Once the VA makes a decision on your claim, they will send you notification in the mail. The notification will also be provided to your appointed representative. The VA may grant any or all of your claim, deny any or all of your claim or any combination thereof. Upon receiving your rating decision, you should contact your representative to discuss the next steps. In the event your rating is provisional, your representative can help you understand the next steps.
Granting of Benefits
If the VA grants benefits to you, they will explain what is granted and any monetary compensation awarded to you. You should be prepared to receive these monthly payments and possible retroactive award through direct deposit. This amount is awarded for the remainder of the disability. This award is not considered permanent unless you meet the criteria for a permanent award. The VA may reevaluate your conditions at any time and reduce your award if justified; so while your service connection is permanent, your disability rating may not be. Additionally, if your conditions are granted, you are eligible for no-cost health care at the VHA for those conditions.
Denied Benefits
If your benefit is denied, you should provide a copy of the rating decision to your representative for review. The rating decision will list the evidence used to make the decision and if the list is missing any documents that may assist the VA in finding in your favor, your representative can ensure that the documents are brought to the attention of the VA. For each condition denied, the VA will list a reason why it was denied, which can generally be interpreted as one of the three parts needed for service connection. If you and your Representative feel that the denials are not warranted, you may discuss appealing the decision to the VA. Appealing your claim will preserve your effective date, but can take an extended amount of time to be completed.