DVA At Risk Client Assessment Form: A Veteran's Guide to Tailored Care

What the DVA At Risk Client Assessment Form Actually Does

The DVA At Risk Client Assessment Form is a clinical document your GP completes to arrange clinically justified, tailored allied health referrals in rare or exceptional cases where the standard treatment cycle does not suit your care needs. It sits inside the broader At Risk Client Framework, which the DVA introduced on 1 October 2019 as part of major reforms to allied health referrals.

In plain language, the form gives your GP a way to say to DVA: "this veteran needs a different arrangement to stay well."

How It Differs From the Standard Treatment Cycle

Under the standard treatment cycle, your GP refers you to an allied health provider for up to 12 sessions or one year, whichever ends first. At the end of that cycle, the allied health provider writes a report back to your GP, and you need a new referral to keep going.

DVA treats the standard cycle as the usual care-coordination model. But if you have complex needs, multiple chronic conditions, or live in a regional area, those constant referral renewals can disrupt your treatment. The At Risk Client Assessment Form lets your GP arrange tailored referrals for 3, 6 or 12 months at a time without forcing you back into the standard cycle. 

Where the Form Sits in DVA's Allied Health Reform

The form is part of the At Risk Client Framework, which DVA explains is designed for the minority of clients whose health, treatment or wellbeing would be adversely affected by the standard arrangements. It exists alongside the existing exemption for Totally and Permanently Incapacitated (TPI) Gold Card holders, who are already exempt from the treatment cycle for physiotherapy and exercise physiology.

If you hold a TPI Gold Card, this exemption is separate to and in addition to anything we cover below.

Who May Be Considered for Tailored Referral Arrangements

DVA does not publish a fixed list of conditions that qualify. Instead, the framework asks your GP to make a clinical judgement based on whether the standard treatment cycle is adversely affecting your health, treatment or wellbeing, or placing an unreasonable burden on you.

According to DVA's allied health treatment cycle guidance, veterans may benefit from the At Risk Client Framework if they have all or some of the following factors.

Multiple and Complex Health Conditions

Veterans living with several accepted conditions at the same time may need a more flexible referral arrangement if the standard cycle disrupts their care or creates an unreasonable burden. A veteran managing chronic back pain, anxiety and sleep apnoea simultaneously may see a physiotherapist, psychologist and exercise physiologist on different schedules. Standard referral renewals across all three become a part-time job.

If you have multiple accepted service-related conditions, it may be worth asking a DVA claim specialist whether your accepted conditions and supporting evidence have been reviewed under the right MRCA pathway.

Functional Impairments and Rehabilitation Needs

Veterans with significant mobility limitations, complex rehabilitation requirements or recovery from surgery often need longer treatment courses than 12 sessions allow. Conditions like rotator cuff syndrome or cervical spondylosis can require structured, long-term physiotherapy that does not pause neatly at session 12.

Social and Geographic Factors

Where you live matters. If you are in a regional or remote area, you may not see allied health providers as often as veterans in capital cities. Travel costs, distance and limited provider availability can mean that even a single missed referral renewal causes weeks of delay. DVA recognises these social and locational factors as legitimate reasons for tailored arrangements.

How the DVA At Risk Client Assessment Form Works in Practice

The form itself is short, but its purpose is significant. Understanding the workflow helps you have a clear conversation with your GP.

Your GP's Role in Completing the Form

The At Risk Client Assessment Form is for use by GPs only. You cannot submit it yourself, and an allied health provider cannot complete it on your behalf.

Your GP must include a clinical justification on the form explaining why a tailored referral better serves your quality of care. According to DVA guidance for GPs, this explanation does not need to be exhaustive, but it must be individualised and specific to your circumstances.

Tom Kliese, founder of Veterans First Consulting, often reminds clients that the GP holds the pen here. Tom puts it simply: "Some GPs may not see this form often, so bringing the form name and a short list of what is not working under the current arrangement can make the appointment more focused.” Veterans who bring the form name to their GP appointment, with a short list of what they are struggling with, usually have a clearer and more focused conversation than veterans who hope their GP will raise it first.

