Veterans can get both VA disability pay and Social Security disability benefits, SSA says

The Social Security Administration (SSA) sent a reminder about benefits for veterans. Here is what its veterans page says.

Two different programs: SSA pays disability benefits through Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI), for workers (and certain family members) who worked long enough and recently enough, and Supplemental Security Income (SSI), for people 65 or older and people of any age, including children, who are blind or have disabilities and whose income and resources are below set limits.

You can get both: SSDI and VA disability compensation do not affect each other, so you may be eligible for both, but you must apply for each separately. Social Security uses a strict definition: it pays only for a severe condition expected to last at least a year or to result in death, and it does not pay for partial or short-term disability. The VA pays for service-connected disabilities on a rating scale.

Faster claims: If you have a VA disability rating of 100% Permanent & Total, or you became disabled while on active military service on or after Oct. 1, 2001, your Social Security disability claim may be expedited. SSA usually identifies these veterans automatically, but in rare cases you may need to show your VA notification letter.

Online: A personal my Social Security account lets you see estimates of future benefits, review your earnings history, request a replacement card and check an application’s status: https://www.ssa.gov/myaccount/ . Veterans page: https://www.ssa.gov/people/veterans/ .

This is a Notice Nearby publisher-desk brief based on an SSA email sent to publisher@noticenearby.com on Oct. 4, 2026. It is not a legal notice, not benefits advice, and not Legal Publication. Photo: a Social Security office in downtown Corning, New York, by J. Passepartout, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (resized).