VA Caregiver Stipend 2026: Who Qualifies, How Much, How to Apply

A veteran with a VA disability rating of 70% or higher who needs at least six months of continuous, in-person personal care may qualify a family caregiver for VA's monthly caregiver stipend.1 If you're the spouse or adult child already doing that care, know that the VA caregiver stipend is paid to one approved Primary Family Caregiver through VA's Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers (PCAFC), and VA's four published PCAFC criteria are only a first screen, because 38 CFR 71.20(a) adds more.1 For a veteran in the current program who lives in the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Rest of U.S. pay area, our calculation from OPM's 2026 General Schedule table puts the PCAFC stipend at about $1,896 a month at Level One or about $3,034 a month at Level Two.2 The veteran and the would-be caregiver apply for PCAFC together, on VA Form 10-10CG.3

In This Guide

• What Is the VA Caregiver Stipend (PCAFC)?
• Who Can Be the Family Caregiver?
• Does the Veteran Qualify for the VA Caregiver Stipend?
• How Much Is the VA Caregiver Stipend in 2026?
• What Else the Primary Family Caregiver Gets
• How to Apply for the VA Caregiver Program, Step by Step
• What Happens After You're Approved
• If the Veteran Doesn't Qualify for PCAFC
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Learn More

What Is the VA Caregiver Stipend (PCAFC)?

A lot of families first hear about this program secondhand, from another military spouse or a social worker, and the details arrive garbled. So here it is plainly. The Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers (PCAFC) is the VA program that pays a monthly stipend to one approved Primary Family Caregiver of an eligible veteran, and it also gives that caregiver training, mental health counseling, respite, and in some cases health coverage.1

The PCAFC stipend goes to the caregiver, not to the veteran. And approval alone doesn't start the money: on its PCAFC page, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs says, "You must be enrolled in direct deposit using the VA customer engagement portal to get your monthly stipend."1

PCAFC is not the same benefit as Aid and Attendance. VA Aid and Attendance is monthly payments added to a VA pension, and it requires that the veteran or survivor already qualify for a VA pension.1 A family can look into both, but they're separate applications with separate tests.

Who Can Be the Family Caregiver?

Most people who end up applying are already the caregiver in every way but on paper. VA's rules for who can hold the PCAFC Family Caregiver role are fairly broad. To be a PCAFC Primary or Secondary Family Caregiver, you must:3

• Be at least 18 years old.
• Be the veteran's spouse, son, daughter, parent, stepfamily member, or extended family member, or live with the veteran full time (or be willing to, if VA designates you).
• Have no VA determination of abuse or neglect of the veteran by you.
• Be initially assessed by VA as able to complete caregiver education and training.

A veteran in PCAFC can have at most one Primary Family Caregiver and up to two Secondary Family Caregivers at a time, and adding a new caregiver takes a new application.3 The difference matters for money: under 38 CFR 71.40, the monthly stipend appears only in the list of benefits for the PCAFC Primary Family Caregiver, and the Secondary Family Caregiver benefits listed in that section don't include it.3

Does the Veteran Qualify for the VA Caregiver Stipend?

This is the section where families most often get blindsided, so take it slowly. VA's consumer page lists four requirements. They're real, and all four have to be true. But they aren't the whole test. VA's own PCAFC page frames them as a first screen: "You may be eligible if you and the Veteran you're caring for meet all of these requirements," followed by an application process "to determine if you're eligible."1

Step 1: VA's four-point screen

According to VA's PCAFC page, all four of these must be true for the veteran:1

1. The veteran has a VA disability rating (individual or combined) of 70% or higher.1
2. The veteran was discharged from the U.S. military or has a date of medical discharge.
3. The veteran needs at least 6 months of continuous, in-person personal care services.
4. The veteran is enrolled in VA health care.

If you can't check all four, the stipend isn't available, and you can skip ahead to what's available instead. If you can, keep going.

Step 2: The seven requirements in 38 CFR 71.20(a)

The binding PCAFC eligibility test is in federal regulation. 38 CFR 71.20(a) says a veteran is eligible for a Primary or Secondary Family Caregiver only if the veteran "meets all of the following requirements."1

Four of the seven PCAFC requirements in 38 CFR 71.20(a), numbers 4 through 7, have no counterpart on VA.gov's four-point list, and VA assesses them during the application.1

Requirement 5 is the one that surprises families. Under 38 CFR 71.20(a)(5), the personal care services the PCAFC Family Caregiver would provide "will not be simultaneously and regularly provided by or through another individual or entity," so a household already receiving that same regular personal care through another program or entity can fail PCAFC on that requirement alone.1 If an aide from another program already comes in regularly to do the same care you would do, raise it with VA's caregiver support team before you apply, rather than learning about it in a denial.

