
Can I get both VA benefits and Social Security disability?
Yes, there is no law that disallows anyone from getting VA disability and social security retirement at the same time. The two programs have different eligibility requirements. But, there getting VA disability benefits doesn’t make you ineligible for social security retirement benefits and vice-versa.
What does it mean to be 100% disabled by the VA?
To be 100% disabled by VA standards means that you are totally disabled . Veterans awarded disability at this level receive the maximum in scheduler monthly compensation. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has stringent criteria veterans must meet in order to receive this rating.
What is the compensation rate for VA disability?
On the Basic rates table, find the amount for your disability rating and dependent status. This is your monthly basic rate. If you're a Veteran with a 30% disability rating, and you have a dependent spouse (no dependent parents or children), your monthly basic rate would be $493.35 each month.
What disabilities qualify for VA disability?
Office of Personnel Management Guidelines
- Competitively Filled Positions. Jobs that are filled competitively are advertised through USAJOBS. ...
- Non-competitively Filled Positions. ...
- Required Disability Documentation. ...
What happens if your VA benefits are reduced?
What is non service VA?
Is SSI income based?
Can you get disability under one VA program?
Does VA disability affect Social Security?
Is VA disability a non service disability?
Is the VA considered unearned income?
See more

Do VA disability benefits affect Social Security retirement benefits?
If you receive VA compensation, this will not affect your Social Security benefits.
Can I get Social Security if Im 100 percent disabled veteran?
A Veterans Affairs compensation rating of 100% P&T doesn't guarantee that you'll receive Social Security disability benefits. To receive disability benefits from Social Security, a person must have a severe impairment expected to last at least one year or to result in death.
Does being a veteran affect Social Security benefits?
Generally, there is no reduction of Social Security benefits because of your military retirement benefits. You'll get your Social Security benefit based on your earnings and the age you choose to start receiving benefits. While you're in military service, you pay Social Security taxes, just as civilian employees do.
How much is Social Security disability with VA disability?
SSDIVA Monthly Disability Benefit Amount$400SSDI Monthly Benefit Amount+ $850Total Monthly Income= $1250
At what age does VA disability stop?
age 67When veterans reach age 67, all VA disability payments would revert to the amount associated with the rated disability level; veterans age 67 or older who are already receiving IU payments would no longer receive them after the effective date of the option.
Does VA disability count as income?
Disability benefits you receive from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) aren't taxable. You don't need to include them as income on your tax return. Tax-free disability benefits include: disability compensation and pension payments for disabilities paid either to veterans or their families.
What is the VA 55 year rule?
What is the VA 55-year-old rule? Veterans who receive VA disability benefits for service-connected conditions are exempt from periodic future examinations once they turn 55 years old. This includes veterans who will be 55 by the date of a future examination, according to the VA Adjudication Procedures Manual.
Can you draw SS and disability at the same time?
In most cases, you cannot collect Social Security retirement and Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) at the same time. You may, however, qualify for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) if you meet the strict financial criteria while drawing either Social Security retirement or SSDI benefits.
What is the VA 5 year rule?
The VA disability rating 5-year rule states that the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) cannot reduce a veteran's disability rating if it has been in place for five years or more unless the condition shows sustained improvement over time. In this situation, the veteran's rating is considered a stabilized rating.
Can you receive VA disability and Social Security disability at the same time?
Can I collect both Social Security disability benefits and VA disability compensation? Yes, military veterans who become disabled during their service can collect disability benefits from the Social Security Administration (SSA) and U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) disability compensation at the same time.
What does 100% VA disability entitle you to?
For 100% Disabled Veteran Benefits, the DoD gives the veteran full medical care and a monthly payment for the rest of their life. Since the veteran has a 100% rating, the amount of this payment is equal to the full amount allowed by regular retirements.
How Much Do veterans get for Social Security?
The average monthly Social Security benefit for veterans is $1,008 compared with $892 for male nonveterans (see Table 3). Among persons aged 62–74, monthly Social Security benefits average $1,028 for veterans and $957 for male nonveterans.
Can the VA take away 100 permanent and total disability?
Yes, the VA can take away a 100 permanent and total disability rating!
VA Service Connected Disability
If you’re getting VA benefits due to a service-connected disability, your payment amounts won’t affect your Social Security benefits. Conversely, y...
VA Non-Service Connected Disability
If you’re a veteran getting VA benefits because of a non-service related disability, your Social Security benefits are not affected. However, your...
VA Benefits and Supplemental Security Income
Whether you’re getting service or non-service connected benefits from the VA, your supplemental security income benefits will be reduced or you may...
Considerations and Additional Benefits
If you have a spouse and/or dependent children, they may be eligible for VA and Social Security benefits as well. They have to meet eligibility req...
Changes in Treatment of Disabled Vets Receiving VA Benefits
Previously, a high disability rating from the VA could help an applicant obtain benefits through the Social Security Administration. In 2017, the federal government issued new regulations announcing that it would no longer give significant weight to VA disability ratings when considering whether someone is eligible for SSDI/SSI benefits.
