Our analysis of the December 2025 veterans’ disability benefits statistics report from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs is below. If you’re a veteran or military dependent seeking benefits, this statistical snapshot covers the last 30 days of claims data. Keep reading to learn how long VA claims currently take to review and other key statistics.
Related: Keep up to date with our latest Social Security disability benefits monthly report here.
December 2025 Claims Inventory Status
The claims inventory report for December 2025 lists all pending VA disability compensation, military retirement, DIC, and survivor’s benefits. :
- As of December 6, 2025: 586,801
- As of November 8, 2025: 598,970
- Difference: -12,169
- Daily churn: -608 claims
| VA Claims with Attorney Representation | Fully Developed Claims (FDCs) Filed Online |
|---|---|
| 81 average days to complete | 90 average days to complete |
As you can see, having an attorney file your VA claim gets you a determination decision 9 days sooner. Nationwide, VA supplemental claims currently take 64 days to complete, on average (as of 11/30/2025).
But if you apply for VA disability compensation today, what’s the soonest you can expect a response back?
- Maryland – 78.6 days
- Colorado – 79.2 days
- Maine – 80.6 days
- Texas, North Carolina – 80.9 days
- Connecticut – 81 days
- Minnesota – 81.2 days
- Georgia – 81.3 days
- Arkansas – 81.9 days
- Kentucky – 82 days
December 2025 Claims Backlog Status
Each month’s backlog lists all outstanding claims that are more than 125 days old still under the VA’s review. While slowing down for the holiday season, the VA is still steadily shrinking its backlog in December 2025:
- As of December 6, 2025: 109,574
- As of November 8, 2025: 112,785
- Difference: -3,211 claims
- Daily churn: -161 cleared from the backlog
What’s even more striking is how much progress the agency has made since this time last year. It’s down by 841,060 claims, or -89% according to this month’s report:
| December 2024 VA Backlog | December 2025 VA Backlog |
|---|---|
| 950,634 | 109,574 |
Talk to a VA-Accredited Attorney for Free Now
Mistakes on VA claim reviews affected almost 1 in 5 vets (18%) applying for benefits during the past 12 months. We want to help veterans get the maximum benefits they deserve after receiving an honorable discharge from military service.
The Board of Veterans’ Appeals annual report for 2023 shows that vets with attorneys get appealed claims approved 41% of the time. That’s the highest win rate possible for veterans (average win rate for all claims was 33.6% for 2023). For context, veterans appealing a claim without any representation succeeded just 29% of the time that year.
VA-accredited attorneys charge $0 if they can’t secure more VA benefit income for you each month. And if your claim is successful, then you only pay one small fee afterwards.
Ready to see if you may qualify? Click the button below to start your free online benefits evaluation now:
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November 2025 Veterans Disability Benefits Statistics Report Analysis
Important: Readers may notice that there’s no October report listed below in our usual monthly updates. This is due to the Trump Administration’s federal shutdown lasting from October 1-November 14, 2025. During that time, no government agency website published any new data available to the public. However, our analysis of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ November 2025 veterans’ disability benefits statistics report is now complete. Learn what the latest numbers mean for both military families and veterans seeking VA benefits.
November 2025 Claims Inventory Status
The November 2025 claims inventory report lists all active VA claims for disability, pension, dependent, or survivor benefits. So, what’s changed in the two months since we last received any data from the VA? Despite experiencing the longest federal government shutdown in history, the VA continued processing new claims and clearing out its inventory:
- As of November 8, 2025: 598,970
- As of September 6, 2025: 657,937
- Difference: -58,967
- Daily churn: -1,310 claims
| VA Claims with Attorney Representation | Fully Developed Claims Filed Online at VA.gov |
|---|---|
| 80.5 average days to complete | 90 average days to complete |
As you can see, having an attorney file your VA claim means you’ll get a decision 10 days faster.
Here are some key changes that affect veterans receiving or seeking VA benefits since our last report analysis from September:
- The Office of Inspector General (OIG) for the VA released a September 2025 report examining PACT Act claim reviews. It shows in 2023, VHA examiners failed to complete important training before issuing decisions on 29% of PACT Act claims.
