38 CFR Part 4: the VA disability rating schedule, in plain English.
This is the rulebook that turns your service connected conditions into a percentage. Here is how the schedule works, how the VA combines your ratings, and the exact criteria behind the most common conditions, with no PDF to download and no legalese wall.
- Updated August 2026
- About a 10 minute read
- Reviewed by former C&P examiners
What is 38 CFR Part 4?
38 CFR Part 4 is the VA Schedule for Rating Disabilities. It is the federal regulation that assigns every service connected condition a disability rating from 0 to 100 percent, in 10 percent steps. Each percentage is meant to reflect how much that condition reduces your ability to work. When you have more than one condition, the VA combines the ratings with a specific formula rather than adding them, then uses the result to set your monthly compensation.
Title 38
Code of Federal Regulations, Part 4
0 to 100%
Ratings assigned in 10 percent steps
900+
Diagnostic codes across the body systems
Combined
Multiple ratings combine, they do not add
What 38 CFR Part 4 actually is
Part 4 of Title 38 is called the Schedule for Rating Disabilities, often shortened to the rating schedule or the VASRD. It is the single reference every VA rater opens to decide how disabling a condition is. It does not decide whether your condition is connected to your service, that question lives in other parts of the regulation. Part 4 answers a narrower question: given a service connected condition, how severe is it, and what percentage does that severity earn.
The schedule is organized by body system, and within each system every condition has a four digit diagnostic code and a set of criteria. A rater reads your medical evidence, finds the level of severity your records support, and assigns the matching percentage. Understanding the schedule is how you know whether the rating you received actually reflects your records, and where the evidence gaps are.
The schedule tells you the criteria. It does not tell you which code fits your specific conditions or what evidence yours still needs. That is exactly what Woobie AI is built to answer, free.
How VA disability ratings work
Every rating is a percentage from 0 to 100, always in 10 percent steps. A 0 percent rating still matters, it is an official acknowledgement that a condition is service connected, which keeps the door open for increases and related claims later. The percentage is meant to represent the average loss in earning capacity the condition causes across the workforce, which is why the criteria focus on function and symptoms rather than on a diagnosis alone.
To assign a level, the rater compares your documented symptoms against the criteria for your condition and picks the highest level your evidence fully supports. If your condition is not listed by name, it is rated by analogy to the most similar listed condition. This is why two veterans with the same diagnosis can receive very different ratings: the schedule rewards what your records prove about severity, not the label on the diagnosis.
How combined ratings work, the VA math
This is where most veterans lose money without realizing it. When you have more than one rating, the VA does not add them. It combines them using a whole person model: you start as 100 percent efficient, and each disability takes a bite out of what is left, not out of the original whole.
Say you have a 30 percent rating. You are considered 70 percent efficient. A second 30 percent rating is applied to that remaining 70, not to the full 100, so it removes 21 points, leaving 49. The VA then rounds to the nearest 10. Two 30 percent ratings do not make 60 percent. They make 50. The more conditions you stack, the more the math works against a simple sum, and the more it pays to see the real number before you file.
Combined rating calculator
Add each rated condition below and watch how the VA actually combines them. Change the numbers, add rows, and see the rounded result the VA would assign.
Two ratings of 30 combine to 51 percent, which the VA rounds to 50 percent. Adding them would wrongly give 60 percent.
Estimate only, using the standard combined ratings method in section 4.25. It does not include the bilateral factor or special monthly compensation. For a full read on your specific conditions, ask Woobie AI.
How to read a diagnostic code
Every entry in the schedule has a section number and a four digit diagnostic code. Take tinnitus: it lives in section 4.87, the ears, under diagnostic code 6260. PTSD lives in section 4.130, the mental disorders, under code 9411. The section tells you the body system and the general rating rules, and the code points to the specific condition and its levels.
Section
§4.130
The body system and its general rating formula
Diagnostic code
9411
The specific condition, here PTSD
Level
70%
The severity your evidence supports
When you know the section and code for each of your conditions, you can read the exact criteria the VA is measuring you against, and see whether your records make the case for the next level up.
