Source: https://www.repwavets.org/incarceration--va-benefits.html
Timestamp: 2018-07-17 13:35:50
Document Index: 166038708

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 5313', '§ 3', '§ 1505', '§3', '§ 5313', '§ 5304', '§ 3']

Incarceration & VA Benefits - RepWaVets.org
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Incarceration May Alter Eligibility for Federal VA Benefits
﻿Key topics on this page﻿
Incarceration & Federal VA Benefits
Reporting Incarceration to the VA
Reporting Release from Incarceration
Report Successful Criminal Appeals to the VA
VA Overpayments may result when veterans who receive federal VA benefits become incarcerated
Incarcerated veterans may be able to apportion some of their VA benefits to eligible dependents
Incarcerated veterans with ﻿Washington Child Support﻿ obligations may be eligible to reduce their payments to reflect their incarceration
Incarceration May Reduce or Suspend Eligibility for VBA Benefits or VHA Healthcare.
Some circumstances of incarceration alter a veteran's eligibility for benefits--other circumstances of incarceration may not. Veterans advocates must understand how these effects can influence the pre-adjudication phase of a justice-involved veteran's case as well as understanding how they interact with post-adjudication sanctions. The VA provides information about incarceration and VA benefits, supplemented by a fact sheet.
Post-Conviction Incarceration and Eligibility for VBA Benefits
VA Disability Compensation: More than sixty days of post-conviction incarceration for a felony reduces a veteran's VA Disability Compensation entitlement for the remainder of the period of incarceration. 38 U.S.C. § 5313(a)(1); 38 C.F.R. § 3.665.
VA Non-Service Connected (NSC) Pension: More than sixty days of post-conviction incarceration for a felony or a misdemeanor suspends entirely a veteran's VA NSC Pension entitlement for the remainder of the period of incarceration. 38 U.S.C. § 1505; 38 C.F.R. §3.666.
How is "post-conviction" incarceration defined? VA General Counsel Precedent Opinion 3-2005 clarifies that only post-conviction incarceration counts towards the 60-day period after which VBA benefits will be reduced or suspended. Even though a veteran may receive "credit for time served" for pre-conviction incarceration as a criminal matter, only actual days spent in incarceration after a conviction count for the VA's purposes. Similarly, a veteran's sentence may order a period of incarceration greater than 60 days, but if the veteran does not actually remain incarcerated for 60 days post-conviction (e.g., is released early for good behavior), the veteran's Compensation or Pension benefits should not be suspended or reduced.
What counts as incarceration? Some common alternatives to incarceration like work-release, residence in a halfway house, or electronic home monitoring may not be "incarceration" for the purpose of suspending or reducing benefits eligibility. 38 U.S.C. § 5313(a)(2).
What if an incarcerated veteran is eligible for both NSC Pension and Disability Compensation? Veterans may not receive NSC Pension and Disability Compensation simultaneously (﻿38 U.S.C. § 5304(a)﻿), but some veterans would be eligible for both but for the prohibition on dual receipt. When a veteran is eligible for both, the veteran must elect which one to receive and often elects to receive the benefit that yields a higher entitlement. When one of these "dual-eligible" veterans becomes incarcerated, advocates should help the veteran understand whether it would make more sense to continue as an NSC Pension veteran while incarcerated, or whether it would make more sense to change the veteran's election to receive Disability Compensation while incarcerated.
Practice Note: The decision is not complicated if the veteran has no dependents who would be eligible for an apportionment (in fact, under M21-1MR, Part III(v)(8)(B)(6)(a), the VA in these cases should automatically change the veteran's election to Disability Compensation). The issue is more complicated for veterans with apportionment-eligible dependents, and advocates should help these veterans consider whether election of the NSC Pension or Disability Compensation benefit would maximize the amount apportionable to the dependents. The VA has the responsibility to notify such veterans of their ability to change their election to Disability Compensation, but the veteran must affirmatively request the change.
Incarceration and Eligibility for VHA Healthcare
In contrast to Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) benefits that are affected by post-conviction incarceration, any incarceration--pre- or post-conviction--will limit a veteran's eligibility to receive VHA healthcare while the veteran is incarcerated. There is a narrow exception that allows an incarcerated to receive a Compensation & Pension Examination pursuant to an application for VBA benefits, but incarcerated veterans are otherwise ineligible for VHA care.
Report Incarceration & Release from Incarceration to the VA
In addition to understanding how incarceration affects a veteran's eligibility for VA benefits, advocates must also ensure that veterans properly report their incarcerated status or release from incarceration.
Failure to report incarceration may create a VA Overpayment if the VA later determines that the veteran received benefits to which she was not entitled. As a practical matter, even a veteran's immediate and proper report of incarceration to the VA is likely to result in at least a 1-2 month overpayment. The VA rarely acts immediately upon receiving mailed correspondence, and due process requirements may also slow adjustment of benefits where the veteran has not specifically requested the suspension or termination.
Similarly, failure to timely report a veteran's release from incarceration may result in a delay in reinitiating the full entitlement, or in cases where more than a year passes, the veteran may lose the ability to fully recover benefits she was due after release.
Reporting Entry into Incarceration
Quickly reporting post-conviction incarceration to the VA is essential if the incarceration reduces or suspends benefits eligibility. A best practice is to accomplish this notice in two simultaneous ways.
First, the veteran himself should send a letter to the VA affirming his incarceration and indicating that his benefits should be suspended or reduced. An example of such a letter is included below.
Second, an official from the facility of incarceration should complete and submit the VA Form 21-4193.
Consult the VA WARMS Manual at M21-1MR, Part III, Subpart v, Chapter 8, Section A(2)(b) to examine the VBA's internal policies for handling official and unofficial notice of incarceration.
Veteran's Letter Reporting Incarceration
VA Form 21-4193 (report of incarceration)
Veterans should immediately report release from incarceration to the VA. It is important to include a copy of official release documentation. If release is reported timely and the veteran remains eligible for VA benefits, the effective date of the eligibility will be the officially confirmed date of release from incarceration. There is no official VA form to report a release from incarceration. A letter from the veteran is sufficient as long as it is accompanied by official, verifiable proof of release from incarceration.
Veteran's Letter Reporting Release
Report Successful Appeals of Convictions to the VA
If a conviction is overturned on appeal, any compensation or DIC withheld under this section as a result of incarceration for such conviction (less the amount of any apportionment) shall be restored to the beneficiary. 38 C.F.R. § 3.665(m).
In a situation where a veteran's previous conviction resulted in incarceration that reduced their receipt of VA Disability Compensation benefits, a successful appeal of the conviction that caused the incarceration may entitle the veteran to withheld benefits. 38 C.F.R. 3.665(m). Note that this applies only to VA Disability Compensation (and the DIC benefit) and does not apply if the veteran's NSC Pension entitlement was suspended.
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