[00:00:00] Veterans. Your VA disability check is going up again in 2026, but how much more are you actually getting and will this increase keep up with inflation? This isn't just another headline. The 2026 COLA increase is official, and if you get VA compensation, DIC or pension benefits, this directly affects your monthly compensation.
We're breaking down what this year's 2.8% rate really means how VA calculates it and what veterans can do right now to stay financially ahead of rising cost. Exactly. I'll explain it from the inside, how VA Raiders apply the cola, what you can expect on your next check, and a few smart money tip. Veterans should think about going into 2026.[00:01:00]
Hello and welcome to Prepare to Compete when we talk all things VA benefits, real estate, entrepreneurship, and more. Kenneth Davis, how you feeling today, my brother? I'm feeling up. Ready to go just like this cola. Absolutely. This is wonderful. The news is out for our veterans here and thank you guys for watching and participating with us.
We wanna kind of explain everything and really, uh. Even touch on some other things that are going on in the world here. I know you know, the government shut down, hopefully is over by the time that you're watching this, but veterans have been hit hard this year, so hopefully this cola increase does something to kind of lighten that low.
Yeah. Yeah, there's just been so many different nuances and, uh, just the climate of the energy of where the United States stands. Right. Um, it's been so many different, uh, impactful, uh, uh, you know, events that have occurred. So, uh, just really, [00:02:00] really, really excited so we can be able to kind of really navigate and cut through some of the weeds that help veterans.
Okay. Absolutely. So. As we get into it, let's start here. So, Kenna, exactly what is cola and why do veterans get one every year? Great, great question, Cola. It's very simple, you guys. Listen, it's a cost of living adjustment. It's designed to keep the benefits aligned with inflation. All right? So again, as we continue to live our lives.
Guess what? Things get more and more expensive. So with that being said, the VA typically is aligned with, uh, social security in regards to COLA increases, which this year, uh, has been increased, uh, to about 2.8%. Again, it's official and it's come out obviously here, uh, in the month of October, 2025, when generally, that's when the decision is rendered by Congress, right?
Uh, so again. [00:03:00] That's official of 2.8% increase. Okay. It's not a bonus. No. This is a permanent raise to preserve your purchasing power. So it's very, very important. Again, uh, rising costs are continuously on the rise. This is gonna kind of steady that, uh, that, that, that will bridge the gap in relates to increasing costs and also what you guys receive.
Absolutely. And now, so when we're speaking of cola now, is this something that the VA decides or does this just follow what, uh, social Security Administration is doing there? So there's been a lot of nuanced, uh, information and beyond that, let's just put it this way, whatever social security is typically going to receive, uh, in regards to cost of living adjustments.
VA typically is in line with that. Okay. Uh, we can go down kind of the conversations on how it should be a split decision in regards to what the VA receives and regards to, [00:04:00] uh, what the Social Security receives. We can go ahead and go to the details of that, but let's just look at it like this holistically.
If whatever the social security is we're gonna be receiving typically is what the VA is gonna be receiving. Absolutely. Okay. So it kind of correlates together a lot of times, so, yeah. Yeah. Now obviously we wanna kind of start getting into the numbers here, right? So, you know, we had a video regarding the potential co increase and we were pretty accurate with that.
So thank you all for checking out that video. But the veterans. Really want us to get into the numbers. So what is the 2026 cola increase and how does it translate to real dollars for the veteran? Well, lemme tell you. So how it works is this, the 2.8% cost of living adjustment, this is a very substantial, again, increase, right?
So over time it's gonna be able to represent more and more and more dollars, right? So. [00:05:00] For the veteran themselves, what it looks like is this. So if you're receiving two in 2025, your base compensation rates, okay? The base compensation rate is gonna be 1102 with 4 cents. Okay? Now the new rate is gonna be 1132 with 90 cents.
Alright? I know it does not sound like a lot, but let me tell you, over time it continues to get larger, alright? Uh, because next year there may be another. Cost of living adjustment. 'cause we understand that everything increases over time. All right, now, uh, for a hundred percent, let's see what the a hundred percent looks like.
The a hundred percent is going to be 38, 31 currently. Okay. With 30 cents. And the new rate is going to be 39 point 38 with 57 cents. Alright, so that is a pretty large adjustment. So I want you guys to understand continuously, uh, uh, making sure that these adjustments are [00:06:00] being applied to your file is going to be very, very, uh, keen for you to do.
