DISABILITYVA program

Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC)

Tax-free monthly payment for military retirees whose service-connected disability is combat-related, allowing them to recoup military retirement pay offset by VA compensation regardless of years of service.

Available to military retirees with combat-related service-connected disabilities

View on VA.gov

Step-by-step guide

What you get

A tax-free monthly payment from the Defense Department that restores some or all of the military retired pay withheld because of VA compensation, for conditions your branch finds combat related.

What your branch looks for: a first CRSC application

Military retired payYou are retired and get, or have a right to, military retired pay: 20 or more years of active, Guard, or Reserve service; a Chapter 61 medical retirement with a rating of 30 percent or more; temporary early retirement (TERA); or a place on the temporary or permanent disability retired list. Guard and Reserve retirees can get CRSC once their retired pay starts, at age 60 or the earlier age the law sets.
A VA rating of 10 percent or more, and reduced retired payVA compensation is being paid for at least one condition rated 10 percent or more, and your retired pay is reduced by that VA payment. CRSC builds on that reduction, so the VA rating comes first.
A rated condition tied to a combat-related eventRecords showing the condition came from armed conflict, hazardous duty such as flying, parachuting, demolition, or diving, training that simulates war, an instrument of war such as a military vehicle, weapon, or chemical agent, or an injury that earned the Purple Heart. Serving in a war zone or in combat operations is not enough by itself; the records need to show what caused the condition.

Source: VA.gov: Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC) (opens in new tab); M21-1 VI.ii.4.A (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 3.750(c) (opens in new tab)

Where are you with CRSC?

First CRSC application
Use this for your first CRSC claim. You apply on DD Form 2860 to the branch you retired from, not to VA. Your branch looks for three things in your records, and it looks at each rated condition.
Source: VA.gov: Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC) (opens in new tab); M21-1 VI.ii.4.A (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 3.750(c) (opens in new tab)
Reconsideration or a rating change
Use this when your branch denied CRSC for a condition, when VA rates a new condition that may be combat related, or when VA changes the rating of a condition already approved for CRSC. You ask the same branch to look again. A new VA rating is not added to CRSC on its own.
1. A branch decision or a new VA decisionA CRSC decision letter from your branch, or a VA decision that adds or changes a rating for a condition tied to combat.
2. Evidence for each condition you ask aboutAny new evidence of how the condition happened, and your newest VA decision notice when a rating changed.
Source: VA.gov: Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC) (opens in new tab); M21-1 VI.ii.4.A (opens in new tab)
Choosing between CRSC and CRDP
Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay (CRDP) also restores retired pay that VA compensation offsets. CRSC and CRDP cannot be paid together. CRDP needs no application, and a retiree who can get both picks one in the yearly open season. CRDP does not cover Chapter 61 retirees with fewer than 20 years of service.
1. A combined VA rating of 50 percent or moreCRDP starts at a combined VA rating of 50 percent. CRSC needs a rating of 10 percent or more for a combat-related condition.
2. Retirement based on years of serviceRetired pay based on years of service, including temporary early retirement (TERA); a Chapter 61 retirement with at least 20 years of service; or a Guard or Reserve retirement with 20 creditable years, once you reach retirement age. For a Chapter 61 retirement with 20 or more years, CRDP covers only the part of retired pay based on years of service.
Source: M21-1 VI.ii.4.A (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 3.750(b) (opens in new tab)

Time limits

If you can get both CRSC and CRDP, you choose one in the yearly open season. DFAS sends election information each December, and the Coast Guard sends it in February.

