The VA.gov "Letters" or "Documents" tool offers several pre-formatted letters, and the one most people find first — the Benefit Summary and Service Verification Letter — is built around your current combined rating and current compensation amount, not the effective date of a specific rating decision. That is why it can be a mismatch when a rating changed mid-year: the summary letter reflects today's status, not the date a particular decision took effect.
The document that actually contains the effective date of a rating is the official rating decision (sometimes called the notification letter or decision letter) that VA issued at the time of that specific determination. This is the letter that states something like "effective [date], your disability rating for [condition] is X percent." You can usually find a copy of this under the "Your Claims and Appeals" or "Track Claims" section on VA.gov, in the documents/decision letters area for that particular claim. If it isn't posted online, you can request a duplicate copy by calling the VA at 800-827-1000, contacting your VA regional office, or working through an accredited Veterans Service Officer (VSO), who can often pull it faster through internal systems.
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 →Some counties will also accept a current award letter or disability compensation letter as long as it explicitly states the effective date of the current rating, so it's worth asking the county tax office whether they specifically need the original decision letter or whether any VA-issued document naming the correct effective date will satisfy their requirement. Some jurisdictions are flexible once they see the actual effective date language, even if it comes from a slightly different letter format than usual.
If VA.gov does not have the decision letter posted and phone requests are slow, a VSO (through organizations like the DAV, VFW, or American Legion) can typically request a certified copy of the specific rating decision on your behalf at no cost, and many can get it turned around faster than a general request line. As a next step, contact an accredited VSO or call the VA directly and specifically ask for a copy of the rating decision letter tied to the 2024 effective date, rather than a general benefit summary letter, since that is the document containing the exact language county tax offices are asking for.
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