Absolutely, definitely works out there. So at 50% rate, veterans are gonna receive about an extra $30 and 86 cents, and for a hundred percent they're receiving $107 and 27. Sense, right? So like we said before, this is just for the veteran. So now if you have dependents and uh, you have a spouse, different things of that nature, uh, of course your number is gonna be calculated a little differently and we can actually provide you that information.
We'll have some information on the screen here, but you want that complete information. Definitely, uh, reach down in the comments and we would absolutely love to provide that to you Officially there. For sure, for sure. Alright, so now I know you say the 2.8% is a good increase, right? It's definitely designed [00:07:00] to keep up with inflation, but you know, veterans are angry about, you know, what's going on in the world, right?
And there's a lot of changes. And do you feel like the 2.8% cost of living is enough? Well, honestly, no. And why I tell you this is because we are not ungrateful for the increase, but I'm gonna tell you. The veteran themselves is in need. Okay. There are many veterans that are currently, uh, living check to check and dealing with, having the dealings of understanding that they may not receive a meal towards the end of the month because of the benefits that they receive.
Most veterans, again, well, I'm not gonna say most, some veterans have the opportunity to be able to stretch their funds. Some unfortunately are. Living from when it hits their bank account and also [00:08:00] living and, and unfortunately in soup kitchens by the end of the month with nothing in that account. So when we talk about having a 2.8% increase, I think it's a great increase.
Uh, for those who are stable, but for some, I think taking a look a little deeper dive will be a little bit more helpful. Absolutely. Right. So, you know, obviously the, the government and these increases are designed a certain way, but we definitely need to, um, understand the actual rate of inflation and what the cost of gas, the cost of a gallon of milk and cost of.
Healthcare premiums and other things for veterans to support their family is rising. Right. And you know, I know a lot of those things can be covered, especially if the veteran is a hundred percent service connected for their entire family. But some veterans may still have to pay for healthcare coverage for their family and, you know, worry about kids going to [00:09:00] college and different things of that nature.
So this is why we always. You know, preach regarding maximizing your benefits and your eligibility to hopefully get to that a hundred percent service connection. So some of those expenses are mitigated by, uh, different benefits that you qualify for at that time. True indeed. True indeed. And, uh, budgeting, you know, obviously we can't only put the onus on, um, the government, uh, the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Uh, we also have to take some accountability. You know, um, again, being financially astute is not as easy as people think. So having, uh, some, uh, again, financial literacy being involved and being covered to be able to support, uh, what we're doing here is gonna be able to kinda give a very, very, uh.
Understanding in what the veteran's going through. So as long as we're being educated and continuously educated, you can be able to get the education here in regards to financial literacy, uh, that's going to help you and support [00:10:00] you towards the end of the month, but also receive other benefits that's gonna supplement the cost.
So, uh, just taking that into consideration in the ma, uh, taking that into consideration as well, because it matters definitely matters. For sure. And you know, it matters when veterans are gonna receive these funds, right? So now getting to the next part here, when will veterans actually see the extra money in their bank accounts?
That's gonna happen. January 1st, 2026. Okay. That is going to be the date that you should actually see your benefits deposit to your bank account, alright? Or receiving your check in the mail, uh, for those increased amount of benefits. So some veterans are continuously in the process of maximizing their VA benefits, so they may have a pending claim or looking to file an appeal.
So in those scenarios, what if someone has a pending claim or [00:11:00] an appeal where their back pay include the new colon increase? The back pay will not, uh, include the colon increase. However, you will receive a cost of living adjustment on the dated date of January, 2026, which is based upon something called Omnibus.
So they're gonna go ahead and, uh, reflect that on December. In December, okay. 2025. So to. On January 1st, 2026. So those adjustments are made, uh, when you actually receive the rendered decision. So before you receive those decisions, that those adjustments are already currently made, and then also you could view those adjustments, um, in your actual notification letter Now, great point, Kenneth, but what I wanna make sure that we stress for the veterans as well.
Is that timing matters. Okay, so now you could have a pending claim currently, whether it's a new claim or it's a appeal that is filed prior to January [00:12:00] 1st, 2026, and not receive your decision until the spring or summer of 2026. So if we give. Example of this, we are entering in November, 2025, so Veteran puts their claim in November 1st, 2025.