What to gather, and what it shows VA

Documents for this benefit: what each is, what it shows VA, and how VA gets it
Document	What it shows	How VA gets it	Have it?
Your VA rating decision, with the code sheet The VA decision letter and the rating decision for the conditions VA rates. The code sheet is the coded section of the rating decision.	Which conditions VA rates, and at what percent	Ask your nearest VA regional office for your VA rating decision letter in a signed letter or note, or download decision letters on VA.gov. VA Form 20-10206 requests your VA records, including the claims file. A copy goes to your branch with DD Form 2860.	Yes
Retirement orders Your retirement orders and other retirement records.	That you retired, and under which rule	Use your own copy, or request your orders with your military records through the National Archives with eVetRecs or SF180. A copy goes to your branch with DD Form 2860.	Yes
Separation papers (DD214) The record of your service dates, branch, and character of discharge.	Your service dates and branch	Use your own copy, or request it through the National Archives with eVetRecs or SF180, or through milConnect for more recent discharges. A copy goes to your branch with DD Form 2860.	Yes
Service medical records from the time of the injury Medical records made in service when the injury or illness happened, showing what happened and how severe it was.	How the condition started, and the combat-related cause	Send copies of only the relevant pages, not your whole record. This is a Defense Department review, so the copies go to your branch with DD Form 2860, not to VA. You can request your service medical records through the National Archives with eVetRecs or SF180.
After action and investigative reports Official reports of the event, such as after action reports and investigative reports.	What happened, where, and when	Include copies you have. They go to your branch with DD Form 2860, not to VA.
Personnel actions and evaluations Personnel action requests, such as DA Form 4187, and performance evaluations, such as NCOERs and OERs, from the time of the event.	Your duties and where you served	Use copies you kept, or request your performance reports with your military records through eVetRecs or SF180. Copies go to your branch with DD Form 2860.
Purple Heart and other award citations Award citations and recommendations, such as a Purple Heart citation, a Combat Action Badge, and medals or decorations for valor.	Combat, or an injury that earned the Purple Heart	Use your own copies, or request your medals and decorations records through the National Archives with eVetRecs or SF180. Copies go to your branch with DD Form 2860.	Yes
Reconsideration request A signed request asking your branch to look again, on its form or by letter, sent with any new evidence.	What changed, or what the first review did not have	The Army uses CRSC Form 12e. After a denial, the Air Force and the Navy and Marine Corps mail a reconsideration form with the decision letter, and the Air Force also takes a signed letter. The Coast Guard takes a letter with no form. It goes to your branch, not to VA.

Copies go to your branch of service with DD Form 2860, not to VA. BeneVets does not ask for copies of them.

