Historical compensation

Back Pay Estimator

Compare what VA was paying against an awarded or hypothetical state month by month. VMC automatically uses the compensation and SMC rate table in force for each payable month.

Back pay inputs

Use the first month compensation was actually payable. This simple two-state estimator is best when one prior state and one awarded state apply throughout the range. Use the staged timeline below when awarded facts changed during the retroactive period.

Payable from monthThrough month

Prior VA state

Combined ratingSMC baseSMC-K awardsDependent parentsDependent spouseSpouse Aid & AttendanceChildren under 18Helpless adult childrenSchool children 18+

Awarded / scenario state

Combined ratingSMC baseSMC-K awardsDependent parentsDependent spouseSpouse Aid & AttendanceChildren under 18Helpless adult childrenSchool children 18+

Foundational what-if

Run an unsaved award scenario

Start from the current Quick Estimate, change ratings, exclude conditions, or add a hypothetical rating. This temporary scenario is free and is never saved to the subscription scenario portfolio.

Scenario combined rating0%(0% before final rounding)

No Quick Estimate ratings are loaded. Add a hypothetical rating below.

Existing bilateral classifications from Quick Estimate are preserved. Newly added hypothetical ratings are ordinary non-bilateral ratings unless you model their bilateral details in Quick Estimate first.

Retroactive amount already received (optional)

Estimated retroactive difference

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Build an awarded state or run the temporary scenario, then calculate to create a month-by-month estimate.

WEB-07 staged entitlement timeline

Model entitlement changes in one back-pay timeline

Use this when the awarded facts changed during the retroactive period. VMC keeps legal effective dates separate from payable dates, applies official annual rate tables month by month, and shows exactly when each reviewed event begins affecting payment.

Prior paid baseline

This baseline is held constant across the selected range. If the prior paid state also changed, model those distinct paid periods separately until dual-timeline paid events are governed.

Combined schedular ratingSMC-K awards

Dependent spouseSpouse Aid & AttendanceChildren under 18Helpless adult childrenSchool children 18+Dependent parents

Awarded entitlement baseline

Combined schedular ratingSMC-K awards

Dependent spouseSpouse Aid & AttendanceChildren under 18Helpless adult childrenSchool children 18+Dependent parents

Awarded baseline legal effective dateFirst payable monthThrough month

The following-month helper reflects the existing VMC 38 U.S.C. § 5111 payment-commencement rule for increase events. It is visible and reviewable; VMC does not hide the assumption. Decrease or neutral events require an explicit reviewed payment-start date.

Staged awarded events

Add only events you have reviewed. Events are ordered by the engine using payable and legal dates.

No staged events yet. The awarded baseline will apply to the whole period.

Retroactive amount already received (optional)

Staged-model boundary

This staged path supports schedular-rating changes, full dependency snapshots, and additive SMC-K changes. It does not silently model drill-pay offsets, severance recoupment, attorney fees, apportionment, debt withholding, other unimplemented legal adjustments, or replacement SMC base-level transitions. The original simple estimator above remains available for a single reviewed replacement-SMC state.

Estimator boundary

The simple estimator supports different prior and awarded schedular ratings, dependency states, replacement SMC levels, additive SMC-K, and a temporary unsaved rating scenario across one state-to-state period. The staged timeline supports reviewed schedular-rating, dependency, and SMC-K changes with separate effective and payable dates. Both remain planning aids, not official VA decisions. Drill-pay offsets, severance recoupment, attorney fees, apportionment, withholding, debt offsets, and partial-month legal exceptions are not silently inferred.