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For those that serve their country, the Department of Veteran Affairs provides a wide range of disability benefits. But each veteran receives different types of benefits-- and not all of these benefits are equally valuable. The VA uses eight "priority groups" to determine which benefits you will receive, with "1" being the highest priority and "8" the lowest (as of 2003, no new veterans are enrolled into group 8). Your priority group depends entirely on your disability and how it first occurred (service-connected or non-service-connected), your financial situation, and your current level of disability.

Since whether or not a disability is service-connected or non-service-connected can have a great effect on the benefits you will receive, it’s important to have a good understanding of the specific requirements for each of these two types of benefits.

Non-service-Connected Benefits Requirements

Veterans who suffer from complete and permanent disability are eligible for non-service-connected benefits. Eligibility for non-service-connected benefits also depends on several other factors:

• Income- Being eligible for non-service-connected benefits is based on the recipient having limited earnings and a net worth too low to provide the veteran with adequate maintenance. For more information please see 38 U.S.C.S. §§1521-22.

• Service - To reach eligibility for a non-service-connected pension, a veteran must have one day or more of active duty in a "period of war", with at least 90 days total active duty. For those enrolled in the military after 1980, however, the requirement is simply a full period of active duty. Specifically, an individual who enlisted for the first time on or after September 8, 1980, is required to complete a minimum period of service, either twenty-four months of continuous active duty or the full period for which the veteran was called to active duty. Additionally, the veteran must have active service that includes a total of ninety days during one or more periods of war; ninety or more consecutive days, one day of which is during a period of war; or at least one day of wartime service that results in a discharge for service-connected disability.

• Discharge- To be eligible for benefits from the Department of Veteran Affairs, your discharge from the military needs to have been under non-dishonorable circumstances.

The Requirements for Service Connected Benefits

Eligibility for service-connected benefits, differently from non-service-connected benefits, is not dependant on a veteran having done wartime service or meeting a net worth or income level. Rather, you will be required to prove the source and current condition of your disability using:

• Proof of your current disability- Because benefits for a service-connected disability are awarded only to those with a current disability, an applicant for these benefits must provide recent medical records diagnosing the current state of their disability.

• Evidence of the occurrence of disability or injury- Veterans applying for service-connected benefits must next provide evidence that their current disability was either incurred during or worsened by military service. It’s important to know, however, that “in-service” is a broad term, and can include injury incurred even during leave.

• Evidence of connection between past injury and current disability- Veterans applying for service-connected disability benefits must prove that their current disability is indeed connected to the injury which occurred during military service.

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