What exactly is VA Individual Unemployability back pay?
Total Disability Individual Unemployability (TDIU) Benefits, also known as Individual Unemployability Benefits, are for veterans who cannot work from service-connected disabilities.
Back pay is the money you should have been receiving while you were waiting on the VA to approve your claim. Veterans who are eligible for Individual Unemployability Benefits often receive a lump-sum check from the Veterans Administration, known as back pay or retro pay. Too often, veterans only receive their VA Individual Unemployability back pay to the date they appealed or some other date. That is not the date you should have started receiving VA Individual Unemployability Benefits!
Your back pay should go all the way back to your “effective date” – this could be years before you started applying. The problem is that effective dates can be hard to determine. The Veterans Administration often gets effective dates wrong and many veterans don’t know that they should have an earlier effective date. This mistake can cost veterans thousands of dollars.
Professionalism, Quality, Responsiveness, Value: I am very pleased with the service I received from Woods & Woods. After trying & failing multiple times over many years to get the widow’s compensation from the VA, I turned to Woods & Woods and they were successful in helping me get the compensation my husband earned as a decorated Veteran. I am so glad we found them. They are wonderful and very good at what they do. They are very professional and keep you updated and informed throughout the process. I highly recommend Woods & Woods.
J.C. – From Google Reviews

How much should I receive in VA Individual Unemployability back pay?
Every veteran’s Individual Unemployability Benefits case is different.
The monthly payment amounts are listed in the charts below. You can figure how much you might collect on your own claim by finding the amount that applies to your family situation and multiplying it by the number of months of missed compensation (based on your effective date).
Because it can take a while to be approved for IU benefits, the back pay owed to you can add up fast.
Individual Unemployability Pay Rate without Children – 2022 Amounts
Dependents | Monthly Amount |
---|---|
Veteran alone | $3,332.06 |
Veteran with spouse | $3,517.84 |
Veteran with spouse and one parent | $3666.94 |
Veteran with spouse and 2 parents | $3816.04 |
Veteran with 1 parent | $3481.16 |
Veteran with 2 parents | $3630.26 |
Additional for spouse receiving A/A | $170.38 |
Individual Unemployability Pay Rate with Children – 2022 Amounts
Dependents | Monthly Amount |
---|---|
Veteran with one child | $3,456.30 |
Veteran with spouse and one child | $3,653.89 |
Veteran with spouse, one child, and one parent | $3,802.99 |
Veteran with spouse, one child, and two parents | $3,952.09 |
Veteran with one child and one parent | $3,605.40 |
Veteran with one child and two parents | $3,754.50 |
Additional for each child under age 18 | $92.31 |
Additional for each child over age 18 in qualifying school | $298.18 |
Additional for spouse receiving A/A | $170.38 |
For example, a veteran with one child who has missed five years of compensation would be owed more than $185,000 in back pay.
As you can see in the chart, the amount increases if a veteran has a spouse, more dependent children, and parents. Some veterans may be eligible for Aid and Attendance benefits depending on their conditions.
Individual Unemployability attorney Neil Woods answers common questions about IU benefits:
What if the VA says I’m not entitled to VA Individual Unemployability back pay?
If you applied and received an Individual Unemployability Benefit denial you have the option to appeal. Woods & Woods VA Disability Benefits Attorneys have filed thousands of appeals against the Veterans Administration. If you were denied, just know that is not the end of the road. If you end up winning your appeal, you will receive your VA Individual Unemployability back pay.
If you had a random VA employee tell you that you are not eligible – apply anyway. Many VA employees simply don’t know VA Individual Unemployability Benefits laws. Never take advice from a random VA employee who tells you you are not eligible. They may not have reviewed your medical records and they likely didn’t go do legal research to help you with your claim.
How do I get my missing Individual Unemployability back pay?
The VA Disability lawyers at Woods & Woods have filed appeals for thousands of veterans who are missing back pay from the VA. You can get your missing back pay – even if you don’t discover the missing back pay until years later. Unfortunately, missing back pay is more common than you think.
Step One: Legal Consultation
Give Woods & Woods a call and learn about your eligibility. We will answer all your questions and have you tell us about your mental and physical disabilities. Legal consultations are free and confidential.
Step Two: Free IU Application Help
If you need to apply, Woods & Woods can help you get started. If you were denied Individual Unemployability (IU) disability benefits we can help you appeal.
Step Three: Hire IU Lawyer
After hiring Woods & Woods, your Individual Unemployability lawyer will get all the evidence you need to win your claim. Our legal team often works with doctors, psychologists, and vocational experts to make it clear to the VA if you are disabled and can no longer work.
Step Four: We Take Over Your Case
We take over all communication with the Veterans Administration. You don’t have to wait on hold with the VA anymore – you call Woods & Woods. We even call you regularly to keep you posted on the progress whether the VA has moved or not.
Step Five: We Submit Everything For Your Appeal
We submit everything for your claim to the Veterans Administration. That means we gather all the medical evidence, talk to doctors about their reports, craft your legal argument, and write the brief, within strict time limits.
Step Six: VA Makes Decision On Your Claim
The Veterans Administration makes a decision on your claim. Remember, you only pay our lawyers if you obtain VA benefits. If your claim is not successful, you don’t owe us a penny.
Thank you so much for handling my appeals. You guys made it painless and easy to understand the process. And most of all thank you for helping me take better care of my family! ????
S.B. – -On Google Reviews
Should I hire a lawyer to get my VA Individual Unemployability back pay?
Guess what every client at Woods & Woods VA disability lawyers has in common? They were all denied veterans benefits before becoming our client. Many of them relied on a free VSO or did their applications on their own before turning to us to help win their claims.
When you hire Woods & Woods VA disability compensation lawyers, you get a team of highly qualified lawyers working on your case. We work with doctors, psychologists, and vocational experts to help you win your claim. When you hire us, you will be assigned to a case manager. That means you always have someone to call to ask questions about your case. We work hard to keep clients informed about the status of their claims. Through teamwork and dedication, we help disabled veterans get the VA Individual Unemployability back pay they deserve.
A Woods & Woods Individual Unemployability lawyer explains what it takes to get IU benefits from the VA:
Frequently Asked Questions About Individual Unemployability Back Pay
Every veteran is going to be owed a different amount of money for their Individual Unemployability back pay. There is no set standard amount you will receive. You can use our back pay calculator to estimate your amount.
You should receive your Individual Unemployability back pay when the Veterans Administration approves your claim.
Every veteran’s case is different. Your effective date determines how far back your Individual Unemployability back pay should go. Your effective date is usually not the same day you applied for Individual Unemployability benefits.
You should always investigate to find out if your effective date was incorrectly assigned and if you should have an earlier effective date.
Talk to us about your Individual Unemployability back pay for free.
If you can’t work from service-connected mental and physical impairments, you might be able to receive Total Disability Individual Unemployability (TDIU) benefits from the Veterans Administration. VA Unemployability benefits for veterans can help get your life back in order if you can’t keep or obtain meaningful employment. Veterans who receive accommodations at work may also be eligible to receive Individual Unemployability benefits. We’ve helped thousands of veterans get the benefits they earned. Call us today to see if we can help you, too.