Key Takeaway: About 8,600 affected veterans may have received an incorrect VA claim decision between January 1, 2023, and August 1, 2023. - Another OIG report on 9/30/2025 found significant errors in PACT Act claim review decisions for toxic exposure-related, non-presumptive conditions.
Key Takeaway: That report shows about 61% of toxic exposure claim denials issued between May 1-August 31, 2023 may be incorrect.
If the VA denied your 2023 PACT Act claim or your disability rating’s too low, consult an attorney for free. You’re far more likely to get additional benefits now if you appeal or file a supplemental claim with legal assistance.
November 2025 Claims Backlog Status
Any VA claims still under review after 125 days fall under the “backlogged” category in monthly reporting. It’s nice to see the VA cleared about 15,000 claims per month out of its backlog during the six-week shutdown:
- As of November 8, 2025: 112,785
- As of September 6, 2025: 145,095
- Difference: -32,310 claims
- Daily churn: -718 cleared from the backlog
So, what type of claim typically takes longest for the VA to process? Here are some statistics that veterans should know before they file:
- 55% of Agent Orange-related claims were backlogged in November 2025. This average total includes 77% of Blue Water Navy claims.
- 30% of initial claims for VA disability compensation take more than 125 days to process. The average is 34.3% of applications listing at least eight conditions, or 27% of claims with seven or fewer conditions.
- 29% of VA survivor benefit claims for children born with either spina bifida or other birth defects.
- 17% of supplemental claims took more than 125 days to complete as of November 2025.
- 17% of pension claims were backlogged, on average, and 12% of retirement award adjustments.
September 2025 Veterans Disability Benefits Statistics Report Analysis
We now have the September 2025 veterans’ disability benefits statistics report from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). These can include disability compensation, military pension, dependent and survivor’s benefit claims. To learn what the latest numbers mean for military families and vets, keep reading…
September 2025 Claims Inventory Status
The September 2025 claims inventory report lists all active VA applications for disability, pension, or survivor benefits. Today, the inventory category is 40% smaller than its historic peak in October 2023 of nearly 1.1 million pending claims:
- As of September 6, 2025: 657,937
- As of August 2, 2025: 691,312
- Difference: -33,375
- Daily churn: -1,669 claims
For September 2025, these are the average wait times for veterans to get a determination decision on VA claims:
- 120 days – claims filed free through a VA-accredited attorney
- 128 days – fully developed claims (FDCs) filed online at the VA’s website
So, what’s helping the VA process claims faster in 2025? First, the agency hired 50% more staff to process veterans’ claims since 2021. Second, the agency invested in new technology to meet historically high PACT Act claims starting in 2022. We celebrate any wins that make it easier for military veterans to get the benefits they need and deserve!
September 2025 Claims Backlog Status
Any VA claims still under review after 125 days are “backlogged,” according to the agency. Much like the claims inventory, this month’s backlog is down 53% from the VA’s historic high of 306,747 applications in October 2023:
- As of August 2, 2025: 163,630
- As of September 6, 2025: 145,095
- Difference: -18,535 claims
- Daily churn: -927 cleared from the backlog
These states currently take the longest to process VA disability compensation claims, on average:
- 131 days: Washington, D.C.
- 141 days: Vermont
- 137 days: North Dakota
- 136 days: Maine
- 135 days: Wyoming, New Jersey
- 133 days: New Mexico, Massachusetts
August 2025 Veterans Disability Benefits Statistics Report
Let’s review the August 2025 veterans’ disability benefits statistics report recently issued by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). We have good news for veterans working with attorneys: Your VA claim-processing time just got nearly one week shorter!
All VA benefits are tax-free and can include things like disability compensation for combat injuries or federal health care. Military retirees can also claim monthly pension payments, and families of deceased vets can apply for survivor benefits. Our analysis will explore what the latest numbers mean for first-time applicants and appealed VA benefit claims.
