To access your VA records, first figure out who created them: military personnel files (including your DD-214) are held by the National Personnel Records Center and requested with Standard Form 180, while VA-created medical records and your claims file come from the VA itself through VA.gov or specific request forms. Sending the wrong form to the wrong office is the single biggest cause of delay, so the sorting decision matters more than anything else you do.
Which Agency Holds Which Records
Records split cleanly by who made them. The Department of Defense generated your military personnel records during service: the DD-214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty), your Official Military Personnel File with duty assignments, training, awards, and separation documents, and, for files created before 1992, your active duty health records.1National Archives and Records Administration. About Military Service Records and Official Military Personnel Files After 1992 the services stopped bundling health records with personnel files.
The VA generated everything created after you separated: medical records from VA hospitals and clinics, rating decisions, Compensation and Pension exam reports, and your Claims and Benefits File (the C-File). Different agencies, different forms, different offices.
Requesting Military Personnel Records and Your DD-214
Military personnel records live at the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis, part of the National Archives. Request them with Standard Form 180, “Request Pertaining to Military Records.”2National Archives. Request Military Personnel Records Using Standard Form 180 You’ll need your full name as used during service, service number or Social Security number, branch, and dates of service.
Three ways to submit: mail the SF-180 to NPRC at 1 Archives Drive, St. Louis, MO 63138; fax it to 314-801-9195; or use the online eVetRecs system at vetrecs.archives.gov, which now requires identity verification through ID.me.3National Archives. Request Military Service Records A financial hardship or medical emergency noted on a faxed request can move it up the queue.
Basic personnel and health record information is generally free for veterans, next-of-kin, and authorized representatives from non-archival records. Archival records (from veterans who separated 62 or more years ago) may involve copying fees under the NARA fee schedule.4National Archives. Other Methods to Obtain Military Service Records
If Your Records Were Lost in the 1973 Fire
A fire at the NPRC on July 12, 1973, destroyed an estimated 16 to 18 million Official Military Personnel Files, with no duplicates. Two groups took nearly all the damage:
- Army personnel discharged between November 1, 1912, and January 1, 1960: roughly 80% of records lost.
- Air Force personnel with surnames alphabetically after Hubbard, James E., discharged between September 25, 1947, and January 1, 1964: roughly 75% lost.
If your records fall in either range, the NPRC will attempt to reconstruct basic service information from VA claims files, state adjutant general records, Selective Service registration, pay records, and military hospital records.5National Archives and Records Administration. The 1973 Fire, National Personnel Records Center Reconstruction won’t rebuild a full file, but it can often establish enough to support a benefits claim. Provide as much identifying detail as possible on your SF-180 so the staff have something to work from.
Getting Your VA Medical Records
For medical records created by VA healthcare facilities after separation, you have two paths.
Online Through VA.gov
As of June 2025, the My HealtheVet portal moved to VA.gov. You can find, review, print, and download VA medical records there, including lab and test results, vaccine and allergy records, and care summaries.6Department of Veterans Affairs. Review Medical Records Online It’s the fastest route for recent information and available any time you’re logged in. Veterans whose facility uses the separate My VA Health portal (tied to the DoD’s MHS GENESIS electronic health record) may still need that portal for some records.
Formal Request for a Complete File
When the portal doesn’t have what you need, request a full copy with VA Form 10-5345a, “Individuals’ Request for a Copy of Their Own Health Information.” Name the specific records and date ranges you want, sign it, and send it to the Release of Information office at the VA facility where you received care. Digital records may take up to 30 calendar days. Paper records, generally anything created before 1998, may take up to 60 days.7Department of Veterans Affairs. How to Get Your Medical Records From Your VA Health Facility
Getting Your VA Claims File (C-File)
The C-File is the most complete record the VA keeps on you. It contains rating decisions, C&P exam reports, evidence submissions, and correspondence tied to your compensation, pension, and benefits applications. If you’re appealing a decision or building a new claim, the C-File shows what evidence the VA already has and how it was weighed.
Request it with VA Form 20-10206, which covers both Privacy Act and Freedom of Information Act requests.8Department of Veterans Affairs. VA Form 20-10206 – Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) or Privacy Act (PA) Request Mark it as a Privacy Act request, not FOIA. The VA’s own FOIA office warns that filing a FOIA request for your own records “could delay overall processing.”9US Department of Veterans Affairs. VA Freedom of Information Act
Mail or fax the signed form to the VA Evidence Intake Center, PO Box 4444, Janesville, WI 53547-4444, or fax 844-531-7818.8Department of Veterans Affairs. VA Form 20-10206 – Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) or Privacy Act (PA) Request Wait times of several months are common, and requests can stretch to a year depending on storage and current backlogs. A Veterans Service Officer may be able to pull portions of your file more quickly through their own VA access, which is worth trying if a claim or appeal deadline is close.
