VA Caregiver Stipend Tiers: Set by a Federal Pay Scale, Not the Veteran’s Disability Rating

9 min read · Last updated September 17, 2026

Reviewed for accuracy by Steven Sun · See our Editorial Standards

PCAFC pays its monthly stipend directly to the designated caregiver, not the veteran, in one of two tiers set at 62.5% or 100% of the federal General Schedule GS-4, Step 1 pay rate for the caregiver’s home locality, and separately provides that caregiver with CHAMPVA health coverage and at least 30 days of paid respite care each year.

In this article

• What PCAFC Actually Pays For
• Who Qualifies as the Veteran
• Who Qualifies as the Caregiver
• The Two Stipend Tiers and How VA Calculates Them
• CHAMPVA Health Coverage and Respite Care
• How Reassessment Can Change the Tier or End It
• How to Apply
• Frequently asked questions

A veteran with a combined VA disability rating of 70% who needs hands-on help with bathing and dressing every day, for longer than six months, may qualify to have his wife designated as his Primary Family Caregiver under PCAFC. The monthly payment that follows doesn’t come out of his VA disability compensation. It lands in her own account, calculated from a federal pay table tied to her zip code, not his rating.

What PCAFC Actually Pays For

PCAFC exists because caring for a severely injured veteran is unpaid, full-time work for the family member who does it. Instead of a general benefit paid to the veteran, PCAFC treats the caregiver as someone doing a specific job and pays a stipend, health coverage, and time off in exchange for it. The caregiver has her own eligibility test, separate from the veteran’s.

Who Qualifies as the Veteran

Every one of these has to be true for the veteran before VA will even look at a caregiver’s application:

• A VA disability rating, individual or combined, of 70% or higher. This is the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) rating already on file from the veteran’s disability claim, not a new rating created for PCAFC.
• Discharged from the U.S. military, or holding a date of medical discharge. A service member still on active duty and going through a medical discharge can apply, but must also apply for VA health care before or after the caregiver application.
• A documented need for at least six continuous months of in-person personal care. In plain terms, someone else has to physically help with tasks most adults handle alone: bathing, dressing, eating, managing medication, or safety supervision tied to the service-connected condition.
• Enrollment in VA health care.

Meeting this list doesn’t guarantee a specific stipend tier or program approval. VA makes that call after reviewing the veteran’s full record, not from a self-reported checklist.

Who Qualifies as the Caregiver

The person providing the care has a separate, shorter list:

• At least 18 years old.
• Already living full time with the veteran, or willing to move in if designated. VA’s home care assessment checks that the living arrangement actually supports the personal care the veteran needs.
• Willing to complete required caregiver education and training and pass a home care assessment before VA finalizes the designation.

A veteran can have one Primary Family Caregiver and up to two Secondary Family Caregivers, but only the Primary Family Caregiver receives the stipend, CHAMPVA coverage, and respite-care access described below.

The Two Stipend Tiers and How VA Calculates Them

VA doesn’t hand out a flat dollar stipend. It calculates the payment from a federal pay scale used to set civilian government salaries nationwide: the Office of Personnel Management’s (OPM) General Schedule (GS), specifically the annual GS-4, Step 1 rate for the locality pay area where the eligible veteran lives, divided by 12 to get a monthly stipend rate. That base number already reflects local cost of living, so a caregiver in a high-cost metro area starts higher than one in a lower-cost area, before either tier percentage applies.

From that monthly stipend rate, VA sets two tiers:

• Tier 1 (VA calls this Level One): the monthly stipend rate multiplied by 0.625, or 62.5%.
• Tier 2 (VA calls this Level Two): the monthly stipend rate multiplied by 1.00, or 100%. This applies when VA determines the veteran meets its own published standard of “unable to self-sustain in the community,” a more intensive level of dependence than routine personal care.

Here’s the math, using VA’s own published stipend formula and OPM’s 2026 GS-4, Step 1 rate for the “Rest of U.S.” locality, the pay area covering most of the country outside expensive metros: that annual rate is $36,409. Divided by 12, the monthly stipend rate is $3,034.08. Tier 1 on that rate is $3,034.08 times 0.625, or $1,896.30 a month. Tier 2 on the same rate is $3,034.08 times 1.00, or the full $3,034.08 a month. A caregiver in Washington, D.C. or New York City, where the GS-4 rate runs higher, would see higher numbers at both tiers.