Tailored Arrangement Durations: 3, 6, or 12 Months

Once your GP determines a tailored arrangement is appropriate, they will select a duration that suits your clinical needs. The framework supports three options: referrals valid for three months, six months or up to one year.

Your allied health provider must still send an End of Cycle Report to your GP at the end of the referral period, whichever duration you receive. This keeps your GP informed without forcing you back to square one mid-treatment.

What Happens After the Form Is Submitted

Your GP sends the completed form to treatment.cycle@dva.gov.au. The form is not a request, and DVA does not need to approve it before your tailored referral takes effect.

This is one of the better-designed parts of the framework. Your GP makes the clinical decision, lodges the form as a record, and your tailored arrangement begins. At the end of the referral period, your GP reviews your progress and decides whether another tailored arrangement is appropriate or whether you can return to the standard cycle.

Common Mistakes We See Veterans Make

We work with veterans across Australia on their DVA claims, and we see the same patterns repeat themselves around allied health referrals. A few are worth flagging.

1. The first is waiting until session 12 to ask about renewals. By that point, your GP appointment is rushed, the form is an afterthought, and you may leave with a standard renewal rather than a discussion about whether a tailored arrangement is clinically suitable. Raise the conversation at session 6 if you sense you will need more time.
2. The second is assuming dental, optical, or psychiatry referrals work the same way. Dental and optical do not require GP referrals at all, and psychiatry sits outside the treatment cycle entirely. The At Risk Client Assessment Form does not apply to these services.
3. The third is confusing the form with applying for a Gold Card or White Card. The form sits inside the existing health card framework. You need to already hold a Veteran Card to be referred for allied health. If you do not hold one, your starting point is the underlying initial liability claim, not this form.
4. The fourth is missing that the Coordinated Veterans' Care (CVC) Program may be a separate support pathway. Your GP can refer eligible veterans into CVC, which provides care coordination for chronic conditions and may suit veterans whose needs go beyond what tailored referrals alone can address.

Connecting the Form to Your Wider DVA Entitlements

The At Risk Client Assessment Form is a clinical tool, not a compensation tool. It does not change your accepted conditions, your impairment points or your card type. What it does change is how easily you can access the allied health support those entitlements were meant to provide.

That said, if you find yourself qualifying for tailored arrangements because of multiple complex service-related conditions, that pattern is worth examining. It may be worth reviewing whether your accepted conditions and current evidence support a permanent impairment assessment or reassessment under MRCA.

Multiple chronic conditions do not, by themselves, determine Gold Card eligibility. Under MRCA, one permanent impairment pathway requires DVA to assess the veteran at 60 or more impairment points. The form does not affect that assessment, but complex care needs may be a reason to review whether your current claims pathway and accepted conditions are properly documented.

AIHW reporting shows that DVA clients and veterans who separated involuntarily for medical reasons have a higher age-standardised prevalence of chronic conditions than non-DVA clients and veterans who separated voluntarily. That makes care coordination especially important for veterans with complex needs. 

How Veterans First Consulting Supports Your Allied Health Journey

We are an independent, paid service provider that helps veterans submit accurate DVA claims and understand the entitlements they may be eligible for. We do not complete the At Risk Client Assessment Form for you, because only your GP can do that.

What we do is help you reach the point where this form becomes relevant. Veterans with accepted conditions, the right card and a clear picture of their needs are usually better prepared for a productive conversation with their GP about tailored arrangements. Our team includes former DVA delegates who understand how the claims and treatment systems interact, and we have supported over 10,000 veterans through this work.

When you become an active client of Veterans First Consulting, we can help you understand what to look for in medical providers who are familiar with DVA processes as part of your claims journey. A GP and allied health team who understand DVA processes can make the conversation clearer and reduce avoidable confusion.

Care That Keeps Pace With You

Allied health care should support your recovery, not create more paperwork when your needs are already complex. The DVA At Risk Client Assessment Form may help your GP set up a tailored referral when the standard treatment cycle is not suitable. If that sounds like your situation, raise the form at your next GP appointment and bring a short list of what is not working under the current arrangements. If your wider DVA claim position also needs review, contact Veterans First Consulting for clear, practical guidance on your next step.