FAMILYVA program

Traumatic Injury Protection Under SGLI (TSGLI)

Lump-sum payment of $25,000 to $100,000 to SGLI-insured servicemembers who sustain traumatic injuries resulting in qualifying losses such as limb amputation, vision or hearing loss, or extended loss of consciousness.

Available to SGLI-covered servicemembers with qualifying traumatic injuries

View on VA.gov

Step-by-step guide

What you get

Short-term financial support for a service member covered by SGLI who has a listed loss from a traumatic injury, on or off duty, to help with recovery.

What your branch of service looks for: a listed loss from a traumatic injury

Covered by SGLI on the day of the injuryYou were insured under SGLI on the date of the traumatic injury, and the injury happened before midnight on the day you left the service. The loss itself can come later. TSGLI does not cover injuries in the 120 days after separation or during the SGLI disability extension.
A traumatic injuryPhysical damage to the body from an outside force, violence, a chemical, biological, or radiological weapon, swallowing a contaminated substance, extreme cold or heat, a documented blast wave, or an insect or animal bite. Excluded: a mental disorder; an illness or disease, except a pus-producing infection or one caused by those weapons or a contaminated substance; a self-inflicted injury or suicide attempt; illegal drug use; medical treatment of an illness; and an injury while committing a felony.
A listed loss within 2 years, after surviving 7 full daysThe injury, and nothing else, directly causes a loss on the schedule: loss of sight, hearing, or speech; paralysis; an amputation; severe burns; limb or facial reconstruction surgery; a genital or urinary injury; a coma or traumatic brain injury; a hospital stay; or being unable to do 2 activities of daily living without help. The loss happens within 2 years (730 days) of the injury, and you survive at least 7 full days after it.

Source: 38 CFR 9.20(d) (opens in new tab); VA.gov: Traumatic Injury Protection (TSGLI) (opens in new tab); VA Life Insurance: Servicemembers' and Veterans' Group Life Insurance Handbook (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 9.20(b) (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 9.20(c) (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 9.20(e) (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 9.21(c) (opens in new tab); VA Life Insurance: TSGLI loss standards (opens in new tab)

When did the injury happen?

Injured while covered by SGLI
Full-time SGLI includes TSGLI for a flat monthly premium, and it covers injuries on or off duty. Your branch of service decides each claim under the VA rule. The branch sends its decision to the Office of Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance (OSGLI), which runs TSGLI under VA supervision and pays.
Source: 38 CFR 9.20(a) (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 9.20(g) (opens in new tab); VA.gov: Traumatic Injury Protection (TSGLI) (opens in new tab); VA Life Insurance: TSGLI program (opens in new tab); VA Life Insurance: Servicemembers' and Veterans' Group Life Insurance Handbook (opens in new tab)
Injured from October 7, 2001, through November 30, 2005
TSGLI also pays retroactively for injuries in this period, wherever they happened, on or off duty, and whether or not SGLI was in effect. VA removed the old rule that limited it to Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. The other rules still apply, and your branch of service still decides.
1. An injury in the retroactive periodThe traumatic injury happened on or after October 7, 2001, through November 30, 2005.
2. The same loss rulesA listed loss within 2 years of the injury, after surviving 7 full days, from a cause the rule does not exclude.
Source: 38 CFR 9.20(d)(1) (opens in new tab); VA.gov: Traumatic Injury Protection (TSGLI) (opens in new tab); VA Life Insurance: TSGLI retroactive benefits (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 9.20(d) (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 9.20(e) (opens in new tab)

Time limits

The loss must happen within 2 years (730 days) of the injury, and you must survive at least 7 full days after it. An appeal goes to your branch within 1 year of the denial.

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
SGLV 8600, Application for TSGLI Benefits The TSGLI claim form. You, or your guardian, agent under a power of attorney, or military trustee, complete and sign Part A; a medical professional completes and signs Part B.	Who you are, the injury, and the losses claimed	Get it from VA's life insurance forms page. Send it by fax, email, or mail to your branch of service TSGLI office listed on the front of the form, not to VA directly.
Part B, the medical professional's statement The part of SGLV 8600 a licensed medical professional completes, stating whether you had a traumatic injury and a listed loss as a direct result.	The listed loss and that the injury caused it	Give the form to your doctor or another medical professional to complete. It goes with Part A to your branch TSGLI office, not to VA directly and not to BeneVets.
Hospital and treatment records of the injury and loss Copies of records about the injury and the losses, such as hospital records, therapy notes, nursing notes, and medical assessments or reports.	The injury, when it happened, and the loss that followed	Attach copies to the application for your branch TSGLI office. VA says to send medical documentation with the form; it does not go to VA directly or to BeneVets.
Police or military investigation reports and statements Police reports or military investigation reports about the event, or a statement from someone who knows what happened or your condition.	How and when the injury happened	Send copies with the application, or with an appeal, to your branch TSGLI office.