Going the other direction, enrollment in VA health care is on VA.gov's list but is not one of the seven requirements in 38 CFR 71.20(a).1 VA still lists it, so treat it as required and get it done early; our guide to VA health care enrollment walks through it.

When the veteran served no longer rules anyone out

You may have heard that PCAFC is only for post-9/11 veterans. Under the current regulation, that's no longer so. The service periods in 38 CFR 71.20(a)(2) now reach every era: on or after September 11, 2001; on or before May 7, 1975 (effective October 1, 2020); and after May 7, 1975 and before September 11, 2001 (effective October 1, 2022).1 Since October 1, 2022, PCAFC eligibility under 38 CFR 71.20(a)(2) turns on a serious injury incurred or aggravated in the line of duty, not on when the veteran served.1

How Much Is the VA Caregiver Stipend in 2026?

It's hard to plan around a number nobody will give you straight. The reason is that VA doesn't publish one national PCAFC stipend. Under 38 CFR 71.15, the PCAFC "monthly stipend rate" is the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) General Schedule annual rate for grade 4, step 1, in the locality pay area where the veteran lives, divided by 12.2

VA then pays the PCAFC Primary Family Caregiver a share of that monthly rate, at one of two levels for a veteran in the current program:1

• Level One: the PCAFC monthly stipend rate multiplied by 0.625 (62.5%).1
• Level Two: the PCAFC monthly stipend rate multiplied by 1.00 (100%), when VA determines the veteran is "unable to self-sustain in the community."1

Where the veteran lives changes the PCAFC stipend, because the rate follows the locality pay area of the veteran's residence.2 When OPM updates the grade 4, step 1 rate, the PCAFC stipend changes prospectively after OPM's update takes effect.2

If the veteran was already in PCAFC under the older rules, the math is different. For a legacy participant or legacy applicant under 38 CFR 71.20(b) or (c), 38 CFR 71.40 sets three rules:1

• The multiplier comes from the veteran's 2019 clinical ratings, for eight years beginning October 1, 2020. A rating sum of 21 or higher sets a legacy PCAFC multiplier of 1.00, a sum of 13 to 20 sets 0.625, and a sum of 1 to 12 sets 0.25.1
• The higher amount wins. A PCAFC veteran who meets both the current test and the legacy rules is paid whichever of the two stipend amounts is higher.1
• There is a floor, for legacy participants only. For eight years beginning October 1, 2020, if the veteran is a legacy participant under 38 CFR 71.20(b), the PCAFC stipend stays at no less than its level on the day before October 1, 2020, so long as the veteran still lives at the same address on record as of that day.1

For a legacy participant's family, that floor is not permanent: it holds only while the veteran stays at the same address, and only until the legacy schedule lapses on October 1, 2028.1

What Else the Primary Family Caregiver Gets

The stipend gets the attention, but for many caregivers the rest of the PCAFC package is what keeps them going. VA says eligible PCAFC Primary and Secondary Family Caregivers can receive caregiver education and training, mental health counseling, and certain travel benefits when traveling with the veteran to receive care.1

On top of that, VA lists these benefits for the PCAFC Primary Family Caregiver:1

• Respite: at least 30 days of respite care per year, which VA describes as "a period of rest or a break from caregiving."
• Health coverage: access to health care benefits through the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs (CHAMPVA) if you don't already qualify for care under another health plan. Our CHAMPVA guide covers how it works.
• The monthly stipend, which starts only after the direct-deposit step described above.

If you've gone years without a real break, the 30 days of PCAFC respite is worth planning around, not saving for an emergency. Our guide to respite care covers how families use it.

How to Apply for the VA Caregiver Program, Step by Step

Applying can feel like one more job on top of the one you're already doing. The PCAFC application itself is a single form, and knowing the steps ahead of time takes some of the dread out of it.3

If you're signing for the veteran

If the veteran can't sign the PCAFC application, the person signing on the veteran's behalf must have legal authority to make decisions for the veteran, or authority to sign applications for the veteran. VA lists these documents as proof: a valid power of attorney, a legal guardianship order, another legal document your state considers proof of that authority, an Alternate Signer Certification (VA Form 21-0972), or an appointment of a Veterans Service Organization or an individual as the claimant's representative (VA Form 21-22 or VA Form 21-22a).3

The 90-day clock

VA's PCAFC page says, "We'll assign you as a caregiver no later than 90 days after we get your application."3 The regulation puts the other side of that deadline on the family: under 38 CFR 71.25(a)(2)(ii), if the eligibility evaluations, caregiver training, and initial home-care assessment aren't complete within 90 days of VA receiving the joint PCAFC application, the application is denied and a new joint application is required. VA may extend the 90-day PCAFC deadline only when VA's inability to complete the evaluations, training, or home-care assessment is solely due to VA's action.3 Treat the training and home visit like deadlines, and answer the caregiver support team's calls quickly.

