Your effective date is usually the date VA received your claim, not the date it approved the claim. If you filed an Intent to File before the formal claim, the effective date may go back to that Intent to File date, up to one year earlier.
Example
Worked example
Example: a veteran alone is awarded a 70% rating with an effective date of January 1, 2025 and a decision date of January 1, 2026. The live back-pay calculator uses the historical rate for each month in the back-pay period, not just today's rate.
Using the 2025 70% veteran-alone monthly rate already in the calculator, $1,759.19 x 12 months = $21,110.28 before subtracting any payments already received.
Common mistakes
What people get wrong
- Using the decision date as the start date instead of the effective date.
- Forgetting that an Intent to File can move the effective date back up to one year.
- Applying today's rate to every month instead of using historical monthly rates.
Run the numbers
Use the matching calculator to test your own dates, ratings, dependents, income, or benefit category with the same methodology described here.
Try the Back Pay Calculator