CHAMPVA Health Coverage and Respite Care

Two benefits travel with the Primary Family Caregiver’s stipend, not with the veteran’s own VA health care:

• Health coverage through CHAMPVA. If the Primary Family Caregiver doesn’t already qualify for coverage under another health plan, VA provides it through the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs (CHAMPVA), separate from the veteran’s own VA health care enrollment.
• At least 30 days of respite care every year. A substitute caregiver steps in, whether in the veteran’s home, a VA community living center, a VA-contracted residential facility, or an adult day health care center, so the Primary Family Caregiver can work, rest, or handle personal needs.

How Reassessment Can Change the Tier or End It

VA periodically checks whether the veteran and caregiver still meet PCAFC’s requirements, and that check is what can move a family between tiers or end participation. As of this writing, VA has suspended its routine annual reassessments while it reviews the program’s eligibility criteria, and states it will not remove a family or reduce a stipend based on those paused checks. Reassessment isn’t gone: VA still initiates one on request, for example to be considered for a move from Tier 1 to Tier 2, or if VA has its own evidence the veteran’s care needs have grown.

Separate from the reassessment pause, federal regulation (Title 38 of the Code of Federal Regulations, section 71.45) lays out specific reasons VA can revoke a caregiver’s designation or discharge the family from PCAFC. VA can revoke a designation for fraud, for neglect, abuse, or exploitation of the veteran, for an unresolved safety issue the caregiver won’t address, or for failing to attend a required reassessment or wellness check. VA can also discharge the family when the veteran’s condition has improved enough to no longer meet program requirements, but only after 60 days of advance written notice. If the veteran or caregiver dies or is institutionalized 90 days or more, VA discharges the family, but benefits continue 90 more days past that date. A caregiver can also ask to be discharged voluntarily.

How to Apply

The veteran and the prospective caregiver apply together, both signing and dating the same application. VA’s caregiver support team at the medical center where the veteran gets or plans to get care contacts the household to review it. Before finalizing a designation, VA requires caregiver education and training plus a home care assessment, and assigns the caregiver no later than 90 days after receiving the application. A household that disagrees with VA’s decision can appeal or request a review.

Two related programs worth checking alongside PCAFC: VA’s Aid and Attendance benefit pays the veteran directly for needing daily help, and VA’s Housebound benefit covers veterans confined home by disability without a designated caregiver. Neither replaces PCAFC’s stipend, but each is calculated separately.

Frequently asked questions

Does the veteran have to be rated 100% disabled to qualify for PCAFC? No. PCAFC only requires a single or combined VA disability rating of 70% or higher, plus a documented need for at least six months of continuous, in-person personal care. A veteran rated 100% who doesn’t need hands-on daily care wouldn’t meet the care-need side, while a veteran rated exactly 70% who does need that care could still qualify.

Can the caregiver’s stipend tier change after PCAFC approval? Yes. Either the veteran or the caregiver can ask VA to reassess the veteran’s care needs, and VA can start its own reassessment if it has evidence those needs have grown. A move from Tier 1 to Tier 2 happens when VA determines the veteran meets its “unable to self-sustain in the community” standard, not automatically with time in the program.

Does losing PCAFC mean the stipend stops immediately? It depends on the reason. Discharge tied to the veteran’s medical improvement requires VA to give 60 days of written notice first. If the veteran or caregiver dies or is institutionalized for 90 or more days, stipend payments continue for 90 more days past the discharge date rather than stopping the same day.

Does the Primary Family Caregiver have to live with the veteran full time? Yes. The caregiver must already live full time with the veteran, or be willing to move in if VA designates them as the caregiver. VA’s home care assessment confirms the living arrangement actually supports the personal care the veteran needs before finalizing approval.

Can a veteran have more than one caregiver receiving PCAFC benefits? A veteran can have one Primary Family Caregiver and up to two Secondary Family Caregivers at the same time. Only the Primary Family Caregiver receives the monthly stipend, CHAMPVA health coverage, and the respite-care access tied to PCAFC. Secondary Family Caregivers instead receive training, counseling, and certain travel benefits.