The rating schedule by body system
The schedule is organized by body system. Below is where each range lives, followed by the exact criteria for the conditions veterans ask about most. When the criteria alone are not enough, ask Woobie AI what they mean for your file.
Mental health
§4.130 · 9200 to 9499
Ears and hearing
§4.87 · 6100 to 6299
Respiratory and sleep
§4.97 · 6600 to 6847
Musculoskeletal
§4.71a · 5000 to 5399
Neurological
§4.124a · 8000 to 8999
Digestive
§4.114 · 7300 to 7399
Cardiovascular
§4.104 · 7000 to 7199
Genitourinary
§4.115 · 7500 to 7599
Skin
§4.118 · 7800 to 7899
Eyes
§4.79 · 6000 to 6099
Endocrine
§4.119 · 7900 to 7919
Hemic and lymphatic
§4.117 · 7700 to 7725
Mental health
Post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety
0%A diagnosed condition whose symptoms are not severe enough to interfere with work or social function, or to require continuous medication.
30%Occasional decline in work efficiency: depressed mood, anxiety, suspiciousness, weekly or less frequent panic, chronic sleep impairment, mild memory loss.
50%Reduced reliability and productivity: flattened affect, panic more than once a week, impaired judgment, and difficulty maintaining effective relationships.
70%Deficiencies in most areas: suicidal ideation, near continuous panic or depression, impaired impulse control, neglect of hygiene, and an inability to maintain relationships.
100%Total occupational and social impairment: grossly impaired thought or communication, persistent delusions, danger to self or others, and disorientation.
Ears and hearing
Tinnitus
10%Recurrent tinnitus. Ten percent is the single maximum, whether the ringing is in one ear or both.
Hearing loss
0% to 100%Rated from Tables VI and VII using puretone thresholds and speech discrimination. The greater the measured loss, the higher the level.
Respiratory and sleep
Sleep apnea
0%A documented sleep disorder that is currently without symptoms.
30%Persistent daytime sleepiness, or hypersomnolence.
50%Requires the use of a breathing assistance device such as a CPAP machine.
100%Chronic respiratory failure with carbon dioxide retention, cor pulmonale, or a required tracheostomy.
Musculoskeletal
Back and spine
10%Forward flexion of the thoracolumbar spine greater than 60 and up to 85 degrees, or combined range of motion up to 235 degrees.
20%Flexion greater than 30 and up to 60 degrees, or muscle spasm or guarding severe enough to cause an abnormal gait.
40%Flexion limited to 30 degrees or less, or favorable ankylosis of the entire thoracolumbar spine.
50% to 100%Unfavorable ankylosis of the thoracolumbar spine, up to unfavorable ankylosis of the entire spine.
Knee instability
10%Slight recurrent subluxation or lateral instability.
20%Moderate recurrent subluxation or lateral instability.
30%Severe recurrent subluxation or lateral instability.
Flat feet, or pes planus
10% to 50%Rated by severity and whether it affects one foot or both, from moderate symptoms up to pronounced deformity with marked pronation and no relief from supports.
Neurological
Migraines
0%Less frequent attacks.
10%Characteristic prostrating attacks averaging one in two months over the last several months.
30%Characteristic prostrating attacks averaging once a month over the last several months.
50%Very frequent, completely prostrating and prolonged attacks that cause severe economic inadaptability.
Radiculopathy, sciatic nerve
10%Mild incomplete paralysis.
20%Moderate incomplete paralysis.
40% to 80%Moderately severe to complete paralysis, up to a foot that dangles and drops with no active movement below the knee.
Digestive
GERD and hiatal hernia
10%Two or more of the 30 percent symptoms, of lesser severity.
30%Persistent recurrent epigastric distress with dysphagia, pyrosis, and regurgitation, causing considerable impairment of health.
60%Symptoms of pain, vomiting, material weight loss, and hematemesis or melena with anemia, or a combination severely impairing health.
