Does PTSD Qualify for Combat-Related Special Compensation?

Yes, PTSD can qualify for Combat-Related Special Compensation, but a VA service-connected rating on its own will not get you approved. Your branch of service runs a separate review and needs documentary evidence tying your PTSD to a specific combat event, hazardous duty, war-simulation training, or an instrumentality of war. PTSD claims draw heavier scrutiny than visible physical injuries because the link between the traumatic event and the diagnosis is not written into a medical record from the moment it happened. Approval turns on the quality of what you can put in front of the board.

The Proof Standard the Board Applies

For CRSC, your branch does not defer to the VA’s service-connection decision. It independently decides whether the disability falls into one of the recognized categories: armed conflict, hazardous duty, war simulation, instrumentality of war, or a Purple Heart award.¹ Almost every PTSD claim rides on “armed conflict,” meaning engagement with a hostile force such as a firefight, ambush, or combat patrol.

The board uses a preponderance of the evidence standard. It has to be more likely than not that your PTSD resulted from a qualifying event. General deployment stress will not clear that bar. The board is looking for a specific incident, tied to your record, that matches one of the categories.

Evidence That Actually Moves a PTSD Claim

The Army’s CRSC office has spelled out what carries weight on a PTSD file.² The strongest single item is a combat award: a Combat Action Badge, Combat Infantryman Badge, Combat Medical Badge, or Purple Heart. Each of these independently establishes that you were exposed to direct combat, which is exactly what the board is trying to confirm.

If you do not have a combat award, you are not out of options, but you need to build the record yourself. Useful pieces include:

NCOERs, OERs, or DA Form 638 award citations that describe specific combat operations you took part in.
Signed letters from your wartime chain of command — first sergeant, commander, battalion commander, or command sergeant major — narrating the combat event behind your PTSD. Each letter must include a phone number, because the board will verify it.
Unit after-action reports, deployment orders, or unit histories that place you at the engagement.

Your VA file can carry weight too. If you filed VA Form 21-0781 to describe the stressor behind your PTSD diagnosis, include a copy.³ It gives the board a detailed narrative to cross-reference against your service records. One well-documented after-action report tied to your stressor event can outweigh a stack of generic deployment paperwork. Quality beats volume.

Why PTSD Claims Get Denied

PTSD is among the most frequently denied conditions in CRSC applications. A few patterns show up again and again:

A self-reported stressor with no corroborating documents. The board weighs objective records over personal statements alone.
PTSD that the evidence ties to cumulative deployment stress rather than to a particular combat engagement.
Trauma from witnessing casualties when the applicant was not personally engaged with hostile forces. At least one board determination found that this did not meet the armed-conflict standard.
No combat award and no alternative documentation such as command letters or after-action reports. Without either, denial is routine.

Reading a denial letter carefully matters. Boards usually say which evidentiary gap sank the claim, and that tells you what to fix.

The Other Eligibility Boxes You Still Have to Check

Even a well-documented combat nexus won’t help if you don’t meet CRSC’s general requirements.¹ You need all three of the following:

Entitlement to or receipt of military retired pay. That includes 20-year active retirees, Guard and Reserve retirees with 20 qualifying years, Chapter 61 medical retirees with at least a 30% disability rating, TERA retirees, and members on the Temporary or Permanent Disability Retired List.
At least one service-connected condition rated 10% or higher by the VA.⁴
An active VA offset reducing your retired pay. CRSC restores retired pay you are losing to the offset, so if nothing is being offset, there is nothing to restore.

Guard and Reserve retirees who have not yet reached age 60 and are not drawing retired pay generally cannot apply until their retired pay begins. The exception is Chapter 61 medical retirees, who receive retired pay right away regardless of age.

How to Apply

Applications go to your branch of service, not the VA. The form is DD Form 2860, Claim for Combat-Related Special Compensation.⁵ Send copies of your supporting documents, never originals. For a PTSD claim, that packet should include service medical records, deployment orders and after-action reports, any combat award citations, command letters, and your VA stressor statement.²

Each branch runs its own CRSC office. Army retirees submit to Human Resources Command at Fort Knox by mail, email, or eFax.¹ Navy and Marine Corps retirees file with the Secretary of the Navy Council of Review Boards at Washington Navy Yard.⁶ Air Force and Space Force retirees apply through the Air Force Disability Division. Keep a complete copy of everything you send.

After You Apply

Processing times vary by branch and by claim volume. You will get a written determination on each claimed condition. If approved, your branch notifies the Defense Finance and Accounting Service, which audits your account, begins monthly payments, and calculates any retroactive amount owed from your eligibility date.¹ If you are enrolled in the Survivor Benefit Plan, SBP premiums may come out of CRSC when retired pay is not enough to cover them.⁷

Retroactive Pay After Soto v. United States

In June 2025, the Supreme Court ruled in Soto v. United States that the Barring Act’s six-year limitations period does not apply to CRSC claims.⁸ Before Soto, branches routinely capped retroactive payments at six years even when eligibility went back further. The Department of the Navy has started reviewing affected records to correct effective dates and issue additional back pay.⁹ Other branches are running similar reviews. If your CRSC was approved but your back pay was cut off at six years, you may be owed more without filing a new claim.

If Your Claim Is Denied

A denial is not the end. You can ask your branch’s CRSC office to reconsider.¹⁰ The productive move is to identify the exact evidentiary gap the board cited and close it. If the board wanted a combat award you don’t have, a verified command letter describing the specific event can substitute. If the board said your stressor was not tied to a particular engagement, unit historical records or declassified after-action reports can supply that link. You can also request reconsideration when your VA rating changes for a condition already found to be combat-related.

A Note on CRSC vs. CRDP

If your combined VA rating is 50% or higher, you may also be eligible for Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay, a separate program that restores offset retired pay.¹¹ You cannot receive both at the same time.⁷ CRSC is tax-free and covers only combat-related conditions; CRDP is taxable and covers all service-connected conditions regardless of cause. For someone whose PTSD is combat-related but who also has significant non-combat conditions, CRDP sometimes pays more on paper while CRSC pays less but tax-free. Compare the two for your own numbers before choosing.

1
Department of Veterans Affairs. Combat-Related Special Compensation
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U.S. Army Human Resources Command. Steps for Applying to CRSC
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Veterans Affairs. About VA Form 21-0781
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Defense Finance and Accounting Service. Combat Related Special Compensation
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Department of Defense. DD Form 2860 – Claim for Combat-Related Special Compensation
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Defense Finance and Accounting Service. Apply for CRSC
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Defense Finance and Accounting Service. CRDP-CRSC-FAQs
8
Justia U.S. Supreme Court Center. Soto v. United States, 605 US (2025)
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Council of Review Boards. Information on Soto v. United States
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U.S. Army Human Resources Command. Reconsiderations Reviews and Updates
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Department of Defense. Concurrent Retirement and Disability Payments (CRDP) and Combat Related Special Compensation