The TSGLI application and records go to your branch of service TSGLI office, which decides the claim under the VA rule. OSGLI then pays. BeneVets does not ask for any 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.
Source: VA.gov: accredited representatives (opens in new tab)
Check the loss standards
Read VA's TSGLI loss standards to see which losses are listed, what each one means, and what each pays.
Source: VA Life Insurance: TSGLI loss standards (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 9.21(c) (opens in new tab)
Fill out Part A of SGLV 8600
Get the Application for TSGLI Benefits (SGLV 8600) and complete and sign Part A. If a medical professional finds you medically incapacitated, your guardian, an agent under a power of attorney, or a military trustee signs, with proof of that role.
Source: SGLV 8600 (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 9.20(f) (opens in new tab); VA.gov: Traumatic Injury Protection (TSGLI) (opens in new tab)
Have a medical professional complete Part B
Give the form to a doctor or another licensed medical professional to complete and sign Part B.
Source: SGLV 8600 (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 9.20(f) (opens in new tab)
Send it to your branch of service
Fax, email, or mail Parts A and B, with copies of records about the injury and losses, to your branch TSGLI office listed on the front of the form. The branch decides and sends its decision to OSGLI, which contacts you.
Source: VA.gov: Traumatic Injury Protection (TSGLI) (opens in new tab); SGLV 8600 (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 9.20(g) (opens in new tab); VA.gov: file a TSGLI appeal (opens in new tab)
Apply again for each new loss or milestone
A new loss, or the next payment step for a coma, brain injury, hospital stay, or daily living loss, needs a new application.
Source: 38 CFR 9.20(f) (opens in new tab)
Appeal a denial
Follow your denial letter. Send the appeal, on form SGLV 8600A if the letter says so, to your branch TSGLI or appeal office by the deadline under Time limits. Send only new evidence, and point out what is new.
Source: VA.gov: file a TSGLI appeal (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 9.20(h) (opens in new tab)

Good to know

Your branch of service decides

Each uniformed service certifies its own members for TSGLI: whether you were insured, and whether the injury and loss meet the rule. It weighs medical and lay evidence and gives you the benefit of the doubt when the evidence is evenly balanced. VA writes the rule and supervises the program; OSGLI pays once the branch certifies.

Source: 38 CFR 9.20(g) (opens in new tab); VA Life Insurance: Servicemembers' and Veterans' Group Life Insurance Handbook (opens in new tab); VA.gov: file a TSGLI appeal (opens in new tab)

How payments add up

Each listed loss pays a set amount. Most losses from one traumatic event, or from events within 7 days of each other, are added together up to the maximum. Some are not: two losses to the same arm, hand, leg, or foot, or a daily living loss or hospital stay from an injury other than a brain injury on top of other listed losses. For those, the higher amount is paid. Coma, brain injury, and daily living losses pay in steps as set day counts are reached. A hospital stay of 15 days pays once per injury, in place of the first coma or daily living step. Each step needs its own application.

Source: 38 CFR 9.20(e) (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 9.20(f) (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 9.21(c) (opens in new tab); VA Life Insurance: TSGLI loss standards (opens in new tab)

If your branch denies the claim

The denial letter explains how to appeal and whether to use form SGLV 8600A. Each branch has three levels: reconsideration, a second-level appeal, and a third-level appeal, each filed within 1 year of the last decision. New and material evidence can reopen a final denial. For the care VA added on April 14, 2023, such as limb reconstruction surgery, a claim denied in the past can be filed again as a new claim.

Source: 38 CFR 9.20(h) (opens in new tab); VA.gov: file a TSGLI appeal (opens in new tab); VA.gov: Traumatic Injury Protection (TSGLI) (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