VA BENEFITS REFERENCE
How To Read A VA Codesheet
A VA codesheet is a coded summary of rating information. It helps you check which disabilities were evaluated, the percentages and dates involved, and applicable administrative entries. Read it with the rating narrative and notification letter because the codes alone do not explain the full decision.
Match The Document To The Decision
Start with the date and the decision being summarized. A claims file may include older codesheets as well as later decisions. An older entry is useful history, but it may no longer describe the current evaluation. Keep the associated narrative and notification letter beside it.
Find the condition names, diagnostic codes, evaluations, and dates. The codesheet organizes this information; the narrative explains the evidence and reasoning. If an entry seems inconsistent, identify the particular disability and period before concluding that the entire award is wrong.
Read Codes And Percentages Separately
A diagnostic code identifies the rating criteria applied to a disability. It is not a percentage. Section 4.27 permits certain constructed or hyphenated codes, so two code numbers joined together do not necessarily mean two separate disability evaluations.
Consider a fictional entry showing 10% from March 15 and 30% from July 1 for the same condition. Those are successive periods. You would not enter both percentages as concurrent disabilities in a combined-rating calculation. Read the reasons for the change and compare the evidence supporting each stage.
Check The Combined Rating And Exam Entries
For separate disabilities evaluated during the same period, VA generally uses the Combined Ratings Table. For example, 50% and 30% combine to 65 and round to 70%, assuming no other adjustment applies. The combined number is distinct from a separate entitlement such as TDIU.
VA manual guidance identifies future-examination and special-benefit fields that appear when applicable. A static designation or no routine future-exam date does not automatically establish permanent-and-total status. Section 3.327 also preserves authority to request an examination when needed to ensure an accurate rating. Do not ignore a new examination notice because of an older entry.
Request Missing Information And Preserve Review Rights
If the codesheet is missing, identify it specifically in a request for your VA benefits records, together with the associated rating decision if known. Use the official personal-records process; this educational site does not receive or analyze your file.
Write down any mismatch between the code, percentage, date, and narrative. Bring that focused question to an accredited representative. Requesting records does not itself challenge the award or automatically extend a review deadline. Check the actual notification letter while waiting for the records.
Continue Reading
- VA Decision Letter Explained
- How To Request Your C-File
- Read Your VA Decision Letter and Plan the Next Step
Frequently Asked Questions
Does A Blank Future-Exam Entry Prove P&T?
No. Permanence and total disability require their own determination. A routine-exam entry concerns examination planning, not every condition for P&T.
Can I Add All Percentages On The Codesheet?
No. Use only concurrent evaluations for separate disabilities and apply VA combining rules. Do not count an old evaluation alongside its replacement.
Official Sources
Last verified 2026-10-25. Source publication or legal effective dates are shown separately where available.
- www.knowva.ebenefits.va.gov/system/templates/selfservice/va_ssnew/help/customer/locale/en-US/portal/554400000001018/content/554400000180524/M21-1,-Part-V,-Subpart-iv,-Chapter-1,-Section-B---Codesheet-Section
- www.uscourts.cavc.gov/documents/RosinskiDJ_17-1117.pdf
- www.ecfr.gov/current/title-38/section-3.103
- www.ecfr.gov/current/title-38/section-4.27
- www.knowva.ebenefits.va.gov/system/templates/selfservice/va_ssnew/help/customer/locale/en-US/portal/554400000001018/content/554400000180489/M21-1-Part-V-Subpart-ii-Chapter-3-Section-D-Evaluating-Disabilities
- www.ecfr.gov/current/title-38/section-4.25
- www.ecfr.gov/current/title-38/section-4.16
- www.ecfr.gov/current/title-38/section-3.327
- www.ecfr.gov/current/title-38/section-3.340
- department.va.gov/privacy/privacy-act-requests/
- www.va.gov/forms/20-10206/
- www.ecfr.gov/current/title-38/section-3.2500
- www.va.gov/get-help-from-accredited-representative/
Check The Source. Get Accredited Help.
Use this resource to understand published information. VA and the official decision control individual benefits.