The new VA laws for veterans that matter most right now are the PACT Act of 2022, the Forever GI Bill, and the annual cost-of-living adjustment that took effect January 1, 2026. Together they opened VA health care to millions of veterans who were previously ineligible, added dozens of presumptive conditions tied to burn pits and other toxic exposures, removed the 15-year expiration on Post-9/11 education benefits for anyone who separated on or after January 1, 2013, and raised disability compensation by 2.8%. Several of these changes only pay out if you act: file a new claim, refile a denied one, or lock in an effective date with an Intent to File.
Who Can Now Enroll in VA Health Care
Starting March 5, 2024, the VA accelerated a health care enrollment expansion originally phased over several years under the PACT Act. If you served in a combat zone, deployed in support of the Global War on Terror, or were exposed to toxic hazards during service, you can enroll in VA health care without first proving a service-connected disability.1Veterans Affairs. The PACT Act And Your VA Benefits That is the practical shift. Before, many of these veterans had to file a disability claim and win it before they could see a VA doctor.
Eligibility turns on where and when you served. Veterans who served on or after September 11, 2001, in Afghanistan, Djibouti, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Uzbekistan, or Yemen qualify. So do those who served on or after August 2, 1990, in Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, or the UAE.1Veterans Affairs. The PACT Act And Your VA Benefits Veterans who deployed under Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Inherent Resolve, or several related operations also qualify regardless of specific location.
Every veteran enrolled in VA health care now receives a toxic exposure screening, with a follow-up at least once every five years. The screening covers burn pits, airborne hazards, Agent Orange, radiation, Camp Lejeune water contamination, and other exposures.1Veterans Affairs. The PACT Act And Your VA Benefits The results go into your medical record and can support a disability claim later if a problem surfaces.
Free Emergency Suicide Care
Under 38 U.S.C. 1720J, the VA covers emergency suicide care at no cost to any eligible veteran in acute crisis. You can receive this care at a VA facility or any non-VA facility, and the VA pays the bill either way, including emergency transportation.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 38 USC 1720J – Emergent Suicide Care Coverage lasts up to 30 days for inpatient or crisis residential care, and up to 90 days of outpatient care when inpatient care is not appropriate or available. Eligibility for this program does not require enrollment in VA health care.
Presumptive Conditions You No Longer Have To Prove
The Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics Act (Public Law 117-168) added a long list of conditions the VA now presumes were caused by military service.3Congress.gov. Public Law 117-168 – Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring Our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics Act of 2022 Presumptive means you no longer have to gather medical evidence linking your service to your illness. If you have a listed condition and served in a qualifying location, the VA assumes the connection.
The presumptive cancers include:
- Brain cancer and glioblastoma
- Head cancer and neck cancer of any type
- Gastrointestinal cancer of any type
- Kidney cancer and pancreatic cancer
- Lymphoma of any type
- Melanoma
- Reproductive cancer of any type
- Respiratory cancer of any type
Presumptive respiratory and related illnesses include chronic bronchitis, COPD, emphysema, pulmonary fibrosis, constrictive bronchiolitis, chronic sinusitis, chronic rhinitis, interstitial lung disease, asthma diagnosed after service, sarcoidosis, granulomatous disease, and pleuritis.1Veterans Affairs. The PACT Act And Your VA Benefits
Expanded Agent Orange Locations
Geographic eligibility for herbicide exposure now reaches well beyond Vietnam. If you served at any U.S. or Royal Thai military base in Thailand from January 9, 1962, through June 30, 1976, the VA presumes Agent Orange exposure.4Veterans Affairs. Agent Orange Exposure And Disability Compensation The same applies to service in Guam or American Samoa, or their territorial waters, from January 9, 1962, through July 31, 1980. Veterans who served in Laos, certain provinces of Cambodia, and at Johnston Atoll during specified periods are also covered.1Veterans Affairs. The PACT Act And Your VA Benefits
Refiling a Denied Claim
If your earlier claim was denied because you could not prove exposure or a service connection that is now presumptive, refile. The correct path is a Supplemental Claim, which triggers a fresh review under current rules. When the VA approves a claim for a newly presumptive condition, compensation is backdated. The effective date is generally the date you submitted an Intent to File or a completed application, whichever came first, so filing sooner means more back pay.
2026 Disability Compensation Rates
VA disability payments received a 2.8% cost-of-living adjustment effective January 1, 2026. Monthly compensation for a veteran with no dependents ranges from $180.42 at a 10% rating to $3,938.58 at 100%.5Veterans Affairs. Current Veterans Disability Compensation Rates The key benchmarks:
- 10%: $180.42 per month
- 30%: $552.47 per month
- 50%: $1,132.90 per month
- 70%: $1,808.45 per month
- 100%: $3,938.58 per month
Veterans rated at 30% or higher receive additional compensation for dependent spouses, children, and parents. At 10% or 20%, the rate is the same regardless of dependents.5Veterans Affairs. Current Veterans Disability Compensation Rates The 2.8% increase also applies to Dependency and Indemnity Compensation for surviving spouses and to clothing allowances.
Education and Home Loan Changes
The Forever GI Bill
If you left active duty on or after January 1, 2013, your Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits no longer expire. Before the Forever GI Bill (Public Law 115-48), veterans had 15 years from separation to use their education benefits or lose them. That deadline still applies if you separated before 2013, though extensions may be available in certain circumstances.6Veterans Affairs. Getting a GI Bill Extension Monthly housing allowances are calculated based on the ZIP code where you physically attend classes, not the main campus address.