Requesting Records of a Deceased Veteran
Next-of-kin can request a deceased veteran’s military personnel records with the same SF-180. The NPRC defines next-of-kin as the unremarried surviving spouse, father, mother, son, daughter, brother, or sister.2National Archives. Request Military Personnel Records Using Standard Form 180
Include proof of death: a copy of the death certificate, a letter from the funeral home, or a published obituary.10National Archives. Military Service Records Without that proof, the NPRC won’t release the file. The same no-charge policy generally applies for non-archival records requested by next-of-kin. Records become archival 62 years after separation, at which point they transfer from DoD to NARA ownership and are accessible to a broader range of requesters, though copying fees may apply.1National Archives and Records Administration. About Military Service Records and Official Military Personnel Files
Letting a Representative Access Your Records
You can authorize someone else to access and manage your VA files, and the form depends on who they are.11eCFR. 38 CFR 1.577 – Access to Records
- For a Veterans Service Organization such as the VFW, DAV, or American Legion, file VA Form 21-22, Appointment of Veterans Service Organization as Claimant’s Representative.
- For an individual attorney or claims agent, file VA Form 21-22a. It includes options to authorize disclosure to the representative’s support staff and to share sensitive records related to substance abuse treatment or HIV status.12U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. VA Form 21-22a – Appointment of Individual as Claimants Representative
Before signing, check that the representative is accredited through the VA Office of General Counsel’s online database. Once appointed, they can access your records through VA systems, file claims for you, and in some cases update your address. The appointment stays in effect until you revoke it in writing.13Department of Veterans Affairs. Get Help From a VA Accredited Representative or VSO
Correcting an Error in a VA Record
Under 38 CFR 1.579, you can ask the VA to amend any record about you that you believe is inaccurate, irrelevant, untimely, or incomplete.14eCFR. 38 CFR 1.579 – Amendment of Records
Send a written request to the VA office that holds the record. Identify the specific record, explain what needs to change, and attach supporting documentation. The VA must acknowledge your request in writing within 10 business days and aims to complete its review within 30 business days, either correcting the record or explaining its refusal.14eCFR. 38 CFR 1.579 – Amendment of Records Unusual circumstances can push the timeline out, but the VA must notify you if that happens. A denial must include the reason, the procedure for review by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs or a designee, and the name and address of the reviewing official. Keep copies of everything you file.
Correcting a Military Record or Upgrading a Discharge
Fixing records the DoD created during service is a different process with different forms and different reviewing bodies. Two options exist.
Discharge Review Board
The Discharge Review Board handles upgrades to your discharge characterization, changes to your narrative reason for separation, and adjustments to separation or reenlistment codes. Apply with DD Form 293 within 15 years of your discharge date. The DRB cannot review discharges imposed by general court-martial and cannot award back pay or retirement benefits. The VA’s tool at va.gov/discharge-upgrade-instructions walks through your situation and generates instructions for which form to file and where.15Department of Veterans Affairs. Request a Discharge Upgrade or Correction
Board for Correction of Military Records
Each branch runs its own Board for Correction of Military Records (the Army’s is the ABCMR; the Navy and Marines share the BCNR). These boards have broader authority than the DRB: they can upgrade discharges beyond the 15-year DRB window, correct disability ratings, remove unjust performance evaluations, fix promotions and dates of rank, restore awards, and award back pay or retirement credit.16Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 10 USC 1552 – Correction of Military Records: Claims Incident Thereto
Apply with DD Form 149, available from VA offices, veterans organizations, or the DoD Forms Management Program website. Include all available evidence, such as signed witness statements or a written argument supporting the change.17National Archives. Correcting Military Service Records The statutory deadline is three years from when you discovered the error, but the board can waive it in the interest of justice. Decisions typically take 12 to 18 months.
If you want a discharge upgrade and you’re still inside the 15-year DRB window, you generally need to go through the DRB first before the correction board will look at the case. For anything unrelated to discharge, such as a missing award or incorrect promotion date, the correction board is your only option. A corrected military record can directly affect VA benefits eligibility, so the wait is often worth it.