They hold hearings to go over the evidence about the case and determine if the veteran is entitled to disability compensation through the VA. The BVA is actually somewhat analogous to the Supreme Court. Your appeal will begin with your local VBA Regional Office.
Send a written request to cancel your hearing at least 2 weeks before your scheduled hearing. Include your name, the VA file number for your claim, and the reason you’re canceling. Mail your request to: Board of Veterans’ Appeals
The Board of Veterans Appeals has Veteran Law Judges who preside over all BVA hearing proceedings. These judges review case files before the hearing convenes so they can summarize the issues being appealed. They can also review any evidence you submit before the hearing.
The judge will let you know if there’s anything that might help you qualify for the VA benefits in your claim, like getting a VA medical exam. Your representative, if you have one, may help you at the hearing. How long will the hearing take?
When the BVA overturns a decision, the veteran will be granted their request for benefits. This is a final decision on the matter, and benefits may no longer be denied. Often the decision is a remand by the BVA.
While it is always desirable to have a claim be granted, a remand is not a bad thing. It means that the regional office made some sort of error in the rendering of their decision, or new evidence has come to light that warrants a reexamination of the claim.
Your Higher-Level Review was closed We closed your Higher-Level Review. This may be because you didn't take an action VA requested.
Unless you are filing a fully developed claim, or your appeal is so simple that the Board of Veterans' Appeals (BVA) can issue an award within 30 days, your initial claim can take anywhere from 9-15 months to process. The VA appeals process timeline for an informal claim is typically within 9-12 months.
3 to 12 monthsIn reality, it can take anywhere from 3 to 12 months before a new decision on a VA remand is issued. If a veteran's appeal is returned to the Board again it usually takes several months to be reviewed, depending on the current backlog at the Board.
What happens if my case is sent back to the BVA? If the Court remands your case, the BVA will review its original decision as directed by the Court. The BVA may also send your case to a VA regional office (or the Appeals Management Center) for additional information, especially if an examination is requested.
about 11-12 monthsHow long does a BVA direct review appeal take? In 2022, a direct review appeal to the VA Board of Appeals takes the board about 11-12 months to come to a decision from when you first file an appeal.
There is no limit to how many times you can appeal different applications. You should submit new evidence with each claim. The best way to win an appeal is to do it right the first time. The VA disability appeals process can take years.
A claim for service connected benefits can be long and exhausting. Just to get to a BVA decision a veteran would have had to already appeal the claim twice through the VA Regional Office (RO). This process can take two to ten years.
After the hearing, the judge will issue a decision. The judge may send your case back to your VA Regional Office (this is called a remand) to correct errors that may have been made. Or the judge may deny your appeal or may grant your benefits to you.
If the BVA grants the appeal, it basically reverses the DRO's decision. That might include a new disability rating or a new service connection finding. A denial means the BVA affirms the DRO's decision. The next step is usually an appeal to the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (CAVC).
Without representation, veterans have a roughly one in four chance of receiving benefits on appeal: 2017 - 24.42% of appeals were approved with no representative. 2018 - 27.22% of appeals were approved with no representative. 2019 - 26.18% of appeals were approved with no representative.
When they've completed the remand instructions, they'll determine whether or not they can grant your appeal. If not, your appeal will return to the Board of Veterans' Appeals for a new decision. 16–29 months. The Veterans Benefits Administration usually takes between 16 and 29 months to complete remand instructions.”
Without representation, veterans have a roughly one in four chance of receiving benefits on appeal: 2017 - 24.42% of appeals were approved with no representative. 2018 - 27.22% of appeals were approved with no representative. 2019 - 26.18% of appeals were approved with no representative.
To remand something is to send it back. Remand implies a return. The usual contexts in which this word are encountered are reversal of an appellate decision, and the custody of a prisoner.
A remand from the CAVC means that your case is considered closed at court level, and it is up to the BVA to issue a final decision after performing the actions stated in the remand. What does the Board do? The BVA will examine the details of your case under the directions from the court.
A remand from the Board to your local VA office sends your case back to that office with certain instructions for the office to follow. In any remanded case, the Board has made a determination that it cannot fully or fairly adjudicate your appeal until the local VA office performs the actions outlined in the remand instructions. The Board may remand a case for a variety of reasons, to include:
A docket number reserves your place in the line of cases to be decided by the Board. The Board assigns this number to your case based on the date VA received your substantive appeal to the Board (e.g., your VA Form 9). By law, the Board must consider appeals in the order in which they are entered on the docket.
No. Board hearings are strictly optional in nature and are not required for a VLJ to decide your appeal. If you desire a Board hearing, consider the advantages of selecting a video hearing . For more information about Board hearings please review pages the Board's How Do I Appeal? Pamphlet or consult VA Form9.
Additionally, if a Veteran is affected by a natural disaster such as a hurricane, earthquake, or flood, he/she may request that his/her appeal be advanced on the docket. In this case, Veterans are strongly encouraged to submit their request in writing, and can include evidence such as newspaper clippings, pictures, FEMA declarations etc., in order to support their request. Requests can be sent directly to the Board’s fax line below.
NOTE: that if the Board remanded an issue (or issues) in your case, that particular issue is not appealable because further action must be taken by the local VA office before the Board can issue a final, appealable, decision on that issue.
The Board of Veteran Appeals is a division separate from the Veterans Benefits Administration. Their job is to review appeals filed for denied VA benefits applications. They hold hearings to go over the evidence about the case and determine if the veteran is entitled to disability compensation through the VA.