Ask an Attorney if Receiving VA Benefits Affects Your Ability to Collect Social Security Benefits
If you are a disabled veteran, you could be entitled to benefits through both the VA and the Social Security Administration. That being said, the full amount of benefits you are entitled to could differ significantly between each disability program.
Can I Get TDIU Benefits and Retirement Benefits?
Total disability individual unemployability (TDIU) benefits are for veterans who cannot keep or obtain gainful employment. You are eligible if you are unemployed because of your service-connected mental and/or physical disabilities.
Do P&T Benefits Affect Retirement Benefits?
TDIUbenefits can be granted as temporary or permanent. Your rating decision letter will indicate if your TDIU benefits are permanent.
Can I Get Military Retirement Pay and Retirement Benefits?
Military retirement pay after 20 years or more of service. The pay is based on your length of time in service and is calculated at 2.5% times your highest 36 months of basic pay. Military retirement benefits are taxable while VA disability benefits and VA pensions are not.
Can I Get SMC and Retirement Benefits?
Special Monthly Compensation (SMC) benefits are available to veterans, spouses of veterans, surviving spouses of veterans, and parents of veterans with certain needs or disabilities. Veterans who have lost or lost the use of specific organs or body parts are eligible for SMC benefits.
The Future of Veterans Benefits
If you follow the news, you may have heard about an idea that would let veterans benefits expire at retirement. Another effort would permanently preserve them. Both ideas have been discussed in different forms many times before, but so far neither has come to pass.
How Woods and Woods Can Help
If you are unsure about your eligibility for any type of VA disability compensation, we can help. Navigating the world of VA benefits is confusing enough without navigating the world of Social Security and retirement too. We can help you file an initial VA disability claim at no charge, and we only charge a fee if we win your appeal.
What is VA disability?
VA Benefits For disability benefits through the VA, also known as service-connected disability, the applicant must show that they have a disabling condition that was “incurred or aggravated by their military service.1” The compensation rates are paid on a graduated scale, based on the degree of a Veteran’s disability, ranging from 10 to 100 percent, in 10 percent increments.
What is the VA number for homelessness?
If you, or a Veteran you know, is experiencing or at-risk of homelessness, make the call to 877-4AID-VET (424-3838) to access 24/7 confidential support and connect with VA services.
SSI Is a Needs Based Program That Is Reduced By Your Disability Compensation
As a general rule, needs based benefits such as Supplemental Security Income or even the VA’s own non-service connected pension, are reduced by any income you receive, which includes a veteran’s service connected disability compensation. SSI is a program aimed at helping people with limited income who are disabled, blind, or over the age of 64.
A Disability Benefits Lawyer Can Help Maximize Your Compensation
If you are a disabled veteran, you may be eligible for several different types of benefits from the Veterans Administration and the Social Security Administration. Applying for and keeping track of these benefits can be challenge in itself, but if your benefits have been denied you may not know what to do.
What do I need to know about VA and Social Security?
What do I need to know about the VA and Social Security programs? Both Social Security and VA pay disability benefits. However, their programs, processes, and criteria for receiving benefits are very different. A VA compensation rating of 100% Permanent and Total does not guarantee that you will receive Social Security disability benefits.
Does VA compensation affect Social Security?
Your medical condition (s) must have lasted, or be expected to last, at least one year or to result in death. If you receive VA compensation, this will not affect your Social Security benefits.
Does VA compensation guarantee disability?
A VA compensation rating of 100% Permanent and Total does not guarantee that you will receive Social Security disability benefits. To be approved for Social Security benefits, you must meet Social Security’s definition of "disability.". To be found disabled:
What happens if your VA benefits are reduced?
If your VA or Social Security benefits are reduced, their amounts are reduced too. Also, both programs place limits on how much your family can get in benefits. 00:00. 00:06 20:19.
What is non service VA?
Non-service VA benefits are income-based which means any other income such as Social Security, reduces your benefit amounts. As of 2018, your VA benefits are reduced dollar for dollar by the amount of your Social Security payments.
Is SSI income based?
SSI is a needs-based disability program for children and the elderly. Benefit amounts are also income-based and the SSA uses several types of income, earned and unearned, to calculate your monthly amounts. VA benefits are considered unearned income and would reduce your SSI benefits dollar for dollar; the first $20 of your VA benefit is not counted ...
Can you get disability under one VA program?
Just because you’re considered disabled under one program doesn’t mean you would get benefits under the other. Depending on the type of VA benefits you get, it may affect your Social Security eligibility as well as your benefit amounts.
Does VA disability affect Social Security?
VA Service Connected Disability. If you’re getting VA benefits due to a service-connected disability, your payment amounts won’t affect your Social Security benefits. Conversely, your service connected VA benefits are not reduced if you get Social Security benefits.
Is VA disability a non service disability?
VA Non-Service Connected Disability. If you’re a veteran getting VA benefits because of a non-service related disability, your Social Security benefits are not affected. However, your VA benefits are reduced by your Social Security payments. Non-service VA benefits are income-based which means any other income such as Social Security, ...
Is the VA considered unearned income?
VA benefits are considered unearned income and would reduce your SSI benefits dollar for dollar; the first $20 of your VA benefit is not counted by the SSA. The VA doesn’t consider SSI as countable income when calculating benefit amounts.
