0% VA Disability Rating: Benefits and 2026 Pay

Apply directly at this rating

• Commissary, exchange and MWR privileges

  In the U.S., a veteran with a service-connected disability rating who was honorably discharged may use commissaries, exchanges and MWR retail facilities. VA lists no minimum percentage.

  Also depends on: an honorable discharge.

  Have a service-connected disability rating and were honorably discharged, or

• VALife life insurance

  Guaranteed-acceptance whole life insurance for veterans with a service-connected disability rating, even 0%, who are 80 or younger when they apply (older applicants have narrower rules).

  Also depends on: age at application.

  You're eligible for VALife if you have a VA service-connected disability rating—even if your rating is 0%.

• Federal hiring preference (10 points)

  A veteran with a service-connected disability gets 10 preference points in federal hiring. OPM labels the group by rating: XP below 10%, CP from 10% to under 30%, CPS from 30%.

  Group XP: OPM lists a disability rating of less than 10% at 10 points. OPM's guide describes XP as a present service-connected disability, or receiving compensation or disability retirement or pension, that does not qualify as CP or CPS.

  XP - Disability rating less than 10% (10 points)

Apply only if extra conditions are met

The percentage alone is not enough for these. Each one says what else VA or DoD looks at, such as a permanent and total rating, TDIU or a VA finding.

• VA health care enrollment (priority group)Conditions apply

  VA assigns an enrollment priority group from the service-connected rating, and the group can affect what, if anything, you pay toward care.

  A noncompensable 0% rating does not by itself raise your priority group. VA's page puts a non-compensable 0% disability in priority group 5 if annual income is below its adjusted income limits (based on resident zip code). Above the limits VA assigns priority group 8, which requires agreeing to copays; there, subgroups a and b can enroll, and VA lists subgroup e (a noncompensable 0% outside a and b) among the groups that are not eligible, with a note that you are eligible for care of the service-connected condition only. A compensable 0% rating is in priority group 6.

  you have a non-compensable service-connected disability that we've rated as 0% disabling, and you have an annual income level that's below our adjusted income limits

• VA beneficiary travel payConditions apply

  Reimbursement for travel to VA or VA-approved care. At 30% or more the rating itself is enough; below 30% the trip must be for a service-connected condition (or meet another listed reason).

  Below 30% the rating alone is not enough: VA lists traveling for treatment of a service-connected condition, or another listed reason such as a scheduled claim exam, as separate ways to qualify.

  You're traveling for treatment of a service-connected condition, even if your VA disability rating is less than 30%, or

• VA home loan funding fee waiverConditions apply

  The VA funding fee is not collected from a veteran who is receiving VA compensation (or would be, but for receiving retirement or active-duty pay). A 0% rating pays no compensation.

  The waiver follows receiving compensation, and a 0% noncompensable rating pays none. VA's matrix lists the waiver for a separate "compensable 0 percent" case: more than two separate zero percent disabilities paid at the minimum 10 percent under 38 CFR 3.324.

  In some instances there are individuals who have separate and more than two zero percent service connected disabilities who are paid at the minimum 10 percent. (38 CFR 3.324)

Not available at this rating

These need a higher rating or a different kind of rating: Veteran Readiness and Employment (VR&E); Additional compensation for dependents; VA dental care (Class IV); CHAMPVA health coverage for a spouse and children; Chapter 35 education benefits for a spouse and children (DEA); Space-A (space-available) military flights; Noncompetitive federal appointment (30% or more); Concurrent receipt of military retired pay and VA compensation (CRDP); Statutory housebound rate (SMC-S); Individual unemployability (TDIU): the 100% rate.

What benefits come with a 0% VA disability rating?

At 0%, 3 of the 16 listed benefits apply directly and 3 apply only if extra conditions are met. The list starts here: VA health care enrollment (priority group); VA beneficiary travel pay; VA home loan funding fee waiver; Commissary, exchange and MWR privileges; VALife life insurance; and Federal hiring preference (10 points). Each threshold quote and source is on this page or the page for the level where it last changed.

How much does a 0% VA disability rating pay in 2026?

A 0% rating pays $0.00 a month. VA's compensation table starts at 10%, so a noncompensable 0% rating carries no monthly compensation. The rates on this site are the ones in effect since December 1, 2025.

Does 0% qualify for CHAMPVA, Chapter 35 or Space-A?

At 0%, VA's matrix does not list them below 60%: CHAMPVA, Chapter 35 and Space-A depend on a permanent and total rating, which the matrix lists at 100%, or at 60% to 90% only through a permanent TDIU rating. Separately, 38 CFR 4.16(b) tells rating boards to submit "all cases of veterans who are unemployable by reason of service-connected disabilities, but who fail to meet the percentage standards set forth in paragraph (a) of this section" for extra-schedular consideration, so TDIU can be considered below the 4.16(a) thresholds. This page does not predict whether it is granted.

What changes between 0% and 10%?

Going from 0% to 10% adds or changes: VA health care enrollment (priority group); Veteran Readiness and Employment (VR&E); VA home loan funding fee waiver; and Federal hiring preference (10 points). Pay for a veteran alone rises by $180.42 a month in 2026.

Does a 0% VA disability rating qualify for VA health care?

At 0%: VA assigns an enrollment priority group from the service-connected rating, and the group can affect what, if anything, you pay toward care. A noncompensable 0% rating does not by itself raise your priority group. VA's page puts a non-compensable 0% disability in priority group 5 if annual income is below its adjusted income limits (based on resident zip code). Above the limits VA assigns priority group 8, which requires agreeing to copays; there, subgroups a and b can enroll, and VA lists subgroup e (a noncompensable 0% outside a and b) among the groups that are not eligible, with a note that you are eligible for care of the service-connected condition only. A compensable 0% rating is in priority group 6.