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FIELD GUIDE

The Decision Letter Field Manual

How to read a VA rating decision the way an attorney does: what each section means, the seven errors that show up most, and the one date that controls everything.

Written by Gabe, a VA-accredited attorney and Afghanistan infantry Veteran.

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A 15-page PDF. Leave your email and we'll send a download link for all four guides and the Claim Organizer Kit, yours to keep.

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Look inside: 15 pages

These are real pages from the PDF you download, not mockups. Select a page to read it full size.

Page 1 of The Decision Letter Field Manual: the title, "How to use this manual" with its ground rules, and the start of "The anatomy of a rating decision". (opens the full-size page in a new tab)
Page 1 of 15
Page 3 of The Decision Letter Field Manual: "Part 3: The code sheet" on diagnostic codes, "Combined rating basics" with a worked example of 60 and 30 percent combining to 70, and where the review-options insert is. (opens the full-size page in a new tab)
Page 3 of 15
Page 7 of The Decision Letter Field Manual: errors 2, 3 and 4 of the seven (rating too low against the schedule criteria, issue claimed but not decided, secondary condition ignored), each with "How to spot it" and "What it takes to fix". (opens the full-size page in a new tab)
Page 7 of 15
Page 11 of The Decision Letter Field Manual: the start of "The one-page checklist", yes-or-no questions on dates and deadlines, issues and decisions, and ratings and codes. (opens the full-size page in a new tab)
Page 11 of 15

Contents of The Decision Letter Field Manual

Every section in the guide, with the page it starts on. 15 pages in all.

  1. How to use this manualpage 1 of 15
  2. The anatomy of a rating decisionpage 1 of 15
  3. The one date that controls everythingpage 4 of 15
  4. The seven errors that show up mostpage 6 of 15
  5. What the letter is not telling youpage 9 of 15
  6. The one-page checklistpage 11 of 15
  7. When to get a person involvedpage 12 of 15
  8. Sourcespage 13 of 15

What it covers

  • The anatomy of a rating decision and the code sheet
  • Effective dates, and why they are worth more than the rating
  • Where VA hides the reasons for a denial
  • A one-page checklist to run on any letter

What this guide is

This is general education about the VA claims process, written for any Veteran. You don't upload anything to get or read it. It isn't legal advice or representation. The tools that work with your own claim, like the deadline check and the free decision check, are free.

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