A rejected DVA claim is not necessarily the end of the matter. The decision may be reviewed where DVA made an error about the diagnosis, service connection, applicable legal test, weight of the evidence or another requirement.
The first step is to read the decision and identify exactly why the claim failed. A successful DVA review usually addresses the reasoning in the decision rather than simply repeating the original claim.
Under the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2004 (MRCA), a decision notice must provide the terms of the decision, the reasons for it and information about the available review options. DVA policy also requires liability decisions to explain the condition claimed, diagnosis, evidence considered, applicable standard of proof and why the condition was or was not related to service.
Start with the reasons for rejection
A DVA claim rejected decision may turn on one or more distinct issues. These may include the absence of a confirmed diagnosis, insufficient evidence of a relevant service event or exposure, failure to satisfy a Statement of Principles factor, disagreement about when the condition began or a medical opinion that DVA preferred over the veteran’s evidence.
Identify each finding that needs to change. For example, if DVA accepted the diagnosis but rejected the connection to service, obtaining further evidence about the veteran’s current symptoms may not address the real problem. The review may instead require service records, a clearer chronology or a medical opinion dealing with causation.
DVA should explain why particular evidence was accepted or preferred where it was necessary to assess and weigh competing material. A decision that does not adequately explain a material finding may require closer examination.
Evidence to obtain before seeking review
- A confirmed diagnosis and current treatment information.
- Service medical and personnel records where available.
- A clear chronology of duties, incidents, exposures, symptom onset and treatment.
- Specialist evidence addressing the reason DVA rejected the claim.
- Witness statements or contemporaneous material relevant to disputed events.
- The decision letter, reasons and evidence relied upon by DVA.
- Copies of earlier decisions, assessments and review documents.
The evidence should be targeted. If DVA found that a medical report did not adequately explain causation, the practitioner should be given the relevant service history and asked to address that issue directly. If DVA found that a specified exposure threshold was not met, the review evidence should address the nature, frequency and duration of that exposure.
Repeating the same material without addressing the identified evidentiary or legal gap will not necessarily change the outcome.
Which review pathway applies?
The appropriate DVA appeal pathway depends on the date and type of decision, the governing legislation and the review instructions in the decision letter.
For most eligible compensation and rehabilitation decisions made on or after 21 April 2025, including MRCA decisions from 1 July 2026, the single review pathway generally begins with an external merits review by the Veterans’ Review Board. It is not usually necessary to complete a claimant-requested internal reconsideration before applying to the Board.
The Veterans’ Review Board is independent of DVA. It conducts a fresh merits review, meaning it considers the relevant facts, law and policy and makes its own decision rather than merely checking whether DVA’s process was legally valid.
The single review pathway covers eligible decisions about matters including initial liability, permanent impairment compensation, incapacity payments, disability compensation payments and related entitlements. It does not apply in the same way to every DVA decision. VEA income-support and qualifying-service decisions, for example, generally proceed directly to the Administrative Review Tribunal.
Decisions made before 21 April 2025 may follow the previous review pathways. The method of lodgement and available review body can differ according to whether the decision arose under the MRCA, VEA or DRCA. The decision letter should therefore be checked before an application is lodged.
Protect the review deadline
For most MRCA compensation decisions made on or after 21 April 2025, an application to the Veterans’ Review Board must ordinarily be lodged within 12 months after receiving notice of the decision. Most eligible DRCA decisions made on or after that date also have a 12-month period. Different deadlines apply to some VEA matters.
The Veterans’ Review Board states that these time limits are strict and that it has no power to extend the deadline for applying for review. The timeframe in the decision letter should therefore be treated as critical.
For a VEA decision concerning liability or the death of a veteran, the usual review period may be 12 months, but applying within three months can be necessary to preserve maximum arrears. A VEA pension-rate or attendant-allowance decision ordinarily has a three-month review period.
Do not allow the deadline to expire while waiting for perfect medical evidence. Where necessary, lodge the review application in time, identify why the decision is disputed and continue obtaining the relevant evidence in accordance with the Board’s directions.
How to apply to the Veterans’ Review Board
For a reviewable decision made on or after 21 April 2025, the application is lodged directly with the Veterans’ Review Board. The Board currently accepts applications using its application form, including by email, post or delivery to a registry.
The application should include the veteran’s contact details and DVA client or unique identification number, the date the decision was received, the decision reference number, a copy of the decision and brief reasons why the decision is said to be wrong.
An application does not need to contain every final submission or medical report on the day it is lodged. However, the grounds should be specific enough to identify the disputed findings and preserve the review within time.
Applications concerning decisions made before 21 April 2025 may need to be lodged through DVA or the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Commission under the previous arrangements.
What happens after the application is lodged?
For an application lodged directly with the Veterans’ Review Board, the original decision-maker must provide the decision and relevant review documents within 28 days after being notified of the application. These are referred to as the section 352D documents for an MRCA review.
Those documents should be compared with the material originally submitted. This can reveal which evidence DVA considered, whether relevant documents were omitted and why competing medical opinions were treated differently.
The Board actively manages matters and may use online dispute resolution, a conference, another facilitated dispute-resolution process or a hearing. Its procedures are intended to be accessible, fair, economical, informal and proportionate to the complexity of the dispute.
Applications concerning MRCA permanent impairment compensation are subject to mandatory early triage to online dispute resolution after the application has been accepted, the section 352D report has been received and the applicant has responded to the relevant notice. If the matter is not resolved, it may proceed through further dispute-resolution events and ultimately to a hearing.
Representation and medical evidence
A veteran has the right to be represented during the Veterans’ Review Board process. However, lawyers cannot appear as representatives at Board hearings. Legal practitioners may assist with written submissions and can participate in alternative dispute-resolution events. Ex-service organisations and some Legal Aid Commissions may provide advocates without charge.
A veteran may apply to DVA for reimbursement of some costs associated with obtaining medical evidence for a Board review, including associated travel expenses. The reimbursement process is administered by DVA rather than the Board.
The review evidence should remain focused on the findings in dispute. A further medical report is most useful when it considers the diagnosis, relevant service facts, applicable criteria and contrary material before explaining its conclusion.
What if the Veterans’ Review Board does not resolve the matter?
Where available, a person dissatisfied with the Board’s decision may apply to the Administrative Review Tribunal. Under the current single review pathway, the usual timeframe is three months from the Board’s decision, although the decision notice and legislation should always be checked.
The Administrative Review Tribunal replaced the former Administrative Appeals Tribunal, so references to an “AAT appeal” in older correspondence or online material may no longer reflect the current tribunal structure.
Final check before lodging a review
Before lodging a DVA appeal, identify the reviewable decision, the applicable legislation, the correct review body and the deadline stated in the decision letter.
Prepare a chronology and compare the reasons with the evidence DVA considered. Determine whether the case requires further service records, a clarified diagnosis, specialist evidence, legal submissions or a combination of those steps.
Most importantly, do not wait until the final days of the review period to obtain advice. The Veterans’ Review Board cannot extend its application deadline, and the best evidence may take time to obtain.
Before accepting a rejected decision
A DVA claim rejected decision should be assessed by reference to the reasons, evidence and applicable legal test. The strongest DVA review applications identify the precise error and present targeted evidence or submissions addressing it.
KSC Law can review the decision letter, DVA’s evidence and the available review rights. We can identify the appropriate DVA appeal pathway, prepare written submissions and assist with the evidence required for a review by the Veterans Review Board or a further tribunal application.