Irritable bowel syndrome
0% to 30%Rated from mild, with occasional episodes, up to severe, with diarrhea or alternating diarrhea and constipation and more or less constant abdominal distress.
Cardiovascular
Hypertension
10%Diastolic pressure predominantly 100 or more, or systolic predominantly 160 or more, or a history requiring continuous medication.
20% to 60%Higher ratings apply as diastolic pressure predominantly reaches 110, 120, and 130 or more.
Skin
Scars
10% to 80%Rated by location, size, number, and whether a scar is painful, unstable, or disfiguring. Head, face, and neck scars use the eight characteristics of disfigurement.
Key concepts the schedule leans on
Combined ratings, §4.25
The whole person table the VA uses to combine multiple ratings, then round to the nearest 10.
The bilateral factor, §4.26
An extra 10 percent added when disabilities affect both arms, both legs, or paired muscles, applied before combining with the rest.
TDIU, §4.16
Individual Unemployability pays at the 100 percent rate when service connected conditions keep you from holding steady work, even if your schedular total is lower.
Permanent and total
A 100 percent rating the VA does not expect to improve, which protects it from future reduction and unlocks added benefits.
Secondary conditions
Conditions caused by an already rated one, like sleep apnea secondary to PTSD, each get their own rating and combine in.
Analogous ratings
When your condition is not listed by name, the VA rates it using the closest listed condition with similar symptoms and function loss.
Frequently asked questions
38 CFR Part 4 is the section of federal regulation known as the Schedule for Rating Disabilities. It is the official rulebook the VA uses to assign a percentage to each service connected condition, from 0 to 100 percent in 10 percent steps.
The VA matches your documented symptoms to the criteria for your condition’s diagnostic code, assigns each condition a percentage, then combines multiple ratings using its whole person formula rather than adding them together.
The VA does not add ratings, it combines them, so each new rating only applies to the part of you still considered healthy. Two 30 percent ratings combine to 51 percent, which the VA rounds to 50.
100 percent is the maximum schedular rating. Some veterans who cannot work reach the 100 percent pay rate through Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability, or TDIU, even when their combined schedular rating is lower.
Every condition in the schedule has a four digit diagnostic code, grouped by body system. The body system index on this page shows where each range lives, or you can ask Woobie AI to map your specific condition to its code for free.
Yes. When a condition is not listed by name, the VA rates it by analogy, using the criteria of the closest listed condition with similar symptoms and loss of function.
When you have disabilities affecting both arms, both legs, or paired skeletal muscles, the VA adds an extra 10 percent of their combined value before combining that result with your other conditions.
Generally yes. Tax free monthly compensation rises with your combined rating, and increases further at 30 percent and above when you have qualifying dependents.
No. Part 4 is only the rating schedule. The evidence rules, effective dates, and how a claim is actually decided live in other parts of Title 38, mainly Part 3.
Stop reading the schedule. Start asking it questions.
You have the rulebook. Woobie AI turns it into answers for your file: which code fits your conditions, what level your evidence supports, what the schedule says you might be missing, and exactly what to document next. Ask anything, any time, at no cost.
Map your conditions
Tell it what you are dealing with and it points to the right diagnostic codes and levels.
Find the gaps
It reads the criteria against your situation and shows where your evidence falls short.
Know your number
See a realistic combined rating and what it means before you ever file.
Related guides in the resource center
VA Disability 101
The claim process, start to finish
Read
How the VA rates PTSD
The mental health formula in depth
Read
Combined ratings, explained
Why the VA math works the way it does
Read
Secondary conditions
Ratings that flow from a primary condition
Read
Nexus letters
The medical link the VA looks for
Read
Why is my rating so low?
When the schedule and your file disagree
Read
Prefer to talk it through with a person?
The schedule is a lot. A free call with our team, former C&P examiners, turns it into a plan for your conditions. No pressure, no obligation.
This page is a plain language reference to help you navigate 38 CFR Part 4. It is not legal advice and it is not the complete regulation. Woobie is not a law firm or an accredited claims agent, and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.