August 2025 Claims Inventory Status
The August 2025 claims inventory report includes all VA disability, pension, or survivor benefit applications currently under review. While this month’s changes are a little smaller than what we saw in July, the numbers are still trending downward:
- As of August 2, 2025: 691,312
- As of July 5, 2025: 741,577
- Difference: -50,265
- Daily churn: -2,513 claims
And in August 2025, here are the average wait times for veterans to get a determination decision on their VA claims:
- 122.6 days – applications filed for free through a VA-accredited attorney
- 131 days – fully developed claims (FDCs) filed online at benefits.va.gov
Here’s what we saw in this month’s claims inventory, based on each type of application:
- 41% are supplemental claims for new or worsening medical conditions
- 28% are AMA supplemental claim decision review requests
- 14% are initial VA disability claims that list no more than 7 unrated conditions
- 11% are initial VA disability claims with at least 8 unrated conditions
- 3% are survivor benefit claims
- 1.3% are Blue Water Navy claims for Agent Orange exposure during Vietnam
- 1% are pension benefit claims from military retirees
August 2025 Claims Backlog Status
When 125 days pass without a resolution on your claim, the VA refers to it as “backlogged” in reports. The August 2025 backlog continues to shrink at a stunning pace, clearing more than 1,000 older applications each day:
- As of August 2, 2025: 163,630
- As of July 5, 2025: 184,186
- Difference: -20,556 claims
- Daily churn: -1,028 cleared from the backlog
So, which veterans are most likely to wait longest for VA benefits? Here’s how the backlog breaks down for August 2025:
- 47% are vets who fought in Iraq or Afghanistan
- 20% are Gulf War veterans
- 20% are Vietnam veterans
- 12% are vets who served from the end of Vietnam to the start of the Gulf War
- 1% are from all other military service eras combined
July 2025 Veterans Disability Benefits Statistics Report Analysis
Your July 2025 veterans’ disability benefits statistics report analysis starts now. So, what does the latest update from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) reveal? More advances for veterans, starting with a significant drop in claim-processing times.
Eligible veterans can apply for VA disability compensation or retirement (pension) benefits, as well as government-backed education and housing loans. Military families can also apply for tax-free VA dependency and indemnity compensation (DIC) or survivor’s benefits. Let’s review what the July 2025 report tells us about the current claims data below.
July 2025 Claims Inventory Status
Any application for either VA disability, pension, or survivor’s benefits under review appears in the claims inventory report. The biggest thing we noticed is the sharp downward trend in total claims halfway through this year. Since January 2025, the VA processed a little less than 214,000 total claims.
And the pace continues to accelerate the further we get into the year:
- As of July 5, 2025: 741,577
- As of June 7, 2025: 797,170
- Difference: -55,593
- Daily churn: -2,780 claims
Next, we’ll note that the average time it takes to complete each claim is getting shorter every month. During July 2025, here are the average times for veterans to get a determination decision on VA claims:
- 128.5 days – applications filed with a VA-accredited attorney’s help
- 136 days – fully developed claims (FDCs) filed online through the VA’s website
But these numbers apply solely to initial, original and supplemental claims for VA benefits. Let’s see how average wait times have changed for other types of claims based on the June 2025 AMA Metrics Report:
- 140.7 days – average time to finish higher-level reviews (HLRs). This is an 80% reduction since HLR wait times peaked in August 2024 at 253.8 days.
- 92.5 days – average time to complete supplemental claims. This is a 56% reduction since January 2024, when processing times for supplemental claims peaked at 144.4 days total.
- 80.7 days – average time to process appealed VA compensation and pension claims in June 2025.
- 482 days – time direct review requests are pending on appealed claims, which have an average success rate of 34.4%.
- 683 days – time you’ll wait to hear a response for appealed claims that include new medical evidence, with a 41% success rate.
- 853 days – average wait for appeals hearings on the Board’s court docket, which have a 41.3% success rate.
