under 38 CFR 3.304(f), your own statement can establish that the stressor occurred, absent clear and convincing evidence otherwise, when it is consistent with your service and: PTSD was diagnosed during service; you engaged in combat with the enemy and the stressor relates to that combat; the stressor relates to fear of hostile military or terrorist activity (actual or threatened death or serious injury — an IED, incoming fire, an attack on friendly aircraft) and a VA or VA-contracted psychiatrist or psychologist confirms it is adequate to support the diagnosis; or you were a prisoner of war. For other events, VA looks for records of the incident, unit records or statements from people who were there.
Step 4: Personal assault and military sexual trauma claims
For a claim based on in-service personal assault, 38 CFR 3.304(f)(5) lets evidence from outside your service records corroborate the event: law enforcement, rape crisis center, mental health counseling, hospital or physician records, pregnancy or STD tests, statements from family, roommates, fellow service members, clergy or counselors, and evidence of behavior changes — requests for transfer, deterioration in performance, substance abuse, unexplained economic or social changes. VA must tell you such evidence can be submitted before deciding, and may ask a mental health professional whether the evidence indicates an assault occurred. Military sexual trauma coordinators at VA medical centers and Vet Center counselors can help; you do not have to have reported the assault.
Step 5: File the claim, the statement and the exam
File VA Form 21-526EZ online, by mail to the Claims Intake Center (PO Box 4444, Janesville, WI 53547-4444), in person or through a free accredited representative, and submit VA Form 21-0781 describing the event(s) — the March 2024 form covers combat, personal assault and other traumatic events and replaced the separate assault form; it is optional but helps VA find the records. Add lay statements on VA Form 21-10210. At the claim exam, describe how often symptoms occur and how they affect work, relationships and daily routines; under 38 CFR 4.126 VA must rate on all the evidence of occupational and social impairment over time, not only how you present at the exam, and on the frequency, severity and duration of symptoms.
Reference: https://www.va.gov/find-forms/about-form-21-0781/
Critical tips
- The General Rating Formula (38 CFR 4.130) runs 0% (diagnosed, no impairment), 10% (mild or transient symptoms, or symptoms controlled by medication), 30% (occasional decrease in work efficiency), 50% (reduced reliability and productivity), 70% (deficiencies in most areas such as work, family relations, judgment, thinking or mood) and 100% (total occupational and social impairment).
- All service-connected mental health conditions are rated together under one evaluation; a condition that medical evidence links to PTSD (for example sleep apnea or a gastrointestinal disorder) can be claimed as secondary under 38 CFR 3.310 with a medical opinion.
- If PTSD keeps you from substantially gainful work, Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability (VA Form 21-8940) pays at the 100% rate without a 100% schedular rating.
- An other than honorable discharge does not automatically bar the claim — VA can review the character of your service, and Vet Centers see veterans regardless of discharge.
- A county veterans service officer or VSO can file the claim for free: warriorsfund.org/find-cvso.
- Preparing this claim can stir things up. In crisis: dial 988 then press 1, or text 838255 — the Veterans Crisis Line is free and open 24/7.
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