Glossary
Terms and acronyms used in veteran benefits.
- VA
- U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the federal agency responsible for VA benefits and services.
- VBA
- Veterans Benefits Administration, the part of VA that administers disability compensation, pension, education and other benefit programs.
- VHA
- Veterans Health Administration, the part of VA responsible for its health care system.
- NCA
- National Cemetery Administration, the part of VA responsible for national cemeteries and related memorial programs.
- Disability compensation
- A tax-free monthly benefit for qualifying disabilities connected to military service.
- Service connection
- VA’s determination that a condition is connected to military service under the applicable benefit rules.
- Rating
- A disability evaluation expressed as a percentage under VA’s rating rules. It describes evaluated severity separately from whether the condition is connected to service.
- Combined rating
- The percentage obtained by combining individual disability ratings using VA’s method. Ratings apply to the remaining portion rather than being added together.
- Whole person
- The 100-unit starting point used to illustrate combined-rating arithmetic. After a 50% rating, another rating applies to the 50 units remaining. This model is not a measurement of a person’s health.
- Bilateral factor
- An adjustment under 38 CFR §4.26 for qualifying compensable disabilities of both arms, both legs or paired skeletal muscles. Its calculation includes exceptions. The VetCore calculator excludes it.
- Effective date
- The date VA assigns to an award under the applicable rules. It does not necessarily match the date of diagnosis, the decision date or the first payment date.
- Intent to file
- Notice that you plan to file a qualifying claim. It may protect a potential award date if you complete the claim within 1 year and meet the other applicable requirements.
- C&P examination
- A compensation and pension (C&P) examination that gathers information for a VA claim decision. It is not a treatment appointment.
- Medical evidence
- Medical records, reports, test findings or examination information that address a question in a benefit claim.
- Supporting statement
- An account of what a person observed or experienced, submitted to support a claim. Identify the author and distinguish first-hand observations from information learned elsewhere.
- Presumptive condition
- A condition for which VA may presume a relationship to service when specified requirements are met.
- Accredited representative
- A Veterans Service Organization (VSO) representative, attorney or claims agent accredited by VA to assist with benefit claims. The person must also be appointed for individual representation.
- VSO
- Veterans Service Organization. A VA-accredited VSO representative can help with a benefit claim or decision review. Their claim-representation services are free.
- Claims agent
- A VA-accredited individual who can help with a benefit claim or decision review. Claims agents are distinct from accredited attorneys and VSO representatives. Ask about scope, appointment and applicable fees.
- Supplemental Claim
- A request for VA to reconsider a previously decided issue with new and relevant evidence or a qualifying change in law. You can submit evidence or identify records for VA to obtain.
- New and relevant evidence
- Evidence VA has not previously considered that tends to prove or disprove a question in the claim. A previously unconsidered record may address a fact discussed in the decision’s reasons; it does not guarantee approval.
- Higher-Level Review
- A higher-level reviewer reexamines an eligible VA decision using the existing record. New evidence is not accepted in this review.
- Informal conference
- A conversation you can request during Higher-Level Review to identify errors in the earlier decision. It is not a hearing and does not allow new evidence.
- Board Appeal
- A request for a Veterans Law Judge at the Board of Veterans’ Appeals to review a VA decision.
- Docket
- A Board Appeal category that sets the hearing and evidence rules. The Board also uses the word for a list of appeals awaiting review.
- Direct Review
- A Board Appeal option without a hearing or submission of new evidence. The judge reviews the existing record under this docket’s rules.
- Evidence Submission
- A Board Appeal option allowing new evidence with the appeal or within the official 90-day period after the Board receives it.
- Hearing
- A Board Appeal option with a hearing before a Veterans Law Judge and its own evidence periods. Follow the Board instructions, including when a hearing is withdrawn or missed.
- Enrollment
- Applying for and, if accepted, entering the VA health care system. Enrollment and scheduling an appointment are separate tasks.
- Priority group
- A group VA assigns after health care enrollment that may affect how much you pay toward care. VA considers service history, disability rating, income and other qualifying circumstances; this is separate from assigning a disability rating.
- Community care
- Care from a non-VA provider under VA’s program requirements. Referral, authorization and payment rules depend on the type of care.
- Referral
- A request or direction to another service or provider. For VA community care, confirm both referral and authorization requirements with the care team.
- Vet Center
- A VA community-based setting for readjustment counseling and related support; it is distinct from a medical clinic.
- GI Bill
- VA education benefit programs that help with qualifying education and training. Each program has its own requirements.
- Post-9/11 GI Bill
- An education benefit program, also called Chapter 33, that can help pay tuition and fees, housing, books and other approved education or training costs. Qualifying service, the program and enrollment circumstances affect what is available.
- GI Bill Comparison Tool
- VA’s official website for researching schools and training programs before using education benefits.
- VR&E
- Veteran Readiness and Employment (VR&E), also called Chapter 31. This program helps eligible people explore employment options and address rehabilitation, training or independent-living needs.
- VRC
- Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor, a counselor who evaluates needs and works with participants on an appropriate VR&E plan.
- COE
- Certificate of Eligibility. In home loans it confirms eligibility for the loan benefit to a lender; it does not guarantee loan approval.
