HOW LONG AND WHAT TO EXPECT when it comes to your VA Claim for Disability Compensation Benefits

HOW LONG AND WHAT TO EXPECT when it comes to your VA Claim for Disability Compensation Benefits

The VA claim process after you file your claim
Learn about what happens after you file your claim. And find out the average number of days it takes to process a VA disability claim.

How long does it take VA to make a decision?
150.25 days
Average number of days to complete disability-related claims in December 2023

The time it takes to review your claim depends on these factors:
The type of claim you filed
How many injuries or disabilities you claimed and how complex they are
How long it takes us to collect the evidence we need to decide your claim
What should I do while I wait?
You don’t need to do anything unless we send you a letter asking for more information. If we schedule any exams for you, be sure not to miss them. You can check the status of your claim online. The timeline listed there may vary based on how complex your claim is.
What happens after I file a VA disability claim?
Claim received
We’ll let you know when we receive your VA disability claim.

If you file your claim online, you’ll get an on-screen message from us after you submit the form.
If you mail your application, we’ll send you a letter to let you know we have your claim. You should get this letter about 1 week, plus mailing time, after we receive your claim.
Initial review
We’ll review your claim.

Evidence gathering, review, and decision
During this step, we’ll do 3 things:

Ask for evidence from you, health care providers, government agencies, or others
Review the evidence
Make a decision
If we need more evidence during the review, your claim may return to this step more than once.

Preparation for notification
We’ll get your claim decision packet ready to mail.

Claim complete
We’ll send you a packet by U.S. mail that includes details of the decision on your claim. Please allow 7 to 10 business days for your packet to arrive before contacting a VA call center.