TDIU (Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability) pays you at the 100% rate because your service-connected conditions prevent you from holding substantially gainful employment. The key phrase is substantially gainful. TDIU does not mean you can never work at all.
Under 38 CFR 4.16, marginal employment does not count as substantially gainful employment. The VA generally treats earned income at or below the federal poverty threshold for one person as marginal. That threshold is a Census Bureau figure that updates every year, so check the current number rather than relying on an amount someone quotes in a forum. Work in a protected environment, such as a family business or sheltered workshop that accommodates you beyond what any ordinary employer would, can also qualify as marginal even when it pays more.
Official 2026 VA monthly compensation, including the 2.8% COLA increase.
Dependent add-ons start at a 30% rating. Child-only and dependent-parent rates: see the full 2026 pay chart.
| Rating | Monthly (2026, incl. 2.8% COLA) |
|---|---|
| 10% | $180.42 |
| 20% | $356.66 |
| 30% | $552.47 |
| 40% | $795.84 |
| 50% | $1,132.90 |
| 60% | $1,435.02 |
| 70% | $1,808.45 |
| 80% | $2,102.15 |
| 90% | $2,362.30 |
| 100% | $3,938.58 |
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Analyze my claim free →Gig and self-employment income is where veterans get tripped up. Platforms like rideshare apps report gross receipts on tax documents, but what you actually keep after platform fees and expenses can be far lower. If you are self-employed, document your business expenses carefully and keep your tax returns, because the realistic measure of what you earned is what you can show on paper. If the VA sends you an employment questionnaire, answer it accurately and attach that documentation.
Two protections matter here. First, under 38 CFR 3.343(c), the VA cannot terminate TDIU just because you took a job. It must show you actually maintained substantially gainful employment for twelve consecutive months before reducing on that basis. Short-lived or failed work attempts do not count against you. Second, if the VA does propose to discontinue TDIU, that is a formal due-process action. You get written notice and a window to respond with evidence and request a hearing before anything changes.
If you are on TDIU and your income may have crossed the line, do not simply wait and hope. Gather your tax records showing net earnings, respond to any VA correspondence on time, and get an accredited VSO or VA-accredited attorney involved before responding, since exactly how your income is characterized is the whole case.
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