Question:
I wanted to know if you are granted TDUI @ the 100% rating, but your service connection is 20%, do you qualify for Dependents pay, dental, and champ VA etc? I requested for my dependents to be added to my Total and Permanent rating with no future exams not scheduled, due to unemployability, but I was denied. They said because my combined rating is just 20%, I don't qualify for the rest of the benefits.
Jim's Reply:
It's rare to hear of a 20% rating that would make a veteran eligible for the 100% TDIU rating. So rare that I haven't ever heard of it. While there is an extra-schedular ratings approach to the 100% TDIU benefit, a single rating of 20% isn't likely to be enough. The typical path to TDIU requires a single rating of 60% or an overall rating of 70% with at least one rating of 40% in the mix. In any case, once we are rated at 100% TDIU as a permanent rating (not temporary - no future exams are scheduled) our dependents are eligible to receive all the usual TDIU benefits no matter the underlying rating. So...I'm sorry but your message isn't clear to me and unless you'd like to clarify just what the ratings are, that's all I have.