VETS Act 2026: How Your Next DVA Claim Works Under One Act

Why a 2025 Law Carries a 2026 Label

The law behind these changes has a long name and a date that trips people up. Getting both straight makes DVA letters and web pages easier to follow.

The Name Behind the Search Term

The search term says 2026, yet the law's formal title ends in 2025. You can read the full title on Australia's Federal Register of Legislation. Its opening words give the VETS initials.

A few parts started in 2025, such as a change to how DVA decisions are reviewed. The biggest change came later, on 1 July.

DVA's VETS Act overview says the two older Acts stopped accepting new claims that day. That start date is likely why "2026" has stuck to the name.

Three Laws, One Door for New Claims

Before July, your service could fall under any of three laws, sometimes more than one:

• The VEA, a 1986 law for wartime and some older service
• The DRCA, a 1988 law covering most peacekeeping and peacetime service before mid-2004
• The MRCA, a 2004 law for service from July 2004 onwards

DVA's page on the MRCA confirms the two older Acts have stopped taking fresh claims for compensation or rehabilitation. Apart from travel for earlier trips, all of those claims now sit with the MRCA, whatever your service dates. 

The same page lists who it can cover, from Permanent and Reserve members to National Servicemen and cadets.

Which Act Handles Your Claim Now

Two things decide which rules apply: when DVA received your claim and what kind of claim it is. Start with this quick guide, then read the detail that fits your situation.

Claims DVA Already Had

Liability or impairment claims that reached DVA before July stay under the Act they were lodged under. DVA's claims processing page confirms this for both claim types. No fresh lodgement is needed.

Incapacity payments already flowing under the DRCA follow a different rule, covered further down. Travel claims have their own date rule too, covered in the questions below.

Claims You Lodge Now

The MRCA now covers any compensation claim you lodge, except travel for journeys made before July. That includes first claims, claims about an accepted condition worsening and new incapacity claims.

DVA's MRCA claiming page confirms the MRCA now covers veterans whose service sat under the other Acts.

Your kind of service still matters, because it decides how much proof DVA needs. DVA's claim assessment guide explains the two standards. Section 335 of the MRCA applies the reasonable hypothesis test to hazardous, British nuclear test, non-warlike and warlike service.

Peacekeeping counts as non-warlike service. For those four kinds, the evidence must raise a reasonable hypothesis that ties the condition to the circumstances of your particular service. DVA must then accept liability unless it is satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that no link exists.

What counts as reasonable is usually judged under Statements of Principles, legal instruments written for specific conditions. Peacetime claims use a balance of probabilities test, so the link must be likelier than not.

Support You Already Have Stays in Place

If DVA already supports you, you will want to know where that support stands. In short, it carries on, with a few rules on how older claims connect to new ones.

Existing Payments Keep Going

DVA calls this protection "grandparenting". The DVA notice on new claims moving to the MRCA covers payments already reaching you. Payments made under either older Act keep arriving without a break and rise with indexation as before.

The same notice names one exception. Veterans whose DRCA incapacity payments were still running when June ended now get MRCA incapacity payments, which DVA describes as more beneficial.

The notice also confirms two other supports moved across. Open rehabilitation plans now sit with the MRCA, and so does any education support a student was already getting.

Accepted Conditions Come With You

A condition accepted earlier under either older Act needs no second round of proof. DVA's guidance on earlier accepted conditions says the MRCA now treats it as accepted too.

One question veterans ask us is whether they must claim an old accepted condition again before claiming it has got worse. They do not, because the acceptance carries across. The worsening claim goes to the MRCA once any older claim covering the condition is finalised.

The same guidance also protects families. Should an accepted condition cause death, DVA links that death to service with no extra investigation.

Older Claims Must Finish First

A DVA VetAffairs article on the reformed system sets out one timing rule. Any claim still open under an older Act needs to be finalised first, before DVA can decide further MRCA compensation. An older claim is usually finalised once its appeal period ends.

Finalising those claims lets DVA set a baseline rating. That rating records your existing impairment for later impairment claims. Meanwhile, nothing stops you lodging a fresh MRCA claim about a new condition.

