VA Total Disability Individual Unemployability (TDIU): 100% Rate When You Can’t Work
The VA assigns disability ratings (ranging from 0% to 100%) to measure the severity of a condition. But what happens if your combined rating is less than 100%, yet your service-connected conditions prevent you from working altogether?
This is where Total Disability Individual Unemployability (TDIU) comes in. TDIU is a special status that allows the VA to pay you compensation at the 100% disability rate, even if your assigned percentage rating is lower than 100%. It’s the VA’s way of recognizing that your disabilities are so severe that they prevent you from keeping what the VA calls “substantially gainful employment.”
Understanding TDIU, what it takes to pursue this benefit, and what kind of medical evidence may support your case is a critical step in your benefits journey.
What TDIU Really Means
TDIU is not a disability rating itself; it is a way to get paid at the 100% rate.
To seek TDIU, you generally must show two things:
- You are unable to secure or maintain a job that pays you enough to live on (substantially gainful employment) because of your service-connected disabilities.
- Your disability ratings meet certain minimum rules (the Schedular Pathway).
Please note that TDIU is based solely on your service-connected conditions. The VA will not consider conditions that are not related to your service, your age, or the general job market when deciding TDIU.
- Learn more about the differences between TDIU and 100% Disability: Is VA Unemployability the Same as 100% Disability? Key Differences Explained
The TDIU Schedular Pathway: Meeting the Rating Rules
Most veterans pursue TDIU through the “schedular pathway,” which requires your disability ratings to meet specific thresholds set by the VA.
To potentially meet these rules, you must be unable to work because of your service-connected conditions, AND one of the following must be true:
- Option 1: Single Disability. You have at least one service-connected disability that is rated at 60% or more disabling.
- Option 2: Multiple Disabilities (The 70/40 Rule). You have two or more service-connected disabilities, with:
- At least one of those disabilities rated at 40% or more, AND
- A total combined rating of 70% or more.
The Domino Effect: When One Condition Causes Another
It’s common for one service-connected condition to cause or make another condition worse. This is known as a secondary service connection. When this happens, those secondary conditions may also be included in the TDIU calculations.
- Example: If your service-connected knee injury forces you to change your walking, which then leads to a new, service-connected hip condition (the domino effect), both the knee and hip ratings may be combined to help you reach the 60% or 70% combined rating thresholds for TDIU. You must have medical evidence to show this connection.
What Does “Unemployable” Truly Mean?
For TDIU, the key term is “substantially gainful employment.” This is the core concept of the benefit.
Substantially gainful employment means steady, competitive work that allows you to earn a living with an income that is usually above the federal poverty line for a single person.
However, not all work will disqualify you. The VA recognizes two important exceptions:
1. Marginal Employment
If the money you earn in a year is less than the federal poverty line for a single person, your work is generally considered “marginal employment” and may not prevent you from pursuing TDIU.
- As of 2025, the federal poverty guideline for a single person in the 48 contiguous states is $ $15,650 per year.
2. Protected Employment
Even if your income is above the poverty line, you may still qualify for TDIU if your job is “protected” or “sheltered.” This means your employer makes special accommodations for your disabilities that an average company in the competitive job market wouldn’t offer.
Examples of protected employment include:
- Working for a family business where they tolerate frequent absences or poor performance due to your conditions.
- An employer creating a specific, easy role for you that doesn’t exist elsewhere.
- Getting excessive flexibility regarding breaks, hours, or workload due to your symptoms (e.g., leaving early due to chronic pain or a panic attack).
The VA’s focus is on whether your service-connected conditions truly prevent you from keeping a consistent job in the general workforce.
Evidence: Building a Medical Picture of Your Limitations
Proving unemployability requires detailed and objective evidence that clearly links your service-connected disabilities to your functional limitations—what you cannot do in a work setting.
At Trajector Medical, we focus on helping you understand your medical history and documentation. We do not file claims, provide legal representation, or guarantee the outcome of benefits. You decide what to do with the evidence you pursue.
Essential Forms
To pursue TDIU, you may need to submit these two official VA forms:
- VA Form 21-8940 (Veteran’s Application for Increased Compensation Based on Unemployability): This is the main form for the application. You must carefully list all service-connected disabilities that prevent you from working.
- VA Form 21-4192 (Request for Employment Information): This form is sent to your former employers to confirm your work history, earnings, and the reasons you left the job.
The Role of Medical Documentation
Strong medical evidence doesn’t just list a diagnosis; it describes what your disability prevents you from doing on a daily basis that matters for a job (your functional limitations).
- Functional Limitations: Your VA and private medical records should show the diagnosis, severity, and clear limits imposed by your service-connected conditions. This includes things like being unable to sit for more than 30 minutes, experiencing anxiety that prevents working with others, or having memory problems from a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) that make concentration impossible.
- Doctor’s Statements (Medical Opinions): A statement from your treating doctor, clearly linking the severity of your service-connected conditions to your inability to perform typical job duties, may significantly strengthen your benefits pursuit.
Lay Evidence: The Real-World Story
Your own words and the words of those who know you best are also powerful.
- Personal Statement: This is your chance to explain in detail how your disabilities affect your day-to-day life and prevent you from maintaining a job. Be specific about missed workdays, concentration problems, or the difficulties of managing pain in a professional setting.
- Buddy Statements (VA Form 21-10210): Statements from family, friends, or former coworkers who have seen your struggles firsthand can provide vital, real-world context that medical charts alone may miss.
Total Disability Individual Unemployability is a vital benefit that recognizes the financial hardship caused when service-connected conditions prevent a veteran from earning a living.
Trajector Medical provides medical evidence consulting to help veterans understand their medical history and documentation. We are not lawyers, VSOs, or claims agents. We do not provide legal advice, file claims, or represent veterans before the VA.