Who Presides as Judge. The Board of Veterans Appeals has Veteran Law Judges who preside over all BVA hearing proceedings. These judges review case files before the hearing convenes so they can summarize the issues being appealed. They can also review any evidence you submit before the hearing.
Part of the purpose of the pre-hearing conference is to get any problems out of the way so the hearing can move quickly. The BVA judges have a lot of cases to hear, and they want to move through them quickly.
The BVA is actually somewhat analogous to the Supreme Court. Your appeal will begin with your local VBA Regional Office. If they deny your case again, or if you want it reviewed by a higher authority, you can appeal to the BVA.
There are three main criteria, the first of which is you must have a diagnosis for your injury or condition. This diagnosis must come from a VA-approved expert, whether that is a physician, a licensed counselor, or a psychiatrist. In addition to a diagnosis, you must also have documentation of some event, injury, ...
Many special arrangements can be made if you are unable to attend your hearing. If you are unable to do a virtual hearing, contact the VA to make arrangements. We work with all of our clients in advance to make sure there aren’t any surprises about your hearing. If you foresee anything coming up that would interfere with your appointment, call us to let us know so we can prepare accordingly.
You’ll need to submit any evidence you want to include well in advance of your hearing so the judge has time to review it. Make sure you gather all the evidence you’ll need for your hearing the first time you submit it to the BVA. Although you can add new evidence to your case, the judge will need time to review it.
You’ll need to send a written request to the Board of Veterans’ Appeals providing good cause to reschedule your hearing at least 2 weeks before your hearing. Include your name, the VA file number for your appeal, and the reason why you need a new hearing date. Send your written request to the Board. Use the address or fax number listed below.
If you're appealing a VA decision under the new process, keep reading below to learn how to request and prepare for a hearing. You'll follow the new process if you're: 1 Appealing a VA decision you received on or after February 19, 2019 2 Participating in the Rapid Appeals Modernization Program 3 Opting into the new process using VA Form 10182
You can request a video conference hearing if you want to provide testimony to a judge about your appeal. The hearing will be transcribed and added to your appeal file.
If you need to withdraw your hearing request, you or your representative should send a written request at least 2 weeks before your hearing. Include your name, the VA file number for your appeal, and the reason you’re withdrawing the appeal. You still have the option to submit new evidence, as long as you send it to the Board within 90 days of withdrawing your hearing request. Send your written request to the Board using the address or fax number listed below.
The Board of Veterans’ Appeals schedules hearings in docket order (the order in which they receive requests). You’ll get a notice in the mail at least 30 days before your hearing is scheduled. It will let you know the date and time of the hearing and where it’s located.
If your hearing is less than 2 weeks away, you’ll need to file a motion explaining why you need to reschedule. Examples of “good cause” for rescheduling would include if you, your representative, or a witness are sick or you had trouble getting records.
When the 90-day time period for submitting new evidence closes, your case will be placed on the docket for a decision by a judge. If you don’t have new evidence to submit, you can waive the 90-day time period that’s automatically added to your appeal. Some Veterans Service Organizations will ask for time to make additional arguments in support of your case, so contact your representative first if you’re thinking of waiving this time period.
Hint #1: Look at any statement that the BVA makes on a material issue – if the BVA does not explain WHY it believes that statement is correct, you may have a BVA error.
The BVA is required to include, in its decision, the “reasons or bases” for its findings and conclusions on all material issues of fact and law presente d on the record. 38 USC 7014 (d) (1).
These are some of the more common examples of situations where the BVA failed to provide adequate Reasons and Bases: 1) When the BVA finds a certain witness, or certain evidence, is not credible (or less credible), but it does not specifically explain WHY it was less than credible;
The only thing that turned up in my search was an article on the CCK website.
From Woods Law How Long Will It Take to Appeal a VA Decision? - Updated Aug 2022
To speed up your claim, you could consider dropping your hearing request, or perhaps allowing a video hearing or something that may go faster.
The hearing will occur in one of four ways: at your local Regional Office, where both you and the judge appear in person; at the Regional Office, where you appear in person, but the judge videoconferences in; at the actual Board offices in Washington, D.C.; or, due to COVID-19, a virtual hearing, where the Veteran calls or videoconferences into the hearing from home..
It is important that you are well prepared for your hearing. Double check which of your claims are at the Board, as some of your claims may still be at the regional office. You do not want to spend time talking about claims that the judge has no authority to make a decision on.
If you are represented by an attorney or a Veterans’ Service Organization (VSO), your representative will want to attend the hearing with you. Your representative will typically guide the judge about what arguments you are making and what evidence you are presenting at the hearing.
A Board hearing is informal, so there is no standard practice or procedure that you must follow at the hearing. The judge will not give you a decision at the end of the hearing, but instead will write his or her opinion in a few months.
So the BVA held a hearing in your appeal, and when the decision was issued, you notice that the decision didn’t address facts you brought up at the hearing. Alternatively, you may notice that the decision attributed statements to you that you did not make at the hearing. What do you do?
But the only way to definitively prove that the BVA knew about the records you mentioned in the hearing is to show the CAVC where in the Hearing Transcript you referenced them .
Once you have sent a copy to the VA Regional Office, read the hearing transcript. You might find 2 kinds of errors: transcription errors and substantive errors.
If you are correct, and the recording was transcribed improperly, you may want to document the error, send it to the above address by Certified Mail, and start trying to find an accredited Veterans Benefits attorney to help you figure out what your next steps should be.
And the BVA may not presume a Veteran agrees with any point in the Statement of Case, whether expressly opposed or not. To show that the BVA erred by ignoring facts, or arguments that you asserted, you must be able to show the CAVC where in the BVA Hearing you raised those arguments or facts.