July 2025 Claims Backlog Status
The term “backlogged” describes any VA claim still in process more than 125 days after its filing date. Once again, we see another drop in the claims backlog — but only about half as many as June 2025’s report:
- As of July 5, 2025: 184,186
- As of June 7, 2025: 193,521
- Difference: -9,335 claims
- Daily churn: -467 cleared from the backlog
If you recently applied for VA disability compensation, these states take longest to assign ratings and approve payments:
- North Dakota: 128.5 days
- Wyoming: 119.6 days
- Iowa: 114.7 days
- Alaska: 113.8 days
- Kentucky: 113.6 days
- Massachusetts: 113.2 days
- New Hampshire: 110.7 days
- Nebraska: 110 days
- Illinois: 108.5 days
- New York: 108 days
June 2025 Veterans Disability Benefits Statistics Report Analysis
We have an exciting new analysis for the June 2025 veterans’ disability benefits statistics report from the VA. Lots of big changes happening, and thankfully, they all appear to benefit both military families and veterans.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) publishes a new report online every Tuesday that covers all outstanding benefit applications. Any eligible vet can apply for VA disability compensation or retirement (pension) payments. In addition, eligible family members can get dependent or survivor benefits from the VA. Keep reading to learn how this month’s update may affect how long you wait for a response about your claim.
June 2025 Claims Inventory Status
The claims inventory report lists every application for benefits that the VA is currently working on. However, this report doesn’t include every benefit that vets can access, like housing loans, scholarship money, or education grants. It does include all claims for benefits which the VA pays every month, depending on your age and physical health.
We’re shocked by the progress the VA accomplished during the last month in reducing the total number of pending claims:
- As of June 7, 2025: 797,170
- As of May 3, 2025: 889,859
- Difference: -92,689
- Daily churn: -4,635 claims
And here’s the second piece of good news: It’s starting to take less time to process every VA claim.It’s still a full week faster to file for veterans’ disability benefits through an attorney (130.6 days, on average). But it takes closer to 138 days (137.9, on average) if you file an application online through the VA’s website.
Here are some recent findings from the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) audit of VA claims in May 2025:
- 24% of PACT Act claims filed between August 10, 2022, and August 9, 2023, received improper determination decisions
- Bereaved military families filing PACT Act-related claims received $33.1 million less than the VA owed in survivor’s benefits from 1/1/2023-7/31/2023
- 45% of audited denied PACT Act claims for new service-connected disabilities from 1/1/2023-9/30/2023 had at least one error (19,200 denials)
- Because of these mistakes, the VA owed $56,700 in back benefits to two wrongly denied eligible veterans
If you filed a PACT Act claim during this period, talk to a VA-accredited attorney about your case. You could potentially deserve more money than you currently get if the VA denied your claim in 2023.
June 2025 Claims Backlog Status
The VA refers to any claim that is still under review after 125 days as “backlogged.” We love to see these numbers falling somewhat compared to May, but they still have much farther to go:
- As of June 7, 2025: 193,521
- As of May 3, 2025: 209,018
- Difference: -15,497 claims
- Daily churn: -775 cleared from the backlog
According to the VA’s 2024 Annual Report, these are the top 10 service-connected conditions awarded disability compensation last year:
- Tinnitus: 273,502 veterans
- Limitation of knee flexion: 153,205 veterans
- Lumbosacral or cervical strain: 132,617 veterans
- Limitation of arm motion: 114,597 veterans
- Hearing loss: 108,105 veterans
- 2nd degree scars or burns: 96,578 veterans
- Sciatic nerve paralysis: 86,121 veterans
- Limitation of ankle motion: 85,947 veterans
- Migraines: 83,992 veterans
- Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD): 81,968 veterans
May 2025 Veterans Disability Benefits Statistics Report Analysis
The May 2025 veterans’ disability benefits statistics report from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs is showing drastic changes. We are seeing huge improvements in pending VA claims for both the inventory and backlog categories this month!
The VA publishes a weekly report online every Tuesday that covers all pending claims from military families. Any eligible veteran can apply for benefits, including monthly disability and pension income. Keep reading to learn how this month’s update may affect your own VA claim processing timeline.
May 2025 Claims Inventory Status
You can find every outstanding claim for VA benefits of every stripe listed in this month’s claims inventory report. This includes things like requests for new VA disability ratings, C&P exams, and supplemental claims. In addition, you can see pension applications for newly retired military service members and DIC claims from eligible family members.
