VA disability · guide
VA disability compensation with dependents
Who counts as a dependent for VA, what each one adds at each rating in 2026, and the forms and deadlines that decide whether the money arrives.
What your dependents add to VA compensation
Added each month for dependents
$342
| Total at this rating | $2,150.45 |
| Each extra child under 18 | $76 |
| Each child in school | $246 |
From a combined rating of 30%, VA adds compensation for a spouse, children and dependent parents, in amounts that rise with the rating under 38 U.S.C. 1115. In 2026, at 100%, a spouse adds $219.59 a month to the veteran-alone rate of $3,938.58, a first child $160.82 for a married veteran, each further child under 18 $109.11, each child aged 18 to 23 in school $352.45, and a spouse who needs Aid and Attendance $201.41. At 30% the same people are worth about a third of that. A child in school is paid at the school amount instead of the child amount, because the statute says so "notwithstanding" the other rules, so a veteran whose only child is in college receives the rate without children plus the school amount. None of it is paid until VA has the dependent on record, through VA Form 21-686c, which is why so many veterans are underpaid.
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What each dependent adds, rating by rating
| Rating | Spouse | First child (married) | Each extra child under 18 | Each child in school | One parent | Spouse on A&A |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30% | $65 | $49 | $32 | $105 | $52 | $61 |
| 40% | $87 | $65 | $43 | $140 | $70 | $81 |
| 50% | $109 | $81 | $54 | $176 | $88 | $101 |
| 60% | $131 | $97 | $65 | $211 | $105 | $121 |
| 70% | $153 | $113.00 | $76 | $246 | $123 | $141 |
| 80% | $175 | $129 | $87 | $281 | $140 | $161 |
| 90% | $197 | $145 | $98 | $317 | $158 | $181 |
| 100% | $219.59 | $160.82 | $109.11 | $352.45 | $176.24 | $201.41 |
Below 30% the columns would all read zero: at 10% and 20%, VA pays one rate, $180.42 and $356.66, whatever the family. The amounts in the table come from 38 U.S.C. 1115, which sets the dependents' rates for a totally disabled veteran and scales them down in proportion to the rating, rounded down to the dollar, before each year's cost-of-living adjustment.
How the basic rate and the added amounts fit together
The VA tables are built in two parts. The basic rate covers the veteran with a spouse, up to two dependent parents and one child under 18. Then come the added amounts: each child under 18 beyond the first, each child in school, and the Aid and Attendance amount for a spouse who needs it. A veteran rated 70% with a spouse and three young children receives the basic rate for a spouse and one child, $2,074.45, plus two extra children at $76, which is $2,226.45; with a spouse on Aid and Attendance, VA's own worked example on its rate page, the total is $2,367.45.
The school amount works differently from what many veterans expect. It does not come on top of the child amount: it replaces it, because 38 U.S.C. 1115(1)(F) sets the amount payable "on account of" a school child notwithstanding the other provisions. In practice, a veteran rated 100% and married, with one child of 16 and one of 20 in college, receives the basic rate for a spouse and one child plus the full school amount: $4,671.44. A veteran whose only child is in college receives the rate for a spouse without children plus the school amount, $4,510.62 at 100%.
The forms
- VA Form 21-686c, Application Request to Add and/or Remove Dependents: marriage, birth, adoption, stepchildren, divorce, death. It can be filed online in a few minutes and asks for Social Security numbers and dates.
- VA Form 21-674, Request for Approval of School Attendance: for each child aged 18 to 23 in school, at the start of each school year.
- VA Form 21P-509, Statement of Dependency of Parent(s): the parent's income, expenses and net worth.
- VA Form 21-2680, examination for housebound status or permanent need for regular aid and attendance: used to show that a spouse needs Aid and Attendance.
Dates: when the extra money starts and stops
VA ties dependents to the effective date of the award. If the dependent already existed when your rating of 30% or more took effect and you report it with the claim or within a year of the notice, VA pays from that date. A new dependent reported within a year of the event is paid from the first day of the month after the marriage, birth or adoption. Reported later, payment starts from the date VA receives the form. Stopping works the same way in reverse: the spouse amount ends after a divorce or death, the child amount at 18 unless a school certification is on file, and the school amount at 23 or when the child leaves school. Payments made after those dates are overpayments VA will collect, so report the changes as promptly as the additions.
Common mistakes
The most frequent error is never adding the family at all: a veteran rated 10% at discharge who later reaches 50% through increases may still be paid as single. The second is the eighteenth birthday of a child in college: without a new 21-674, VA drops the child and the payment falls by the child amount. The third concerns parents: a parent who lives with the veteran and has little income often qualifies, but few veterans ask. The VA disability calculator shows the amount you should be receiving with your family; compare it with your award letter.
Dependents and other benefits
The dependents on your award also count elsewhere. CRSC uses the VA amount of the combat-related rating, and the CRDP calculator shows the effect of dependents on a retiree's total. A permanent and total rating opens Dependents' Educational Assistance and CHAMPVA for the family; see the 100% page. After the veteran's death, survivors may receive DIC, which has its own amounts for children.