VA Home Loan Funding Fees
VA-backed home loans require no down payment or private mortgage insurance, but most borrowers pay a one-time funding fee that gets rolled into the loan. The fee depends on down payment size and whether you have used the benefit before. For loans closed on or after April 7, 2023:7Veterans Affairs. VA Funding Fee And Loan Closing Costs
- First use, less than 5% down: 2.15%
- First use, 5% or more down: 1.50%
- First use, 10% or more down: 1.25%
- After first use, less than 5% down: 3.30%
- After first use, 5% or more down: 1.50%
- After first use, 10% or more down: 1.25%
Several groups are exempt from the funding fee entirely. You will not owe it if you receive VA disability compensation, if you are a surviving spouse receiving Dependency and Indemnity Compensation, or if you are an active-duty Purple Heart recipient who provides evidence before closing.7Veterans Affairs. VA Funding Fee And Loan Closing Costs For a borrower waiting on a disability rating, closing after that decision comes through can save thousands.
Survivor Benefits
If a veteran dies from a service-connected condition or one now recognized as presumptive, the surviving spouse may qualify for Dependency and Indemnity Compensation. The base DIC rate for 2026 is $1,699.36 per month. Survivors who believe they are eligible under the PACT Act’s expanded presumptive conditions can submit a new application even if a previous claim was denied.8Veterans Affairs. About VA DIC For Spouses, Dependents, And Parents
For veterans who die from non-service-connected causes on or after October 1, 2025, the VA pays up to $1,002 toward burial expenses and a separate $1,002 toward plot or interment costs when burial occurs outside a national cemetery, plus up to $441 for a headstone or marker.9Veterans Affairs. Veterans Burial Allowance And Transportation Benefits Families of veterans who die from service-connected causes qualify for a higher burial allowance.
How To File Under the New Rules
Lock In Your Effective Date First
If you are still gathering documents or medical records, submit VA Form 21-0966 (Intent to File) right away. This form locks in the earliest possible effective date for retroactive payments. Once filed, you have one year to complete and submit your actual claim.10Veterans Affairs. Your Intent To File A VA Claim This is the single most commonly overlooked step. Six months spent collecting records before filing is six months of back pay lost unless you filed an Intent to File first.
The Forms
Your DD-214 confirms your discharge status, dates of service, and character of separation, and it is the foundational document for any VA claim. If you have lost your copy, both the National Archives and the VA can help you get a replacement.11National Archives. Request Military Service Records
For disability compensation, file VA Form 21-526EZ. The form asks you to list each condition, the approximate date it started, and where you first received treatment.12Veterans Affairs. About VA Form 21-526EZ For health care enrollment, file VA Form 10-10EZ. That is the initial enrollment application, distinct from Form 10-10EZR, which updates information once you are enrolled. The 10-10EZ asks for financial information from the prior calendar year, current insurance details, and service history including toxic exposures and combat deployments, which determines your priority group and any co-payments.13Veterans Affairs. About VA Form 10-10EZ
Filing online through va.gov is fastest, and you can track your claim’s progress through the online claim tracker.14Veterans Affairs. How To File A VA Disability Claim
If Your Claim Is Denied
You have one year from the date on the decision letter to respond, and three paths to choose from. Picking the right one matters, because each has different rules on evidence and timing.
- Supplemental Claim: for when you have new and relevant evidence that was not part of the original decision. There is no limit on how many you can file, and this is the correct path for veterans refiling claims that were denied for conditions now on the presumptive list.
- Higher-Level Review (VA Form 20-0996): a senior reviewer takes a fresh look at the existing evidence to decide whether the original decision contained an error. You cannot submit new evidence, but you can request an optional informal conference call. You cannot request a Higher-Level Review after a previous Higher-Level Review or Board Appeal on the same issue.15Veterans Affairs. Higher-Level Reviews
- Board of Veterans Appeals (VA Form 10182): the most formal option. You pick one of three dockets: Direct Review (fastest, no new evidence or hearing), Evidence Submission (you can add new records), or Hearing (you testify before a Veterans Law Judge).
If a Higher-Level Review reviewer finds that the VA failed to help you gather evidence it should have obtained, that is a duty-to-assist error. The VA will fix it, get the missing evidence, and issue a new decision.15Veterans Affairs. Higher-Level Reviews This happens more often than you would expect, particularly in toxic exposure cases where service records are incomplete.
Watch Out for Unaccredited Claims Agents
Federal law restricts who can charge money to help you file a VA claim. Under 38 U.S.C. 5904, no fee can be charged for services provided before the VA issues its initial decision on your case.16Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 38 USC 5904 – Recognition of Agents and Attorneys Generally Anyone asking for upfront payment to fill out your initial disability application is violating federal rules. Only VA-accredited attorneys, claims agents, and Veterans Service Organization representatives can lawfully assist with claims. After an initial decision, accredited attorneys and agents may charge fees for help with appeals.
Verify accreditation through the VA’s official search tool at va.gov/ogc/apps/accreditation, where you can look up attorneys, claims agents, and VSO representatives by name and location.17U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Accreditation Search Free help is available from accredited VSO representatives at organizations like the VFW, American Legion, and DAV. They handle initial claims at no cost and have direct access to VA systems. Paying someone to do what a VSO representative does for free is one of the most expensive mistakes a veteran can make.