This month’s report shows the biggest drop in total pending VA claims we’ve seen in a long time:
- As of May 3, 2025: 889,859
- As of April 5, 2025: 923,355
- Difference: -33,496
- Daily churn: -1,675 claims
Filed a fully developed claim through the VA’s website? You’ll wait 141 days for the agency to process your application. But filing through a VA-accredited attorney for free speeds up your wait time by one full week.
Supplemental claims account for most of the May 2025 report’s inventory category (i.e., 74%). Initial applications for VA disability benefits comprise 21%; survivor’s benefit claims from families of deceased veterans account for another 2.5%.
Here are the states with the fastest claim-processing times for VA disability compensation for May 2025:
- Alaska ― 112 days
- Rhode Island ―115.6 days
- Colorado ― 116 days
- Connecticut ― 117 days
- Idaho ― 118 days
- Delaware ― 119 days
- South Dakota ― 119 days
May 2025 Claims Backlog Status
Once an unprocessed claim is more than 125 days old, it automatically moves into the VA’s backlog category. Much like the May 2025 claims inventory, backlogged applications are declining rapidly compared to last month’s report:
- As of May 3, 2025: 209,018
- As of April 5, 2025: 232,207
- Difference: -23,189 claims
- Daily churn: -1,159.5 cleared from the backlog
Finally, here are the states with the longest wait times for veterans waiting on VA disability compensation:
- Vermont ― 146 days
- Georgia ― 143 days
- New Mexico ― 140 days
- Wyoming ― 137.6 days
- Arizona ― 133.3 days
- Louisiana ― 133 days
April 2025 Veterans Disability Benefits Statistics Report
Let’s review the April 2025 veterans disability benefits statistics report from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. So, what does this month’s report tell us? Both the claims inventory and backlogged benefit applications are down this month, for starters.
The VA publishes a new report update online every Tuesday that covers all applications for benefits from U.S. military veterans. Any eligible veteran can file a claim for VA benefits, which covers disability compensation, school and home loans, or pensions. Keep reading to learn how the newest numbers may affect claim approval wait times for military veterans and their families.
April 2025 Claims Inventory Status
The claims inventory status report lists every application for benefits that the VA currently has under review. For example: A veteran who develops hearing loss and heart failure can file a claim to request VA disability ratings. Other types of claims just need approval for payments to start, such as pension or survivor’s benefits.
First, we note that the total claims the VA is currently processing shrank significantly compared to last month:
- As of April 5, 2025: 923,355
- As of March 8, 2025: 934,183
- Difference: -10,828
- Daily churn: -541.4 claims
Filed your VA claim online? You’ll wait 143 days (nearly 5 months) for the agency to issue a response. To shave nearly a week off your average wait time, file yours with help from a VA-accredited attorney instead.
One in four VA claims in this month’s inventory are from initial filers; 75% are supplemental claims from veterans who already get some benefits each month.
See how this month’s claim inventory report (not including backlogged applications) breaks down by benefit type below:
- 43% are supplemental applications for worsening or new service-connected disabilities that need ratings.
- 29% are AMA supplemental claim decision review requests.
- 12% are initial claims for VA disability compensation that list no more than 7 unrated medical conditions.
- 9% are first time VA disability compensation claims that list at least 8 unrated medical conditions.
- 2.4% are death benefit claims from surviving spouses, children, or parents of deceased veterans.
- 2% are requesting a future exam for disabilities (C&P exam requests).
- 1% are military pension claims.
- 1% are Blue Water Navy claims for conditions resulting from Agent Orange exposure during the Vietnam War service era.
April 2025 Claims Backlog Status
The VA’s claims backlog includes any application for veterans’ benefits that is more than 125 days old, but still incomplete. As you can see, the VA is quickly clearing out hundreds of older benefit claims daily from the current backlog:
- As of April 5, 2025: 232,207
- As of March 8, 2025: 247,580
- Difference: -15,373 claims
- Daily churn: -769 cleared from the backlog
Here are the veterans most likely to wait longer for VA claim approvals in April broken down by service era:
- 44% – Iraq and Afghanistan conflict vets
- 23% – Vietnam War veterans
- 20% – Gulf War vets
- 11% – Peacetime veterans who served between the end of Vietnam and the start of the Gulf War in 1991
- 2% – Claims from veterans in all other service eras, added together
March 2025 Veterans Disability Benefits Statistics Report Analysis
What does the March 2025 veterans disability benefits statistics report from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs reveal this month? We noticed big moves this month that should help both veterans and military families alike. We love sharing good news!
