Free tool

Free C&P exam prep sheet

A C&P exam prep sheet is a short page of your own notes to bring to a VA claim exam: your conditions, what a bad day and a typical day look like, your flare-ups, and how they affect work and daily life. Fill it in below and print it. For each condition, the sheet adds what VA's exam form asks the examiner to record.

Describe your condition truthfully: don't inflate it and don't minimize it. VA says you don't need to bring anything to the exam, so the sheet is for you. You can read from it or hand the examiner a copy. For more on what happens at the exam, read what to expect at a VA C&P exam.

Fill in your sheet

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Exam date (optional)

Condition 1Condition being examined

A bad dayWhat happens and what you can't do. How often do bad days come?A typical dayWhat most days are like, and what you can and can't do.Flare-upsHow often, how long they last, what sets them off, what helps.Work and daily lifeMissed work, tasks you need help with, things you avoid or stopped doing.Treatment and medicationWhat you take or do, how well it works, side effects.

Anything else to tell the examiner (optional)

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My C&P exam prep sheet

My own notes, in my own words.

At the exam

Bring this sheet and your log. You can hand the examiner a copy or read from it.
Describe a bad day, an average day and a good day, truthfully. Don't pad and don't minimize.
If you're not in a flare-up today, say so, then describe a typical one: how often, how long, what sets it off, what you can't do.
When the examiner moves a joint, say when the pain starts, not when you can't go farther.
Afterward, request a copy of the exam report and check it against what you said.

Name a condition above and it appears here, with what VA's exam form asks the examiner to record.

General education from VA's rating schedule and public exam forms, plus my own notes. Not medical or legal advice, and not a prediction of any rating. The examiner decides what to record; describe your condition truthfully. ClaimScope for Veterans is independent of the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Statements from people who know you

A spouse, friend or coworker can describe what they have seen. The personal and buddy statement tool is free, whether or not you buy anything.

After VA decides

Once you have VA's decision letter, you can check the decision free to see the issues and deadlines in it.

Sources: 38 C.F.R. § 4.10 and the rating schedule sections named on each condition; VA's public Disability Benefits Questionnaires; VA's claim exam page. General education, not medical or legal advice. If you're in crisis, contact the Veterans Crisis Line: dial 988 then press 1, or text 838255.