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Understanding how the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) calculates compensation can be confusing, especially when you have a disability rating and dependent family .
For veterans with a 70% disability rating, monthly compensation is based on both the severity of your service-connected conditions and your family status. This means that having a spouse or other dependents can affect the monthly amount you receive.
70% disability rating: What you need to know
The VA assigns a disability rating after determining how significantly your military service has impacted your health.
This rating, given as a percentage, reflects how severe your condition is and guides how much you'll receive in monthly disability payments.
However, it's important to note that the compensation scale isn't simply linear, when veterans have more than one service-connected condition, the VA uses a unique method to calculate the combined disability rating, which may not be the sum of each individual condition.
As of December 1, 2024, the VA has increased its 2025 compensation rates by 2.5%, aligning with the Social Security istration's latest cost-of-living adjustment.
For a veteran rated at 70% and living with a spouse (with no children or dependent parents), the monthly compensation is now $1,908.19.
This is an increase from the previous year and reflects changes in economic conditions.
Veterans who are rated at 70% but have no dependents receive $1,759.19 per month, so the addition of a spouse results in a modest but important increase.
Beyond monthly compensation, a 70% disability rating also opens the door to additional benefits, such as access to health care under VA Priority Group 2, potential eligibility for vocational training programs, and access to certain military facilities.
In some cases, veterans may also qualify for housing assistance or pension benefits, depending on income and service duration.
Veterans must notify the VA about life changes like marriage, divorce, or having children, as these can impact their benefit levels.
Since the VA system can be difficult to navigate, it's important to stay informed and keep your records up to date to receive the full benefits you've earned.