The VA publishes a new claim report update online every Tuesday listing every application for benefits now under review. Any veteran or eligible family member can file a claim for VA disability compensation, DIC benefits, or military retirement payments. Keep reading to learn how the newest numbers may affect claim approval wait times for certain VA benefits.
March 2025 Claims Inventory Status
The claims inventory status report lists every application for benefits the VA is currently working on. Disability compensation claims include new or worse health conditions a veteran needs the VA to rate. Pension and survivor’s benefit applications, on the other hand, simply need approval from the VA to initiate payments.
Claims are finally going down again after months of increases, according to the March 2025 veterans disability benefits statistics report:
- As of March 8, 2025: 934,183
- As of February 1, 2025: 953,344
- Difference: -19,161
- Daily churn: -766 claims
It currently takes nearly 5 months to get a response back after you file a VA benefits claim. But for the first time in more than a year, the Average Days to Complete (ADC) claims timeline is shrinking. Right now, expect to wait 138 days for a response if a VA-accredited attorney within our network files your claim. File it online yourself without an attorney’s help, and you’ll wait 145 days for a VA response instead.
The VA tracks appeals and higher–level reviews separately from initial application filings. Below are some highlights from the VA’s February Appeals Modernization Act (AMA) report:
- Claim appeal rate to the Board of Veterans’ Appeals fell to just 10% in FY 2024
- Average monthly retroactive benefit award as of 2/28/2025: $35,752.40
- AMA appeal cases get resolved in about 2.8 years (2019-present) vs. 6 years in the Legacy appeals system (2018 and older)
- Supplemental claims take 265 days to finish; 50.2% are successful
- Higher level reviews take about 98 days to complete with a 23.2% grant rate
- Direct reviews (no new evidence, no hearing) take 489 days to complete
- Appealed claims with new medical evidence take 737 days to process from initial filing date
- Hearings for appealed claims take 815 days from start to finish
March 2025 Claims Backlog Status
After 125 days, any claims the VA is still working on automatically falls into the backlog category. Much like last month, backlogged claims are moving in the right direction as the VA clears out older claims:
- As of March 8, 2025: 247,580
- As of February 1, 2025: 260,354
- Difference: -12,774 claims
- Daily churn: -511 cleared from the backlog
If you recently applied for VA disability benefits, these states have the slowest claim processing times, on average:
- 160 days – Vermont
- 155 days – Arkansas
- 149.6 days – Mississippi, New Mexico
- 148 days – District of Columbia (i.e., Washington, D.C.)
- 147 days – North Dakota
- 146 days – Oregon, Wyoming
- 145.6 days – New Jersey
February 2025 Veterans Disability Benefits Statistics Report Analysis
It’s time to review the February 2025 veterans disability benefits statistics report from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. The VA publishes new claim report updates every Tuesday, and they list all applications for benefits currently under review. Each claim represents either a veteran or military family member requesting VA disability compensation, DIC benefits, or pension payments. Keep reading to learn how the newest numbers may affect military veterans’ claim approval wait times for certain VA benefits.
February 2025 Claims Inventory Status
All benefit applications the VA is working on right now are visible in the claims inventory status report. These claims must either receive approval for payment or have a new VA disability rating assigned for each service-connected condition. (Keep in mind that the numbers below don’t include appealed legacy or AMA claims.)
February 2025 veterans disability benefits statistics report numbers show claims are still rising, but slowing down somewhat this month:
- As of February 1, 2025: 953,344
- As of January 4, 2025: 955,300
- Difference: +1,956
- Daily churn: +98 claims
Working with an attorney on your VA disability claim will get a response back one week before those filed online. The VA shows website lists 145.6 days to process fully developed claims filed online. But vets who work with attorneys get an answer back in 139 days, on average.
