NVLSP Announces Release of 2025-2026 Edition of Veterans Benefits Manual
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE December 16, 2025
ARLINGTON, VA- The National Veterans Legal Services Program (NVLSP) announces the release of the 2025-2026 edition of its renowned Veterans Benefits Manual. This new edition has been painstakingly updated to reflect critical changes in veterans law and includes new advocacy strategies to better assist veterans and their representatives.
“The 2025-2026 Veterans Benefits Manual is an indispensable resource for all advocates working on behalf of veterans,” said NVLSP Executive Director Paul Wright. “In publishing the Veterans Benefits Manual each year, we’re dedicated to offering the vital analysis of the latest legal developments and hands-on advice for navigating the complex landscape of veterans benefits.”
The most significant new information and advocacy advice includes:
- An expanded section detailing the different types of special monthly compensation (SMC) (Section 5.7)
- Discussion of the new burn-pit-related presumptions of service connection added by VA regulations in 2025 (Section 3.9.2.2)
- A revised section describing the complex effective date rules for benefit awards made pursuant to the PACT Act or the VA’s 2025 regulations establishing presumptions of service connection based on exposure to toxins (Section 8.13)
- Advocacy tips and discussion of recent court rulings describing the types of cases in which the VA may be required to assign a higher disability rating to veterans who use medication to ameliorate the effects of their service-connected conditions (Sections 5.1.5.8 and 5.2.1.6)
- Explanation of the multiple improvements made by the landmark Senator Elizabeth Dole 21st Century Veterans Healthcare and Benefits Improvement Act, including those related to Community Care Programs (Sections 10.5, 10.6, 10.8, 10.14, 10.15, 10.17, 10.18); Nursing Home, Other Long-Term Care, and Family Caregivers (Sections 10.3, 10.6, 10.7, 10.8, 10.9, 10.15); and Educational Assistance (Sections 2.3, 7.1, 7.2, 7.6, 10.12, 11.1, 11.2)
- A new section (17.8.3.2) explaining the process advocates should use to access their client’s VA claims file through the Veterans Benefits Management System (VBMS) and the documents not available through VBMS
- An overview of the 2025 changes to the VA’s process for reviewing, determining, and allocating reasonable fees for VA claims representation by accredited agents and attorneys (Section 19.2)
- An expanded section discussing what constitutes clear and unmistakable error (CUE) and how courts analyze whether to overturn BVA dismissals or denials of CUE claims (Section 14.4)
- An updated section explaining the accrued benefits available to a survivor of a VA claimant based on a claim pending when the claimant died, to include a discussion of the VA filing requirements that a survivor must now satisfy to substitute for the deceased claimant in a pending court action (Section 7.3.1)
- Advice concerning the non-regulatory, internal VA guidance prohibiting the VA from pursuing a veteran to collect a debt arising from overpayment, on timeliness grounds (Section 9.2.2)
Since its first publication in 1991, the Veterans Benefits Manual has served as the definitive guide for veterans’ advocates. The 2025-2026 edition continues to offer detailed explanations of veterans law, practical advocacy tips, and important updates that equip advocates with the tools to secure the benefits their clients deserve.
The editors of the 2025-2026 edition are NVLSP Co-Founder and Special Counsel Barton F. Stichman, Director of Training and Publications Richard V. Spataro, Director of Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims Litigation Stacy A. Tromble, Director of NVLSP’s Lawyers Serving Warriors® Pro Bono Program Rochelle Bobroff, former Joint Executive Director Ronald B. Abrams, Special Counsel Louis J. George, and Special Counsel Christine Cote Hill.
To order a printed or eBook version of the 2025-2026 Veterans Benefits Manual, visit the Veterans Benefits Manual webpage.
About The National Veterans Legal Services Program (NVLSP)
The National Veterans Legal Services Program (NVLSP) is an independent, nonprofit veterans service organization that has served active duty military personnel and veterans since 1981. NVLSP strives to ensure that our nation honors its commitment to its 18 million veterans and active duty personnel by ensuring they have the benefits they have earned through their service to our country. NVLSP has represented veterans in lawsuits that compelled enforcement of the law where the VA or other military services denied benefits to veterans in violation of the law. NVLSP’s success in these lawsuits has resulted in more than $7.2 billion dollars being awarded in disability, death and medical benefits to hundreds of thousands of veterans and their survivors. NVLSP offers training for attorneys and other advocates; connects veterans and active duty personnel with pro bono legal help when seeking disability benefits; publishes the nation’s definitive guide on veteran benefits; and represents and litigates for veterans and their families before the VA, military discharge review agencies and federal courts. For more information, go to nvlsp.org.
Media contact:
Patty Briotta, 202-621-5698, patty@nvlsp.org