Help and appeals

For help completing the PCAFC application or checking its status, VA points families to its Caregiver Support Line, staffed Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. ET.3 If you disagree with VA's decision on a PCAFC application, VA says you have options to appeal or request a review of the decision.3 A denial is a decision you can question, not the final word.

What Happens After You're Approved

Approval is a relief, and you've earned it. It also starts a set of PCAFC obligations that families don't always hear about up front, and missing them can cost you the benefit.

Wellness contacts. Once you're in PCAFC, VA says you'll need to participate in wellness contacts, which "occur at least once every 120 days, with 1 annual visit to the Veteran's home."3

Annual reassessment. Under 38 CFR 71.30, VA reassesses the PCAFC veteran and Family Caregiver annually to determine continued eligibility, and the reassessment considers whether the veteran is unable to self-sustain in the community, which sets the stipend level. VA may reassess more or less often if it documents why.3

Revocation for not taking part. If the veteran or PCAFC Family Caregiver fails to participate in a reassessment, 38 CFR 71.30 says the result is revocation, and under 38 CFR 71.45 VA revokes a Family Caregiver's designation for noncompliance, which includes failing to take part in any wellness contact.3 If a scheduled contact won't work, call the caregiver support team to reschedule rather than letting it pass.

When the stipend changes. For a PCAFC veteran in the current (non-legacy) program, a reassessment that raises the stipend takes effect as of the reassessment date, while a decrease takes effect no earlier than 60 days after VA gives advance notice of its findings.3

Reporting changes within 30 days. VA asks PCAFC families to contact the caregiver support team within 30 days if the caregiver or veteran moves; if the veteran is admitted to a hospital, rehabilitation center, correctional facility, assisted living facility, medical foster home, or nursing home; or if the veteran or another family caregiver dies.3 For a move, 38 CFR 71.40 says that if VA doesn't receive notice within 30 days of the relocation, VA will seek to recover overpayments.3 Paying back months of stipend is a hard hit for a household already stretched thin, so report early.

If the Veteran Doesn't Qualify for PCAFC

Hearing "no" after everything you've already given is painful. It doesn't mean VA has nothing for you.

PGCSS. VA says family caregivers of veterans who aren't eligible for PCAFC may still get support through the Program of General Caregiver Support Services (PGCSS).3 Under 38 CFR 71.35, a PGCSS General Caregiver provides personal care services to a veteran who is enrolled in VA health care and is unable to perform an activity of daily living or needs supervision or protection because of a neurological or other impairment or injury, and the General Caregiver doesn't have to live with the veteran.3 The regulation says "No application or clinical evaluation is required to obtain benefits as a General Caregiver"; you ask for help as needed from the VA clinicians and staff at the veteran's local VA facility.3

Under 38 CFR 71.40(a), PGCSS General Caregivers receive continued instruction, training, and technical support; information about supportive services; counseling and other services; and respite care for the veteran in support of the caregiver. The 38 CFR 71.40(a) list of General Caregiver benefits doesn't include the PCAFC monthly stipend, which 38 CFR 71.40 gives only to PCAFC Primary Family Caregivers.3

Veteran-Directed Care. Veteran-Directed Care gives enrolled veterans who meet the clinical need a flexible budget for home and community services, and VA says the personal care aides a veteran hires through Veteran-Directed Care "might include their own family member or neighbor." VA also says the program "is only available in certain locations."4 Our Veteran-Directed Care guide explains how it works.

Other routes. Some families look at VA Aid and Attendance through the pension program, or at state Medicaid programs that pay family caregivers. Our guides to getting paid to care for your spouse and how to get paid as a family caregiver go state by state.

Learn More

Find personalized help applying for the VA caregiver stipend at brevy.com.

The information on Brevy.com is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional legal, financial, or medical advice. Rules vary by state and program and change frequently. Always verify with the relevant agency or a qualified professional. Brevy is not a law firm, financial advisor, or healthcare provider.