- Loan guaranty
- VA’s guarantee of part of a qualifying loan from a participating lender. The borrower still has a loan to repay.
- Pension
- A benefit for qualifying wartime veterans under service, income, net-worth and age or disability requirements.
- DIC
- Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC), a benefit for qualifying surviving spouses, children and parents. Its requirements differ from Survivors Pension.
- Pre-need eligibility
- An advance application and determination of burial eligibility. It is separate from arranging or scheduling a burial.
- DD214
- A military discharge or separation document. It is not a complete collection of medical records.
- Service treatment records (STRs)
- Records of medical care during service. Their location depends on the service branch and dates; inpatient records may be stored separately.
- FOIA
- Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), a law governing public access to federal agency records, subject to exemptions.
- Privacy Act
- A federal law governing certain records about individuals, including access to and disclosure of those records.
- Document inventory
- A list of documents with filenames, dates, types and source references. It helps you find records but does not prove the collection is complete.
- Factual chronology
- A timeline that records dates, attributed statements and source pages without adding medical or legal conclusions.
- OCR
- Optical character recognition (OCR) turns scanned text into searchable text. Check important details against the visible document because OCR can misread words and dates.
- Duplicate record
- Another copy of the same document. Compare the content, dates and source details before treating it as a separate event.
- ZIP-area distance
- An approximate straight-line distance from a Census ZIP-area point to a published facility coordinate. It is not driving distance, travel time or reimbursable mileage.
- DBQ
- Disability Benefits Questionnaire: a form that requests medical findings for a disability-benefit evaluation. Examiner instructions and qualifications depend on the form; a completed DBQ does not itself decide service connection or a rating.
- BDD
- Benefits Delivery at Discharge: a pre-discharge compensation process with its own filing window, records and examination requirements. A planning date does not establish eligibility.
- SHA Part A
- Separation Health Assessment Part A: the service member’s health-history self-assessment used in the pre-discharge process. It is separate from examiner-completed medical findings.
- M21-1
- VA’s Adjudication Procedures Manual: procedural instructions for benefit administration. It is distinct from regulations and from public application instructions.
- CFR
- Code of Federal Regulations: the published federal regulations. A citation identifies the title, part or section; check the version and applicable effective date.
- CHAMPVA
- Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs: coverage sharing qualifying health-care costs for eligible family members and certain caregivers. It is separate from a Veteran’s VA health enrollment.
- PCAFC
- Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers: a program with a joint Veteran/caregiver application, eligibility evaluation, training and designation. Providing care alone does not establish eligibility for its benefits.
- PGCSS
- Program of General Caregiver Support Services: support, education, coaching and related services for eligible caregivers. It is separate from PCAFC designation and a stipend.
- DEA
- Survivors’ and Dependents’ Educational Assistance, also called Chapter 35: education benefits for qualifying family members. Its rules differ from the Fry Scholarship and transferred GI Bill benefits.
- BTSSS
- Beneficiary Travel Self Service System: VA’s online route for supported travel reimbursement claims. Booking a ride or seeing a map distance does not file a claim or establish reimbursement eligibility.
- SAH
- Specially Adapted Housing: a grant program for qualifying service-connected disabilities and housing circumstances. It is separate from a home-loan Certificate of Eligibility.
- Special Home Adaptation (SHA)
- A housing-adaptation grant with its own disability and housing requirements. In this context SHA means Special Home Adaptation, not Separation Health Assessment.
- VALife
- Veterans Affairs Life Insurance: premium-paid whole-life insurance for qualifying service-connected Veterans, with age-specific application rules and a full-coverage waiting period. It is not free or automatic coverage.
- VGLI
- Veterans’ Group Life Insurance: premium-paid insurance that can continue qualifying military group coverage after an applicable service event. Its application limit and health-evidence threshold are different.
- OSGLI
- Office of Servicemembers’ Group Life Insurance: the administrator identified in VA’s SGLI and VGLI instructions. Use the administrator for the actual policy when applying or making a claim.
- Individual unemployability (IU / TDIU)
- Total disability based on individual unemployability (TDIU), also called IU: payment at the 100% compensation rate under its own requirements. It is distinct from a 100% schedular combined evaluation and is not decided by the calculator.
- SMC
- Special monthly compensation: additional compensation for specified qualifying circumstances such as certain losses or care needs. A combined-rating percentage does not decide entitlement to it.
- FDC
- Fully Developed Claims: an optional compensation filing approach with evidence and certification requirements. It is not a different benefit or a promised decision date.
- ACE
- Acceptable Clinical Evidence: a records-review process VA may use for a claim examination when the required evidence can be obtained without an in-person examination. VA decides whether it applies.
- ROI
- Release of Information: a health facility’s records office or team handling access to medical information. A VBA claim-file request uses a different process.
- Permanent and total (P&T)
- A VA disability status named in requirements for some family benefits, including CHAMPVA. It is distinct from the combined-rating arithmetic; check the actual VA decision and the chosen program’s full requirements.
- TRICARE
- The military health program named in CHAMPVA eligibility instructions. CHAMPVA and TRICARE have different eligibility rules; check the applicable coverage before choosing a family health program.
- VADIP
- VA Dental Insurance Program: optional purchased dental insurance. Premiums and plan terms are separate from VA-provided dental care and from this free education service.