VA Form 20-0995, Step by Step: How to File a Supplemental Claim

Have your VA decision letter in front of you. You will copy two things from it: each issue VA decided, and the date of the decision notice. How to read your VA decision letter shows where to find both.

Check that a Supplemental Claim fits. [VA says](https://www.va.gov/decision-reviews/supplemental-claim/) you can file one when VA decided your claim in the past and it is not a contested claim. If a condition you are already rated for has gotten worse, VA says to file a claim for an increase instead.

Under [38 C.F.R. § 3.2500(b)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-38/part-3/section-3.2500), you can't have two review options pending on the same issue at once. While an issue is on appeal in federal court, you can't use VA's review options for it.

Check one box only, such as Compensation or Pension/DIC/Survivors.

Section I is the Veteran's information: name, Social Security number, VA file number, date of birth, address, phone and email. Section II is only for a claimant who is not the Veteran, such as a surviving spouse, child or parent. Section III asks whether you are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.

In Item 21A, list each issue VA decided that you want reviewed. Use the wording from your decision letter (for example, "Service connection for sleep apnea"). Issues you leave off are not part of this review.

In Item 21B, enter the date of the VA decision notice for each issue. That is the date on the letter, not the day it reached your mailbox. The form's instructions say that if you are filing within one year of a court decision, you enter the court decision's date and attach a copy.

Section IV also has an opt-in box for people who still have an older "legacy" appeal and have received a Statement of the Case. Checking it moves those issues into the current review system and withdraws them from the legacy system for good. You have to opt in within the time you have to respond to the Statement of the Case or Supplemental Statement of the Case, generally 60 days ([38 C.F.R. § 3.2400](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-38/part-3/section-3.2400)). Most people filing today leave it blank.

Under [38 C.F.R. § 3.2501](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-38/part-3/section-3.2501), "new" evidence is evidence that was not already part of the record VA reviewed. "Relevant" evidence tends to prove or disprove a point at issue, and it includes evidence that raises a theory VA has not addressed yet. The rule says this is not a higher bar than the old "new and material" standard.

You can attach evidence, identify evidence for VA to get, or both. Section V asks where you were treated: private providers, Vet Centers, community care, VA medical centers and clinics, military treatment facilities, or other places. For each, give the facility name, location and approximate dates (month and year). If you don't know the dates, the form has a box to check.

If you want VA to get private records or Vet Center records, the form says to also send [VA Forms 21-4142 and 21-4142a](https://www.va.gov/find-forms/about-form-21-4142/), which authorize the release. You don't need them for records from VA medical centers and clinics, military treatment facilities, or community care that VA paid for. If treatment began in 2005 or later, the form says you don't need to give dates.

Once VA has a substantially complete Supplemental Claim, it must help get records you reasonably identify. That duty comes from [38 U.S.C. § 5108(b)](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/38/5108) and [38 C.F.R. § 3.2501(c)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-38/part-3/section-3.2501). Under § 5108(b)(2), VA can't make that help depend on first finding that you have new and relevant evidence.

The one exception to the evidence requirement is a change in law. If a new law, such as a PACT Act presumption, now covers your condition, you can file without new evidence. PACT Act presumptives in 2026 covers that path.

For compensation, pension, DIC and accrued benefits claims, Item 23 points you to VA's web pages that explain what evidence your type of claim needs. Check "Yes" to confirm you reviewed that notice, or "No" if you want VA to mail it to you. The form says you can skip this section if VA issued the decision you're asking about within the past year.

This optional section applies to compensation claims for conditions related to military sexual trauma when you are enrolled or registered in VA health care. You can allow, decline or revoke VBA notifying VA health care about certain upcoming events in your claim.

Sign and date Item 25. If you sign with an "X," two witnesses sign Section IX. Section X is for an alternate signer, who needs a valid VA Form 21-0972 on file. Section XI is for a representative who has a power of attorney (VA Form 21-22 or 21-22a) on record.

[VA says](https://www.va.gov/decision-reviews/supplemental-claim/) you can file a disability compensation Supplemental Claim online. For compensation claims by mail, the address is Claims Intake Center, PO Box 4444, Janesville, WI 53547. You can also bring the form to a VA regional office. VA's stated goal is to decide Supplemental Claims in 125 days, and it posts current averages on the same page.

There is no strict deadline to file a Supplemental Claim, but timing affects your effective date. Under [38 U.S.C. § 5110(a)(2)](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/38/5110) and [38 C.F.R. § 3.2500(h)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-38/part-3/section-3.2500), filing within one year of the decision keeps the claim "continuously pursued." The effective date can then reach back to your original claim. If you file after one year, the effective date generally can be no earlier than the date VA receives the Supplemental Claim ([38 U.S.C. § 5110(a)(3)](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/38/5110); [38 C.F.R. § 3.2500(h)(2)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-38/part-3/section-3.2500)). The same one-year window applies after a Board or court decision. An intent to file doesn't help here: VA's intent-to-file rule applies only to initial claims, so the filing date is the date VA receives your Supplemental Claim ([38 C.F.R. § 3.2501(d)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-38/part-3/section-3.2501)). Effective dates and continuous pursuit explains this in detail.

• Every issue listed, worded as in the decision letter
• The decision notice date for each issue
• New evidence attached, or each treatment location identified
• Forms 21-4142 and 21-4142a included for private or Vet Center records
• Section VI answered, form signed and dated
• Filed within one year if you want to protect your effective date

Not sure a Supplemental Claim is the right choice? HLR, Supplemental Claim, or Board Appeal? compares the options.

This article is general information, not legal advice about your situation, and no particular result is guaranteed.