The 3.6% VA Raise Every Rated Veteran Could Get for 2027 - And the Bill It Still Needs

Will your VA disability check really go up 3.6% next year, or will it stay flat? Social Security announced a 3.6% raise on October 14, but your VA check only follows if Congress passes one more bill. At 100%, that is about $142 more a month, with no tax taken out. If the bill is not signed by December 1, your VA check stays at this year's amount. Inside this video: October 14: Social Security announces the 3.6% raise, and the VA raise needs its own bill S. 4487 and H.R. 8552: neither bill has passed either chamber, and the House is not back until November $142 a month: what 3.6% adds at 100%, from $3,938 today, about $1,700 a year $36 for every $1,000: how to work out your own raise, with nothing to file $0 in tax: the IRS says VA disability pay is not income, so the whole raise is yours December 1: the target date, and last year's bill was signed November 25 December 31: the first raised payment, so your early December deposit will still be the old rate Dorothy's story: a DIC widow at about $1,700 a month gets about $61 more if the bill passes Scott's story: his retired pay raise is locked in, but about $52 a month of his VA raise waits on Congress Which checks wait: Social Security, military retired pay and the VA pension rise on their own; disability pay and DIC wait on the vote The saved part: a spouse and child missing from a 100% award is over $4,500 a year, and the action list is VA Form 21-686c, VA Form 21-674, and filing within one year of the wedding or birth Where these numbers come from: SSA - 3.6% benefit increase announcement for 2027, October 14; paperless notice deadline November 18 Congress - S. 4487, H.R. 8552 and the Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act of 2026; last year's S. 2392; 38 U.S.C. 1114 (govinfo.gov bill text) VA.gov - disability compensation rates, adding or removing a dependent, VA Form 21-686c and VA Form 21-674 IRS - Publication 525, veterans' benefits not counted as income Stars and Stripes; American Legion; SOFX; The Money Overview - bill status and payment timing MOAA, citing VA - about 6.3 million veterans and nearly 550,000 survivors paid in fiscal 2025 Federal Register - where VA publishes the new amounts once the bill is law Filing is free. Call the VA at 800-827-1000, or ask an accredited veteran service officer at your county veterans office, the DAV, the VFW or the American Legion to look over your award at no cost, and never pay anyone a percentage of your back pay. This is general education about how the VA cost-of-living raise and dependent pay work, not advice about your own claim. Your own dates and numbers are what count, so check them with a VSO or the VA. This channel is not affiliated with the VA or any government agency. This is general education, not legal advice or claims representation. #VACOLA #VADisability #COLA2027 #VADependents #DICBenefits #VeteransCOLA #Veterans #VeteransBenefits