2023: End-of-year Veteran benefits update

Happy holidays! As we head into the new year, we wanted to give you a quick update on VA’s non-health benefits for Veterans. Partly thanks to the historic PACT Act, Veterans like you have applied for benefits at record rates over the past year—surpassing the previous all-time record by 39%—and that’s a great thing. As a result of your benefits applications, we at VA have been able to deliver more earned benefits to more Veterans than ever before, including $150 billion in benefits during 2023 alone. That’s exactly what Veterans like you deserve.

Because of this record increase in applications, there has also been an anticipated increase in the number of claims applications that take longer than 125 days to process (otherwise known as the backlog), which is currently at 378,000 claims. While the total claims inventory has been decreasing over the last several weeks, the backlog is expected to grow in 2024 before returning to normal levels. We have been taking aggressive steps to address this increase and to ensure timely processing of your claims.

Here’s what this means for you:

• Although the backlog has increased, you will likely receive a benefits decision more quickly than during previous surges: Right now, the average claim is processed by VA in 149 days, which is 198 days faster than in 2013 (the last time applications were nearly this high). We also process some parts of your claims faster than others, so if part of your claim is granted, you may get a first payment before your full claim is finished.
• We are granting benefits at higher rates: Whenever you file a claim, our goal is to work with you every step of the way to get to “yes.” As a result of this approach, we were able to grant benefits for 65% of claims filed in 2023—including 76% of PACT Act claims, which is a sharp increase from previous years.
• We are processing more claims than ever before: In fiscal year 2023, VA processed nearly 2 million of your benefits claims—beating the previous all-time record by 16%—and we’re on pace to break that record again in fiscal year 2024.
• Most importantly, we want you to apply for benefits: We want every Veteran, family member and survivor to get the care and benefits they deserve, so we want you to apply today. We’ve hired thousands of claims processing employees in anticipation of this surge in applications, and we have 1,400 more coming onboard soon. So don’t worry and don’t wait: submit your claim today and we will process it for you as soon as possible.

We are proud to serve you each and every day. Thank you for applying for your VA benefits at record rates in 2023 and for encouraging your friends and family members to do the same.

As we head into the new year, please keep spreading the word. Let’s break the applications record again in 2024—and in doing so, ensuring that as many Veterans as possible get the health care and benefits that they so rightly deserve.