File a VA Claim: 4 Amazing Items To Kickstart Your Claim

Item #1: Immediately Submit An Intent to File

Before we get into all the cool stuff: we highly encourage you to stop reading this article and perform the following steps to submit an intent to file. The intent to file will allow you to submit a claim within one year. It can maintain your effective date (with some caveats).

Here are the steps on how to submit an intent to file:

1. Call 1-800-827-1000 – Request “Claims Information” at the prompt.
2. Go through the Menu and put in your SSN, DOB, and Branch of Service.
3. When a person answers, ask, “Can you please submit an Intent to File (ITF) on my behalf?”

They will do it on the phone with you. The VA DOES NOT NEED TO KNOW WHAT CONDITION YOU ARE FILING YOUR VA CLAIM!!!!!

It is a myth. Any new claim you file will attach to the Intent to File.

Item #2: Am I eligible for VA Compensation and Benefits?

To apply for VA benefits, you must first meet specific eligibility criteria.

The eligibility criteria to apply for VA benefits are as follows:

First, you must have BOTH of the following:

Additionally, ONE of the following is true:

What Makes Me Ineligible To File A VA Claim?

If you have any of the following discharges, you may not be eligible for VA compensation:

What if I Am Ineligible for VA Disability Benefits?

You can apply for a discharge upgrade if you are ineligible for VA benefits. However, you probably will not be able to file VA disability claim until the completion of your discharge upgrade.

First, it is essential to understand there is no list of “Easiest Things to Claim for VA Disability.” There is no easy claim.

When applying for VA disability compensation benefits, you must understand the conditions for which you can file

How do you know what ailments for which you should apply? It all comes down to learning three things. Caluza v. Brown explains how to show a service connection for any service-connectable disorder. You must have three items to win any VA Claim:

1) A current disability (medical diagnosis),

2) causing or aggravation of a disease or injury in service (lay or medical evidence),

3) a nexus between the in-service injury or disease; and the current disability (medical evidence),

These three items are called the “Caluza Triangle.” It is also known as the “Hickson Elements.” If you understand these elements, you will understand the requirements for service connection.

If you take all your diagnoses and create a VA disability claims list, you can go through the ‘triangle list’ with each diagnosis. Then, you can identify the issue with your claim. Then, address the problems quickly and effectively.

Item #4: Assemble Your Evidence To File A VA claim

Generally, you will want to have several pieces of evidence to file your VA Claim:

1. You must prove that you have a current diagnosis. Include things such as:
   1. Documentation or medical records that show your diagnosis.
   2. Treatment records for the condition.
   3. Logs you may have generated to display your conditions and how they affect you socially and occupationally.
   4. Try to get a nexus statement from your doctor showing your condition is ‘more likely than not related to your military service.’ These are extremely hard to get from your doctor. If you are looking for nexus statements, you can go to KDVMA for a top notch service. Another solution is to develop your claim natively. 
2. Statement In Support of Claim (Personal or Lay Statement)
   1. You must outline your story in the record. To learn what needs to be in this report, you can check out our article: Increase VA Claims: Six Must Know Points For VA Form 21-4138: Lay Statement.
3. Buddy/Lay Statements
   1. You can find information about what a lay statement is by clicking here.
4. Any other information you feel is vital to your claim.
5. Remember: before you write your lay statement, you should understand the rating criteria.

Remember: If you have photographic evidence of your location during your event or an injury, you should include it.

Yes. But it is tough to win your case without a diagnosis. There are a few exceptions to when you can file a VA claim when you don’t have a diagnosis. An example is ‘undiagnosed illnesses for Gulf War Syndrome.’ In this case, you will want to show evidence of medical testing and treatment of your conditions.

Another common disability that you don’t need a diagnosis for initially is Tinnitus. The nexus for Tinnitus is highly reliant on your duty MOS and noise exposure. In addition, Tinnitus is challenging to test objectively.

So if you were to ask: “How do I file a VA claim for Tinnitus?” the answer would be a little different. When you file a VA claim for Tinnitus, you won’t need proof of the diagnosis. Instead, the C&P examination will typically provide the diagnosis.

What is important is a statement on the noise hazard exposure during your time in service. Also, in your account, you should speak to your MOS. There is a listing of high-noise MOSs that the VA uses internally.

In summary, it is crucial to get a diagnosis when you can; otherwise, your claim will most likely fail.

Conclusion

Now that you have the three kickstart items to begin your claim, you can start filing.
If you file a new VA claim, you want to use VA Form 21-526EZ.
If you are filing a previously denied claim, you should file a Supplemental VA Claim using VA Form 20-0995.
Using these kickstart items does not work for the Higher Level Review (VA Form 20-0996) because you will be assembling new evidence.
To file for a VA Board Appeal, use VA Form 10182.

>>CHECK OUT OUR ARTICLE ON WRITING A SUCCESSFUL LAY STATEMENT FOR SLEEP APNEA<<