Steps, in order

Get free help from a VSO
Free help: an accredited VSO can file this with you. Find one near you in the BeneVets VSO directory at Find an accredited VSO near you. An accredited VSO representative can also help, at no cost, with the VA claim behind your rating.
Source: VA.gov: accredited representatives (opens in new tab)
Check how you retired
Find your retirement orders and check the type: 20 or more years of service, a Chapter 61 medical retirement, temporary early retirement (TERA), or the temporary or permanent disability retired list. Your CRSC application goes to the service you retired from.
Source: VA.gov: Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC) (opens in new tab)
Get your VA rating in place first
CRSC builds on VA compensation already being paid. If VA has not rated your conditions yet, file a VA disability claim on VA Form 21-526EZ first. VA treats a retiree's claim as a waiver of retired pay, and retired pay is reduced by the VA compensation unless CRDP restores it.
Source: M21-1 VI.ii.4.A (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 3.750(c) (opens in new tab); VA Form 21-526EZ (opens in new tab)
List each rated condition and its cause
On paper, list each VA-rated condition you believe came from armed conflict, hazardous duty, training that simulates war, an instrument of war, or a Purple Heart injury, with the event behind it. Keep the list with your papers; BeneVets does not ask for it.
Source: VA.gov: Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC) (opens in new tab); M21-1 VI.ii.4.A (opens in new tab)
Get your VA rating decision and code sheet
Ask your nearest VA regional office for your VA rating decision letter in a signed letter or note, or download decision letters on VA.gov. VA Form 20-10206 requests your VA records, including the claims file, when you need the full rating decision.
Source: VA.gov: Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC) (opens in new tab); VA.gov: download VA benefit letters (opens in new tab); VA Form 20-10206 (opens in new tab); M21-1 V.iv.1.B (opens in new tab)
Request your service records
Request your DD214, service medical records, award records, and performance reports through the National Archives with eVetRecs or SF180, or through milConnect for more recent discharges. For CRSC, you request these yourself.
Source: VA.gov: Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC) (opens in new tab); VA.gov: request your military service records (opens in new tab); Standard Form 180 (SF180) (opens in new tab)
Find records from the time of the injury
Pull the service medical records made when the injury happened that show how it happened and how severe it was. Add after action or investigative reports, personnel actions, and evaluations from that time. Send only the relevant pages, not your whole medical record.
Source: VA.gov: Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC) (opens in new tab)
Add award citations
Include the citation for any Purple Heart awarded for the injury, and any Combat Action Badge, medals, or valor awards tied to the event.
Source: VA.gov: Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC) (opens in new tab)
Fill out DD Form 2860
Fill out DD Form 2860, Claim for Combat-Related Special Compensation. VA.gov links the PDF; download it and open it in Adobe Acrobat Reader instead of a browser.
Source: VA.gov: Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC) (opens in new tab); M21-1 VI.ii.4.A (opens in new tab)
Send it to your branch, not VA
Send the completed form with copies, not originals, to the service you retired from. Army: U.S. Army Human Resources Command, by mail, email, or eFax. Navy and Marine Corps: Secretary of the Navy Council of Review Boards. Air Force and Space Force: the Air Force Disability Division (CRSC). Coast Guard: the Coast Guard Personnel Service Center. The addresses are on DD Form 2860 and VA.gov. Keep a copy of your application.
Source: VA.gov: Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC) (opens in new tab); M21-1 VI.ii.4.A (opens in new tab)
Read the decision letter
Your branch sends a decision letter. After an approval, DFAS or your service's pay office sets the payment and audits your account for any back payment.
Source: VA.gov: Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC) (opens in new tab); M21-1 VI.ii.4.A (opens in new tab)
Ask your branch to reconsider or update
If your branch denies a condition, or VA adds or changes a rating for a combat-related condition, ask the same branch to reconsider and send any new evidence. Use the form or letter your branch takes, and include your newest VA decision notice when a rating changed.
Source: VA.gov: Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC) (opens in new tab); M21-1 VI.ii.4.A (opens in new tab)
Choose CRSC or CRDP in the open season
Time limits says when the election information arrives. Make your choice in that open season.
Source: M21-1 VI.ii.4.A (opens in new tab)

Good to know

A Defense Department payment, not a VA claim

The Defense Department pays CRSC, and the branch you retired from decides it. VA's part is the disability rating CRSC builds on. Your branch makes its own call on whether a condition is combat related.

Source: VA.gov: Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC) (opens in new tab); M21-1 VI.ii.4.A (opens in new tab)

Tax free, and separate from retired pay

CRSC is a monthly payment that is not retired pay, and it is not taxable. It can be garnished for child support and alimony.

Source: VA.gov: Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC) (opens in new tab); M21-1 VI.ii.4.A (opens in new tab)

How the amount is set

CRSC generally equals the VA compensation for your combat-related conditions only, and it cannot be more than the retired pay withheld because of VA compensation. The pay office figures the exact amount, and Chapter 61 retirees follow a separate formula.

Source: M21-1 VI.ii.4.A (opens in new tab)

CRSC or CRDP, one at a time

CRSC and CRDP cannot be paid at the same time. A retiree who can get both chooses one in the election open season: the Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) sends election information each December, and the Coast Guard sends it in February. CRDP is taxed like retired pay; CRSC is not taxable.

Source: M21-1 VI.ii.4.A (opens in new tab)

Presumptive and POW conditions

A condition VA connected because of POW status or exposure to Agent Orange, radiation, mustard gas, or Lewisite can count as combat related. Your branch decides on its own and is not bound by the VA presumption. A newly rated condition needs its own CRSC request, even if you already get CRSC for others.

Source: M21-1 VI.ii.4.A (opens in new tab); VA.gov: Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC) (opens in new tab)

Back payments

After a new CRSC award, or a change to your VA compensation, DFAS or your service's pay office audits your account for back payments. Any back payment comes from DFAS or VA.

Source: VA.gov: Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC) (opens in new tab)

BeneVets is informational and is not an accredited representative. Free help: an accredited VSO can work through VA benefits with you at no cost. Find an accredited VSO near you