What Is A VA Benefit Audit?

Written by the founder of VAClaims.ai

Just like the IRS audits thousands of Americans each year, we audit the VA.

A VA benefits audit is a thorough review of:

• Your medical records

• Your VA decision letters

• Your C-File (the VA’s internal record of your claims)

• Your disability ratings and conditions

• Past errors or omissions in VA decisions

The end goal:

Identify every condition, rating, or legal issue that may be costing you money or benefits. Essentially it’s a full one stop shop to make sure you’re getting what has been written in law as a benefit of your military service.

Step 1: Get Your C-File!

This is your most powerful tool, and the absolute key. Yea, its a pain in the ass to get.

Your C-File (or claims file) includes:

• Past applications and appeals

• Service treatment records

• VA medical evaluations

• Decision letters and rating justifications

• Any internal VA notes related to your claim

How to get your C-File:

Submit VA Form 20-10206 to your regional office or request through your VA.gov account or with help from a VSO. You can also go onto your VA benefits portal and submit a Freedom Of Information Act Request (FOIA). When you submit one, it will show up in your claims processing center and you can track the progress.

Step 2: Review Your Decision Letters

These explain why you got (or didn’t get) a rating.

Look for:

• Conditions that were denied without explanation, or obviously wrong explanations

• Low ratings for conditions you feel are more severe

• Missing secondary conditions that may qualify

• Conditions listed as “not service-connected” that might be reconsidered

This gives you a roadmap of where to look deeper.

Step 3: Analyze Your Service and Medical Records

Most veterans don’t realize how many claimable conditions are hiding in:

• Old injury or treatment reports

• Mental health evaluations

• Physical therapy or post-deployment screenings

• Private sector care documentation

Make a list of issues or diagnoses that haven’t been claimed or appear to be under-rated. This is where our service shines - we classify everything for you, and make not of usual secondary issues.

Step 4: Cross-Check Against the VA Rating Schedule

Each condition is rated based on criteria in the VA’s Schedule for Rating Disabilities (38 CFR Part 4).

Common issues found in audits include:

• Wrong diagnostic code used

• Ratings that don’t match severity

• Ignoring secondary conditions

• Outdated or incomplete evidence used in the decision - hasty

You can view the rating schedule through a google search

Step 5: Consider Previous Mistakes or Legal Errors

Some veterans qualify for Clear and Unmistakable Error (CUE) claims. These happen when:

• The VA ignored a law or regulation

• There was a blatant error in applying your rating

• You were denied despite clear evidence

CUEs are rare but powerful — they can lead to retroactive back pay going back years or even decades. This could mean sizable payments and resolution of issues that had nothing to do with the veteran.

Step 6: Decide Your Next Move

After your audit, you may want to:

• File a Supplemental Claim with new evidence

• Request a Higher-Level Review

• Appeal to the Board

• File a CUE

• Get an independent medical opinion

• Use a file analysis service like us to help structure your next move

Want to Save Time?

Doing a complete VA audit yourself can take dozens of hours, weeks, maybe months or years and lots of VA regulation reading.

That’s why we created the Conditions Audit and Decision Audit services — to give veterans a fast, AI-powered review of their medical files and C-File, prepared securely and clearly for follow-up claims.

Look folks, I’ve been through this before numerous times. The VA is a beast and you need the best support possible to get you on the right track.

In The End

Your VA rating isn’t always final — and it’s not always correct. Auditing your benefits is one of the most powerful things you can do to take control of your compensation.

You earned these benefits. Let’s make sure you get every dollar and percentage point you deserve.