Rating Ledger

Combined ratings / 40% and 20%

38 CFR 4.25 Table I · checked 2026-10-20

40% and 20% VA rating combined

A 40% and a 20% rating combine to 52, which VA rounds down to 50%. The 20% is not added to the 40%: it takes 20% of the 60% efficiency the first rating leaves, which is 12 points. At 50% a veteran alone receives $1,132.90 a month and a veteran with a spouse $1,241.90.

Table I value52%Rounded once50%40 + 20 → 521234
  1. 1First rating 40 squares
  2. 220% of what is left 12 squares
  3. 3Efficiency left 48%
  4. 4Combined rating 50%
Table I value
52%
VA rating
50%
Monthly, alone
$1,132.90
Efficiency left
48%

The arithmetic, step by step

  1. Order by severity: 40% first, then 20%.
  2. After the 40% rating, 60% efficiency is left. The 20% rating takes 20% of that: 20 × 60 ÷ 100 = 12.
  3. 40 + 12 = 52. That is the figure printed in Table I at row 40, column 20.
  4. Round once to the nearest 10, values ending in 5 going up: 52 becomes 50%.

Because 52 ends in 2, it rounds down. The 20% still lifts the rating 10 points above the 40% alone. One more 10% rating would lift it to 57, rated 60%.

Added together, the two ratings would make 60. VA's method gives 50, 10 points less. The gap grows with the size of the ratings, because each later rating works on a smaller remainder.

What 50% pays

40% alone$795.8440% + 20% (50%)$1,132.90With another 10% (60%)$1,435.02
Monthly compensation, veteran with no dependents, VA rates effective December 1, 2025. Bars to scale from zero.

At 50%, VA's table effective December 1, 2025 pays $1,132.90 a month to a veteran alone, $1,241.90 with a spouse, and $1,322.90 with a spouse and one child under 18. Compared with 40% alone ($795.84), the pair adds $337.06 a month for a veteran with no dependents. The 50% pay page lists every dependent row.

If a third rating is added

A third 10% rating would combine with 52, not with 50: 52 and 10 give 57, rated 60%, one step up. The smallest single rating that moves this pair up a step is 10%, reaching 57 and 60% ($1,435.02 a month alone).

The 40% rating meets the 40% part of the 38 CFR 4.16(a) threshold for unemployability, but the combined 50% is below the 70% it also requires.

If the two ratings are on paired limbs

When the 40% and the 20% are on the left and right leg (or both arms), 38 CFR 4.26 adds a bilateral factor: 40 and 20 combine to 52, plus 10% of that gives 57, rated 60%. Here the factor moves the rating from 50% to 60%, worth $1,435.02 a month alone instead of $1,132.90. The bilateral factor guide has the full rule.

Conditions that are rated at 40% and 20%

Diagnostic codes on this site with a 40% level include Shoulder (arm) limitation of motion (DC 5201), Elbow (forearm) limitation of flexion (DC 5206), Back strain (lumbosacral or cervical strain) (DC 5237), Intervertebral disc syndrome (IVDS) (DC 5243), Knee limitation of extension (DC 5261), Hip (thigh) limitation of flexion (DC 5252), Sciatic nerve (radiculopathy) (DC 8520), Common peroneal nerve (foot drop) (DC 8521), Upper radicular group (C5-C6 nerves) (DC 8510), Epilepsy (seizures) (DC 8910), Hypertension (high blood pressure) (DC 7101), Varicose veins (DC 7120), Deep scars (not head, face or neck) (DC 7801), Diabetes mellitus (type 2) (DC 7913), Prostate conditions (voiding dysfunction) (DC 7527), TMJ (temporomandibular disorder) (DC 9905). A 20% level appears in Degenerative arthritis, Shoulder (arm) limitation of motion, Elbow (forearm) limitation of flexion, Back strain (lumbosacral or cervical strain), Intervertebral disc syndrome (IVDS), Knee instability, Knee limitation of flexion, Knee limitation of extension, Ankle limited motion, Plantar fasciitis, Foot injury (other), Hip (thigh) limitation of flexion, Sciatic nerve (radiculopathy), Common peroneal nerve (foot drop), Upper radicular group (C5-C6 nerves), Epilepsy (seizures), Hypertension (high blood pressure), Varicose veins, Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), Hemorrhoids, Hernia (inguinal, ventral, umbilical), Deep scars (not head, face or neck), Painful or unstable scars, Diabetes mellitus (type 2), Prostate conditions (voiding dysfunction), TMJ (temporomandibular disorder).

38 CFR 4.124a, diagnostic code 8520, Sciatic nerve (radiculopathy), 40%: “Incomplete paralysis, moderately severe.”

38 CFR 4.71a, diagnostic code 5243, Intervertebral disc syndrome (IVDS), 20%: “Incapacitating episodes having a total duration of at least 2 weeks but less than 4 weeks during the past 12 months.”

38 CFR 4.71a, diagnostic code 5260, Knee limitation of flexion, 20%: “Flexion limited to 30 degrees.”

38 CFR 4.124a, diagnostic code 8910, Epilepsy (seizures), 40%: “At least 1 major seizure in the last 6 months or 2 in the last year; or averaging at least 5 to 8 minor seizures weekly.”

Criteria summarized from the rating schedule; each condition page links to the regulation.

Other pairs

2 other pairs also round to 50%: 40+10, 30+30.

For three or more ratings, or to add dependents, use the calculator. Background: why 50 and 50 is not 100.

Rating Ledger is not part of VA and does not file or decide claims. Amounts are VA's published monthly rates effective December 1, 2025 for a veteran, before any deduction or special monthly compensation; ratings follow 38 CFR 4.25 and 38 CFR 4.26. Last checked 2026-10-20. Only a VA rating decision sets a rating or a payment. See the methodology.