The article adds a DRCA detail. Say you lodged a DRCA claim before July and asked for an impairment assessment. If the claimed condition is accepted, DRCA rules still govern the impairment assessment and any lump sum.

Where Incapacity Payments Stand Now

Incapacity payments help make up income lost because an accepted condition keeps you from working or lowers your earnings. DVA's incapacity payments page says every new incapacity claim since July goes to the MRCA.

That holds even for a condition first accepted under an older Act.

If your DRCA payments for lost earnings were still running when June ended, they now continue as MRCA payments. A new application is only needed if those payments had already stopped. In most cases, incapacity payments end once Age Pension age arrives.

Our incapacity payments guide shows how they are calculated and reviewed.

What the Updated MRCA Adds for New Claims

The new law did more than merge three Acts. It reshaped how DVA tests the link between service and a condition, and it brought in a payment for older veterans.

When the Service Link Is Presumed

With presumptive liability, DVA can treat certain conditions as linked to service once set criteria are met, so you need not establish the link. DVA's page on the presumptive test says a doctor must confirm a listed condition. Your service must then fit the rules set for that condition.

The list takes in at least 80 conditions commonly tied to service. It also covers listed conditions tied to firefighting, F-111 deseal and reseal work, workplace exposures and experiences of abuse.

Some conditions need a minimum time served or a particular kind of service. An onset timeframe may apply as well. The test may not apply where clear evidence points to another cause.

No separate application is needed, because DVA checks it first on claims lodged since July. DVA's processing times page says a claim for an eligible presumptive condition can sometimes be decided inside 2 weeks. For that chance of a faster decision, lodge everything DVA requires with your claim, plus a confirmed diagnosis for every condition.

Injuries That Happen on Duty

DVA's name for the second new test is medical event on duty. Under DVA's assessment guide, linked above, it covers an injury you suffer on duty. DVA's VETS Act overview also says your duties need not have caused the injury.

Examples include broken bones, strokes and heart attacks, but diseases like cancer fall outside it. DVA applies it after the presumptive test. If neither test fits, DVA uses its Statements of Principles, which decide most other claims.

Other Changes to How Liability Works

DVA's notice on liability changes lists three more improvements:

• DVA may now accept conditions caused by tobacco used before 1998
• If the rules for your condition change between your first decision and its review, the review uses the version that suits you better
• Accidental harm to a serving member from Defence health care can now be covered, even for treatment of a pre-existing condition

A New Payment for Older Veterans

The law also created a payment for older veterans known as the ADA. It works much like the EDA, which the VEA pays to some older veterans with severe impairment.

Section 220A of the MRCA, linked above, sets four conditions that must all apply:

• DVA has accepted liability for one condition or more
• DVA has rated the impairment from those conditions under the MRCA's rules at 70 points or more, with lifestyle effects at 6 or more
• You are not paid SRDP or MRCA incapacity payments. You also get none of the VEA's EDA, TPI, TTI or Intermediate rates
• You have reached Age Pension age

DVA's ADA page explains how an assessment starts. The ADA stays closed until Age Pension age, though some younger veterans may meet SRDP's criteria instead. DVA's SRDP page sets out the criteria.

SRDP cannot be paid until you have had financial advice. The adviser or lawyer you use has to be suitably qualified and independent. If you then choose SRDP, you cannot change that choice later.

Worsening Conditions, Impairment and Cards

Two practical questions follow once you know which law covers your claim. One covers a worsening condition. The other covers the Gold Card.

Worsening Conditions

Under DVA's permanent impairment page, a worsening of 5 points or more can bring extra impairment compensation. That includes veterans whose only cover before July came from the two older Acts.

DVA takes any VEA disability payments or DRCA impairment lump sums already paid to you into account when setting the MRCA amount. That keeps your combined compensation within the MRCA's top weekly amount.

Your impairment must still reach 10 points or more before DVA pays any impairment compensation. Hearing loss, lost taste or smell and lost fingers or toes need only 5 points. My permanent impairment guide explains how points are assessed.

