Ratings & how they work.
The mechanics of VA disability ratings: how they’re combined, how they’re protected over time, and how to file or increase a claim years after service.
Every guide in this cluster
VA Combined Ratings Math: Why 50 + 30 = 70, Not 80 (2026)
VA combined ratings use whole-person math, not addition, so 50% and 30% make 70%. The formula, the bilateral factor, the rounding trap, and a calculator.
VA Compensation vs. VA Pension: Two Benefits, Often Confused (2026)
VA disability compensation is service-connected with no income limit; VA pension is needs-based. The differences, why you can't get both, and a router.
Is VA Disability Counted as Income? Taxes, IRMAA, and the Earnings Test
Tax-free, excluded from MAGI and IRMAA, invisible to the Social Security earnings test — and where it still counts. With a tax-free gross-up calculator.
Protected VA Ratings: The 5-, 10-, and 20-Year Rules
After 5 years a rating is stabilized, after 10 service connection can’t be severed, after 20 the rating is locked. Plus P&T, static conditions, and the 55+ rule — with a status checker.
Filing or Increasing a VA Claim After Retirement
There’s no deadline to file or increase a claim. Effective dates, the Intent to File, secondary conditions, PACT Act presumptives, and how a new rating reshapes retired pay — with a back-pay calculator.
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This is one cluster of the VA & Retirement pillar. Explore 100% P&T, TDIU & SMC, and VA pension & survivors in the full pillar.
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