For most veterans receiving a schedular disability rating (including 70 percent), earning income from a job — including gig work like DoorDash, Uber, or similar side hustles — does not affect your VA disability compensation. Schedular ratings, whether 10 percent or 100 percent, are based on the severity of your service-connected conditions, not on your income or employment status. You can work full-time, part-time, or run a business while still receiving your full scheduler rating, and the VA will not reduce or reevaluate your rating simply because you are earning money.
The major exception is Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability (TDIU or IU). TDIU allows a veteran with a combined rating that does not reach 100 percent (often 70 percent with at least one condition rated 40 percent or more, or 60 percent for a single condition) to be paid at the full 100 percent rate if their service-connected conditions prevent them from maintaining substantially gainful employment. If you are receiving TDIU, income limits do apply. The VA looks at whether your earnings exceed the federal poverty threshold for one person, and earnings above that threshold in a given year can trigger a review of your unemployability status. Marginal or sporadic income, including from gig work, is sometimes excluded from that calculation if it does not rise to the level of substantially gainful employment, but this determination is fact-specific and inconsistently applied depending on your regional office.
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 →If you are rated 70 percent on a straight schedular basis (not through TDIU), your compensation is fixed regardless of outside income, and doing DoorDash or any other job will not put your benefits at risk. If you are rated 70 percent but receiving the 100 percent TDIU rate, you should track your gross earnings carefully, because exceeding the poverty guideline can prompt the VA to send a request for employment information and potentially reevaluate your unemployability status.
A veteran unsure which category they fall into should check their VA decision letter or eBenefits/VA.gov profile to confirm whether their 70 percent rating is schedular or based on TDIU, since that distinction determines whether outside income has any bearing on continued eligibility.
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