Filing Your Claim: BDD, Intent to File, Exams and Appeals

What it is

Filing a VA disability claim is how you ask VA to rate your service-connected conditions. The process can feel long, but a few smart moves early on can save months and money.

Who qualifies for BDD

The Benefits Delivery at Discharge program is for people still in uniform. You need to be on full-time active duty (including Guard, Reserve or Coast Guard), know your separation date, and be 180 to 90 days from it. You also need to be available for VA exams for 45 days after you file. You must include the Separation Health Assessment Part A self-assessment form.

Some people cannot use BDD. That includes people in case management for a serious illness or injury, people with a terminal illness, and people who cannot make an exam during the 45-day window. If you have fewer than 90 days left, you can still file a regular claim before you leave.

Step by step

1. File an Intent to File. This simple form (21-0966), or just starting your claim online, saves your effective date for one year. If you are approved, VA can pay back to that date.
2. Get your records. Ask for a full copy of your service treatment records before you out-process. If you file online, VA can pull them for you. Add private medical records and "buddy statements" from people who saw your symptoms.
3. List every condition. Include things that seem minor, like ringing in the ears, knees, sleep problems or skin issues. For BDD, you can add conditions up to day 90 before discharge.
4. File the claim. Use VA.gov or a free accredited VSO. VSOs know what evidence VA looks for.
5. Go to your C&P exam. A Compensation and Pension exam is not treatment. The examiner is gathering facts for VA. Describe your worst days, not your best. Bring a short list of how each condition affects work, sleep and family life.
6. Watch for letters. Check your claim status on VA.gov or the VA app. Answer requests fast.

If you disagree with the decision

You have three choices under the decision review system:

• Supplemental Claim: You add new and relevant evidence. There is no deadline. VA aims to finish these in about 125 days.
• Higher-Level Review: A senior reviewer looks at the same evidence for errors. You can ask for a one-time informal phone conference. File within one year of your decision letter.
• Board Appeal: A Veterans Law Judge reviews your case. File within one year. You can pick direct review, add evidence, or ask for a hearing. These take the longest, often a year or more.

Filing a review within a year of your decision usually helps protect your original effective date. An accredited rep can help you pick the best path.

How it works when you are relocating

BDD is built for people on the move. If you file before your PCS or separation move, tell VA your new address the day you know it. Exams can often be scheduled near your new location, and many are now done by contractors close to home. If you are overseas, there are BDD offices at some installations.

Common mistakes

• Waiting until after you separate and losing months of back pay.
• Skipping the Intent to File.
• Downplaying symptoms at the C&P exam.
• Paying an unaccredited company a share of your back pay. It is not allowed for an initial claim, and free help is available.

Related benefits

A BDD claim can also get you a memorandum rating, which can waive the VA home loan funding fee and open VR&E before you separate. Read our disability compensation and VR&E guides next.