February 2025 Claims Backlog Status
After 125 days, any claims the VA still needs to complete goes into the backlog category. We now see a reversal of the claims backlog increase we noted in the January 2025 report:
- As of February 1, 2025: 254,773
- As of January 4, 2025: 260,354
- Difference: -5,581 claims
- Daily churn: -279 cleared from the backlog
Wondering which veterans wait longest for VA benefit approval? Here is a breakdown of who fell into this month’s backlog by service era:
- 2% – all other service eras combined (i.e., Korea, World War II, etc.).
- 44% – those who served in Iraq or Afghanistan
- 23% – Vietnam veterans
- 20% – Gulf War veterans
- 11% – Peacetime veterans (end of Vietnam to the start of the 1990s Gulf War)
January 2025 Veterans Disability Benefits Statistics Report Analysis
Our analysis of the January 2025 veterans disability benefits statistics report from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs is below. Every month, the VA issues a new report showing how claims data changed during the past 30 days. Each claim represents a veteran or military dependent seeking home loans, VA disability compensation, DIC benefits, or pension payments. We’ll explain how the newest numbers may affect claim approval wait times, which veterans may see the biggest impact, and more helpful info.
January 2025 Claims Inventory Status
Every single application for benefits that the VA has currently under review appears in each month’s claims inventory update. That includes all pension, VA compensation, survivor, and dependent benefit claims that require either approval for payment or disability ratings. In addition, we review quarterly reports from the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) that track appealed cases and supplemental claims.
The January 2025 report shows the typical spike in new applications we see at the start of every calendar year:
- As of January 4, 2025: 955,300
- As of December 7, 2024: 950,634
- Difference: +4,666
- Daily churn: +233 claims
Here are the 2025 monthly VA disability compensation rates for veterans with no dependents, based on this year’s COLA increase:
- 0% disability rating: $0.00 per month
- 10% disability rating: $175.51 per month
- 20% disability rating: $346.95 per month
- 30% disability rating: $537.42 per month
- 40% disability rating: $774.16 per month
- 50% disability rating: $1,102.04 per month
- 60% disability rating: $1,395.93 per month
- 70% disability rating: $1,759.19 per month
- 80% disability rating: $2,044.89 per month
- 90% disability rating: $2,297.96 per month
- 100% disability rating: $3,831.30 per month
Want to speed up your claim review and get your first payment faster? Get an attorney to help you file instead of going through the VA’s website. You’ll save at least 6-7 days, based on the VA’s current “average days to complete” report. That’s because the VA shows that an ADC of 145.6 days for fully developed claims filed online. However, vets who file non-fully developed claims are actually getting a response back one week earlier:
January 2025 Claims Backlog Status
Once the VA holds onto a claim for more than 125 days without completing its review, it automatically becomes “backlogged.” As expected, the backlog continues growing larger much like we saw in December 2024’s report:
- As of January 4, 2025: 260,354
- As of December 7, 2024: 243,576
- Difference: +16,778 claims
- Daily churn: +839 claims added to the backlog
Virtually any veteran’s claim may end up in the backlog. With that in mind, here’s how January 2025 backlogged claims break down:
- 37% – supplemental claims for service-connected disabilities that got worse, or new ones the veteran developed recently
- 24% – decision review requests for AMA supplemental claims
- 15% – initial VA disability applications that list more than 8 unrated conditions
- 14% – first-time applications for VA disability compensation that list no more than 7 unrated conditions
- 5% – survivor’s benefit applications from eligible relatives of deceased veterans
- 3% – Agent Orange claims from Blue Water Navy vets who served during Vietnam
- 1.3% – pension benefit claims from retiring veterans
We’ve helped at least 10,000 disabled vets get free VA-accredited claim reviews. If you need help, click the button below to start your free online benefits quiz and see if you may qualify:
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Lori Polemenakos is Director of Consumer Content and SEO strategist for LeadingResponse, a legal marketing company. An award-winning journalist, writer and editor based in Dallas, Texas, she's produced articles for major brands such as Match.com, Yahoo!, MSN, AOL, Xfinity, Mail.com, and edited several published books. Since 2016, she's published hundreds of articles about Social Security disability, workers' compensation, veterans' benefits, personal injury, mass tort, auto accident claims, bankruptcy, employment law and other related legal issues.