Where the Gold Card Fits

The Gold Card has a formal DVA title: Veteran Card - All Conditions. DVA's card eligibility page lists three MRCA routes:

• An assessment of 60 points or more
• Qualifying for SRDP
• Qualifying for the ADA

Veterans who had DRCA cover before July have a separate route with extra conditions.

Our Gold Card explainer sets out what the card funds and the other routes to it.

Making Your Next Claim

DVA encourages online lodging through MyService. A complete claim avoids being put on hold, so these are the items DVA needs.

Getting Your Claim Ready

DVA's claim lodgement page lists three things to send: a diagnosis for every condition you claim, the claim form and identity documents. A qualified doctor must provide the diagnosis. Registered MyService users need no identity documents.

Do not book extra assessments or reports unless DVA has asked for them and approved them. Without that approval, you may be left paying the bill yourself.

DVA registers an incomplete claim but holds it until the missing items arrive. After accepting liability, DVA first assesses your needs, then pays any compensation that is due.

In our experience, missing or mismatched paperwork is a common cause of delay. We also see veterans ask about impairment compensation before liability is settled. DVA pays no impairment compensation until it has accepted liability for that condition, so start with the liability claim.

Care Before DVA Decides

The same DVA page notes that some treatment can be funded before any decision on the claim. NLHC funds care for some conditions, such as cancer and mental ill health, for eligible veterans. It needs no accepted claim.

DVA's PAMT page explains interim cover for 20 listed conditions. To use it, eligible veterans must lodge their claim no later than 30 June 2027. Cover stops once DVA rules on the claim or when 31 December 2027 arrives, whichever is earlier.

Ways to Lodge and Get Help

You have three main options:

• Lodge on MyService, which you sign in to through myGov. Under Apply now, choose the Initial Liability option to begin
• Without an advocate, a paper form is another option. When an advocate helps you, MyService is the preferred channel rather than the only one
• For help in person, visit your nearest Veterans' Access Network shopfront. For phone help, ring DVA's 1800 VETERAN line on 1800 838 372

Until DVA reaches a decision, it says you should hear from it about once every 30 days. Some people may hear from DVA more often, others less.

For support with your wellbeing along the way, phone Open Arms counselling at 1800 011 046. Veterans and people still serving can use its counselling at no cost, and so can their families.

My how-to guide for DVA claims covers MyService in more detail.

Questions Veterans Ask About the July Changes

Here are three follow-up questions, each with its own DVA rule behind it.

Does a Travel Claim Follow the Trip Date or the Claim Date?

The trip date decides it. Under DVA's travel reimbursement notice, a trip before the changeover follows the rules of whichever Act applied to you that day. This holds even when lodging happens later.

The MRCA covers trips since then. For those trips, veterans with current DRCA or MRCA eligibility no longer face a 50 km minimum when driving their own vehicle.

Can You Claim Again for a Condition DVA Turned Down?

It may be possible. DVA's rules on new claims after a rejection cover conditions rejected under any older Act or the MRCA. A fresh MRCA claim could then follow.

The earlier claim must be fully finalised and its appeal time must have run out. You also need new evidence. DVA treats the new presumptive test as new evidence for this purpose, provided your condition and service meet its criteria.

Can You Still Seek a Review?

Yes. DVA's guide to assessing claims, linked above, says the letter you receive explains why DVA decided as it did and lists your appeal rights.

Act within the timeframe your letter gives. Missed appeal deadlines are among the worst mistakes we come across, so note the date once your letter arrives. My DVA appeals guide explains the review steps.

How We Help With Your MRCA Claim

For MRCA claims, our team prepares permanent impairment claims as well as incapacity claims. We also handle the initial liability claims that start the process. Former DVA staff work in our team and bring a working knowledge of DVA policy.

We are a paid service that is independent of DVA. We work only on claims with DVA and the entitlements that flow from them.

One Act, Your Next Claim

Since July, the MRCA decides fresh compensation claims other than travel for earlier trips, while the support you already rely on carries on.

We have supported over 10,000 veterans through the DVA claims process. Should your next claim need a second view, our team is ready when you contact Veterans First Consulting.