The decision is not rendered until April 1st, 2026. Now, for the back pay for that particular veteran, what does that look like? Will it already calculate that COLA increase for those few months of the beginning of the year? Yes, it will. It will calculate the, uh, actual benefits that's going to be, uh, adjusted currently.
Okay. Uh, your decision does not go out without that being calculated. Okay? So, uh, let's understand that, uh, before you receive your decision, those adjustments are already made. Now we're talking about retirement pay and different things of that nature. It gets a little bit tricky, [00:13:00] but. Essentially those adjustments are already made.
Definitely, uh, good to know that because, you know veterans care and a lot of times they're calculating their back pay and there are so many different ways where the number could be misleading on what you actually get versus your calculation. 'cause you have certain things with the effective date and then you also have the cola increases and things.
So we are here if you need. Support in those areas. Absolutely. Reach out to us. We'll love to assist you, but just know the VA is calculating those things. But if you have questions about your effective dates and things, we have other videos that go way in depth regarding those topics, because when you're trying to do those calculations, there's so much that goes into it, right?
So. You know, if it's off a couple hundred dollars here or there, it just may be just because of an increase or a calculation like that. But if you're off a couple thousand dollars [00:14:00] VA may have got something wrong and you definitely wanna look into that yourself or have an expert look into that for you.
True indeed. True indeed. Great, Kenneth. So knowing this information, what should veterans be doing right now in preparation for next year? Great question. So first and foremost, we want to make sure veterans are understanding to make sure. You are entering your correct direct deposit information, make sure your, your direct deposit is up to date.
Because one, not only are the colon increase gonna be, uh, again, being applied, but the VA. Is going to be stopping paper checks. Right. So with that being said, we wanna make sure that that is applied as well. That is something that is, again, has been talked about for a long time here, um, in issuing, uh, definitely, uh, issuing some type of other form of payment, uh, metric.
But we [00:15:00] don't wanna miss out because you haven't. Updated your direct deposit information. Next, I would say, uh, specifically make sure you are updating your marital status. A lot of veterans miss. There are updates in regards to marital status based upon, uh, unfortunately not going in to update their file.
If you recently got married, if you recently had a child, if your, if your child has turned 18 and supposed to dropped off, but is a school aged child and now is in college or recently divorced, um, uh, we want to make sure. That you are taking into account, that that increase is going to be also adjusted by your dependences that are basically, uh, added as well.
Absolutely. Kemp, there's so much for our veterans to be aware of, and there's some. Other account changes here. Veterans often go to [00:16:00] va.gov to log in, and there's various ways to log into your account. You have the ID me access, you have the login.gov. You have my Healthy Vet, and you also have the DS login.
Now, DS login was supposed to be removed as of October, 2025. Due to government shut down and other reasons, it is still operational. However, you wanna make sure that you get alternative account access because that will be going away very, very soon. Yes. Yes. Um, and making sure again, that you are signed up these, uh, platforms.
Um, and also, uh, id.me login.gov. They're very secure platforms. You guys. Uh, this is gonna be able to access again, government sites. If you're trying to access the government side, please just go ahead and sign up for it 'cause it's gonna be able to help you out in the long run. To include also receiving other access points, uh, such as again, you know, [00:17:00] verification methods.
So if anything is gonna be verifiable, those two are really gonna be, uh, one of the primary sources that's gonna assist you throughout this process and gonna be very helpful within. So bottom line, the 2026 Cola bump, it helps, but it's not a game changer. It's meant to help protect what you've already earned, not increase your lifestyle.
Think of it as a safety net. Not a raise. The best move is to use this update as a reminder to plan ahead, review your benefits, your expenses, and get proactive about your financial goals. And if you want us to break down the full 2026 VA pay chart or talk about. Other benefits veterans can use to offset inflation.
Drop a comment below. We'll love to produce that content for you. If you need any help with your claim or appeal, please reach out to Veterans of Veterans as we [00:18:00] wanna be able to make sure that we're assisting and answering any questions that we can with you. Okay? Uh, we wanna make sure that we're educating you up and put you first.
As a veteran, we'll make sure your case is squared away and make sure everything is good to go. Absolutely. Thanks for watching and as always, prepare to compete. We're out. Peace.
