VA Form 10182 is the Notice of Disagreement you file to send a VA benefits decision to a Veterans Law Judge at the Board of Veterans’ Appeals. It applies to any VA decision dated on or after February 19, 2019, carries no filing fee, and must be filed within one year of the date the VA mailed the decision letter. You can submit it online through VA.gov, by mail to P.O. Box 27063, Washington, DC 20038, or by fax.
What to Gather Before You Start
The form goes faster if you have everything in front of you.
- The VA decision letter you’re contesting. You’ll need the exact date the VA mailed it (printed on the letter), because that date starts the one-year clock, and you’ll need the list of issues the VA decided, because you can only appeal issues that appear in that letter.
- The veteran’s full legal name, date of birth, Social Security number, and VA file number if one was assigned separately.
- Current mailing address, phone number, and email. The Board uses these for docket confirmations and hearing notices, and a stale address can mean missed deadlines later.
- The name of any representative handling the appeal — an attorney, accredited claims agent, or Veterans Service Organization.
The form itself is a fillable PDF on the VA’s forms page, or you can complete it through the online tool at VA.gov.
Filling Out the Form Section by Section
The form runs two pages and is divided into four parts.
Part I — Personal information. Enter the veteran’s name, VA file number, date of birth, Social Security number, insurance file number (only if the appeal involves a VA life insurance decision), phone number, email, and mailing address. If someone other than the veteran is filing — a surviving spouse, for example — a separate field captures the claimant’s name and relationship.
Part II — Issues on appeal. This is where you tell the Board what to review. For each issue, write the date of the VA decision and describe the area of disagreement. The instructions offer examples: service connection, disability evaluation, or effective date of award. Be specific. “I disagree with everything” slows things down; “service connection for left knee condition, decision dated March 15, 2025” tells the judge exactly what to examine. Only issues you list get reviewed. Anything you leave off stays decided.
Part III — Review lane. You check one box to choose how the Board will handle your appeal. This is the most consequential choice on the form, and it gets its own section below.
Part IV — Signature and date. The veteran or claimant signs and dates the form. If a representative signs on your behalf, they sign here with their title.
Choosing a Review Lane in Part III
The three lanes trade speed against your ability to add evidence or be heard in person. You pick one, and if you list multiple issues, that single lane applies to all of them.
- Direct Review. A Veterans Law Judge decides the appeal on the record the regional office already had. No new evidence, no hearing. This is the fastest lane.
- Evidence Submission. You get 90 days from the date the Board receives your Notice of Disagreement to submit additional evidence, such as new medical records, nexus letters, or buddy statements. No hearing. The judge considers the original record plus whatever you add inside that window.
- Hearing. You appear before a Veterans Law Judge and can also submit evidence at the hearing and for 90 days after. You choose from three hearing formats: a virtual tele-hearing from your own device, a videoconference at a VA facility, or an in-person hearing at the Board in Washington, D.C. (you cover travel for in-person). The hearing lane takes the longest because of scheduling.
Leaving the lane blank causes delay. The Board may default the case to Direct Review or contact you for clarification.
Switching Lanes After Filing
If you change your mind, you can switch by filing a new VA Form 10182. The Board must receive the new form by the later of one year from the date the VA mailed the original decision, or 60 days after the Board received your first Notice of Disagreement. You cannot switch if you have already submitted evidence or testimony under the lane you originally chose.
How to Submit the Form
Three channels are available:
- Online through VA.gov. Log in and go to the Board Appeal request page at va.gov/decision-reviews/board-appeal/. The online tool walks you through each section and submits the form electronically. You need a verified VA.gov account through Login.gov or ID.me.
- By mail. Send the completed paper form to Board of Veterans’ Appeals, P.O. Box 27063, Washington, DC 20038.
- By fax. Use the fax number printed on the current version of the PDF. Check the latest instructions, because the number can change.
Online filing gives you instant confirmation of receipt. For mail, the postmark counts, so a form postmarked on day 364 of your one-year window is timely even if the Board receives it a week later. If you’re mailing close to the deadline, use certified mail or a commercial carrier with tracking so you have a dated receipt.
The One-Year Filing Deadline
You have exactly one year — 365 days — from the date the VA mailed the decision letter. The mailing date is printed on the letter, and the VA presumes it matches the letter date. The deadline is met if the form is postmarked or received by the Board within that window.
Two situations shift the deadline. In contested claims, where two parties dispute the same benefit, the window shrinks to 60 days. For veterans opting into the modernized review system from an older Statement of the Case or Supplemental Statement of the Case, the deadline is the later of 60 days from that SOC/SSOC letter or one year from the original decision.
Miss the deadline and the decision becomes final. Your only remaining path is a Supplemental Claim supported by new and relevant evidence. You cannot pick up the Board appeal where you left off.
What Happens After You File
Once the Board receives your form, you’ll get a confirmation letter with a docket number. That number sets your place in line, and cases are decided roughly in docket order within each lane. Direct Review is consistently the fastest; Evidence Submission takes longer because the Board waits out the 90-day evidence window before review; Hearing cases run longest because of scheduling. Across all lanes, expect well over a year from filing to decision. You can track status through your claim status page on VA.gov.
Asking the Board to Move You Up
If your circumstances are urgent, you can file a written motion to advance your case on the docket. The Board grants these for advanced age (75 or older), serious illness, severe financial hardship such as imminent homelessness, eviction, foreclosure, or recent bankruptcy, and other sufficient cause, including administrative errors that significantly delayed docketing. Financial hardship motions need documentation. Mail the motion to the same P.O. Box the form uses, and include the veteran’s name, VA file number, and the specific reason. The Board does not advance a case without a written motion, even when a veteran clearly qualifies.
Using a Representative
You don’t need a representative to file, but many veterans work with a Veterans Service Organization such as the VFW, DAV, or American Legion, an accredited claims agent, or a VA-accredited attorney. Listing a representative’s name on Form 10182 alone does not appoint them. To have the Board communicate with a representative and accept filings from them, you file a separate designation form: VA Form 21-22 for a VSO, or VA Form 21-22a for an individual attorney or agent.
If you hire an attorney or accredited agent, VA regulations cap fees paid directly from past-due benefits at 20 percent of the awarded back pay. Fees above 20 percent but at or below 33⅓ percent are not automatically unreasonable but draw closer scrutiny. Fees above 33⅓ percent are presumed unreasonable. Most VSOs represent veterans at no cost.
After the Board Decides
A Veterans Law Judge issues one of three outcomes for each issue: a grant, a denial, or a remand. A remand means the judge found the regional office needs to do more work — obtain a missing exam, pull records, or fix a procedural error. Under the modernized system, a remanded issue goes back to the regional office, which develops the record and issues a new decision. It does not return to the Board. You can appeal that new decision if you disagree. During a remand, the VA may send letters requesting information or scheduling an examination; ignoring them can result in a decision on whatever evidence is already on file.
If the Board denies your appeal and you believe the decision is legally wrong, you can take the case to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims. You must file a Notice of Appeal with the Court within 120 days of the date on the Board’s decision letter. Late filings are accepted only in narrow circumstances, so treat the 120 days as a hard cutoff. You can also file a Supplemental Claim with the regional office if you have new evidence, or pursue another review option the Board decision letter describes.